BUSH'S
CABINET - BRINGING AMERICA TOGETHER
By Freedom Writer
Anchorage, AK
JAN. 20. 2001
President
George W. Bush has nominated 14 people of diverse backgrounds, ethnic
origins, & sex. The strongly vocal opposition media campaign by
some extreme "left" special interest groups to block some of the
nominations will not succeed. History has been very favorable to
a new President's cabinet nominations, with very few exceptions
in 212 years. Let the "left" protest, peacefully, on Inauguration
Day, to express their First Amendment rights, while we explore just
who comprises this new Cabinet & what is it's significance.
The
U.S. Constitution makes no mention of a cabinet. Only a slight mention
of Presidential powers in Article II, Section 2 gives us:
"…he
may require the Opinion, in writing, of the principal Officer
in each of the executive Departments, upon any Subject relating
to the Duties of their respective Offices…"
In
1789, Congress established 3 departments - State, War, & Treasury
- and the office of Attorney General. The first recorded meeting
of the 3 secretaries was in 1791, which included the Vice-President.
Later the attorney general & secretary of the Navy attended meetings.
In 1907 a federal statute first used the term "cabinet". The last
cabinet slot to be designated was the Secretary of Veterans Affairs
in 1989.
The
Presidential Succession Act of 1947 determines the order of replacing
the President should the President & Vice-President die or become
disqualified. This act superceded the Presidential Succession Act
of 1886. The new law states the order is as follows:
Speaker
of the House
President pro tempore of the Senate (in absence of of the Vice-President,
this is chosen by the Senate)
Secretary of State
Secretary of the Treasury
Secretary of Defense
Attorney General
Secretary of the Interior
Secretary of Agriculture
Secretary of Commerce
Secretary of Labor
Secretary of Health & Human Services
Secretary of Housing & Urban Development
Secretary of Transportation
Secretary of Energy
Secretary of Education
Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
This
new law also states that a Cabinet member may not become acting
President unless the member is a citizen & at least 35 years old.
If the member who would logically succeed to the presidency is less
than 35, then the presidency passes to the next eligible member.
The
President appoints Cabinet members with the "advice & consent" of
the Senate & may dismiss them at any time. The President calls Cabinet
meetings & they usually take place weekly in the Cabinet Room of
the White House. Former President Clinton rarely conducted Cabinet
meetings. Cabinet members are legal officers of the federal government
& carry out government policies & administer their departments.
Cabinet members of an outgoing Presidency resign when a new President
takes office so that the new President can bring in his own team.
Here
are the Cabinet nominations for the new 43rd President - George
W. Bush - in order of succession:
Secretary
of State |
Colin
Powell |
Secretary
of the Treasury |
Paul
O'Neill |
Secretary
of Defense |
Donald
Rumsfeld |
Attorney
General |
John
Ashcroft |
Secretary
of the Interior |
Gail
Norton |
Secretary
of Agriculture |
Ann
Veneman |
Secretary
of Commerce |
Donald
Evans |
Secretary
of Labor |
Elaine
Chao |
Secretary
of Health & Human Services |
Tommy
Thompson |
Secretary
of Housing & Urban Development |
Mel
Martinez |
Secretary
of Transportation |
Norman
Mineta |
Secretary
of Energy |
Spencer
Abraham |
Secretary
of Education |
Roderick
Paige |
Secretary
of Veterans Affairs |
Anthony
Principi |
These
are men & women, of white, black, hispanic, Chinese, Italian, Japanese,
& Arab descent with experience in federal, state, & local governments
& the private sector that comprise the most socially diverse Cabinet
in U.S. history a good reflection of how America looks not tokenism,
but expertise.
Let's
hope that this new Administration returns the honor & dignity to
our federal government which was missing during the Clinton-Gore
years. While there may be an occasional raised eyebrow about some
things in the past of some of these nominees (Powell with American
soldiers as victims of chemical weapons during the Gulf War & Ashcroft
with the Senate-passed unconstitutional provisions of the Methamphetamine
Act of 1999), let's give them a good beginning to start solving
the problems left unresolved during these past 8 years. Let's hope
they will accomplish their slogan of "Bringing America Together".
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