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Government Officials
Cabinet Members with Dates of
Appointment
Although the Constitution made no provision for a president's advisory
group, the heads of the three executive departments (State, Treasury, and
War) and the attorney general were organized by Washington into such a
group; and by about 1793, the name “cabinet” was applied to
it. With the exception of the attorney general up to 1870 and the
postmaster general from 1829 to 1872, cabinet members have been heads of
executive departments.
Cabinet members are appointed by the president, subject to the
confirmation of the Senate; and as their terms are not fixed, they may be
replaced at any time by the president. At a change in administration, it
is customary for cabinet members to resign, but they remain in office
until successors are appointed.
The table of cabinet members lists only those members who actually
served after being duly commissioned. The dates shown are those of
appointment. “Cont.” indicates that the term continued from
the previous administration for a substantial amount of time.
With the creation of the Department of Transportation in 1966, the
Cabinet consisted of 12 members. This figure was reduced to 11 when the
Post Office Department became an independent agency in 1970 but, with the
establishment in 1977 of a Department of Energy, became 12 again. Creation
of the Department of Education in 1980 raised the number to 13. Creation
of the Department of Veterans' Affairs in 1989 raised the number to 14.
The establishment of the Department of Homeland Security in 2002 brought
the number to 15.
Information Please® Database, © 2008 Pearson
Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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