Who is in the Cabinet?

The Cabinet consists of the heads of the 15 executive departments plus other officials given Cabinet rank by the President. The 15 statutory Cabinet department heads are the Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Defense, the Attorney General (who heads the Department of Justice), the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of Labor, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, the Secretary of Transportation, the Secretary of Energy, the Secretary of Education, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and the Secretary of Homeland Security. Each of these officials is appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate.

Modern Cabinets typically also include several officials given Cabinet rank by the President, even though they do not lead executive departments. These often include the Vice President, the White House Chief of Staff, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, the United States Trade Representative, the Director of National Intelligence, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, the Ambassador to the United Nations, the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, the Administrator of the Small Business Administration, and the Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers. The exact list varies by administration based on the President's priorities and management style.

Cabinet members are responsible for leading their departments, developing administration policy in their areas, testifying before Congress, and representing the administration to the public and to foreign counterparts. They serve at the pleasure of the President, meaning they can be removed at any time. Cabinet meetings are held at the President's discretion.

The departments included in the Cabinet have evolved over time. The Department of State, the Treasury, and the War Department (now Defense) all date to 1789. The Department of Homeland Security, the most recent addition, was created in 2002 in response to the September 11 attacks. The Departments of Veterans Affairs, Education, Energy, and Transportation are all 20th-century creations responding to expanded federal responsibilities. Several Cabinet members are also in the line of presidential succession.