Dera George,
When you formed your cabinet, President Washington, your choices were several uniquely qualified people from an impressive list--mainly the very folks who 'built' the new Republic's Constitution from the remains of former British America.
George Washington's 4-member Cabinet was: *Thomas Jefferson as Secretary of State [lawyer, architect & philosopher] *Henry Knox as Secretary of War [Senior General of Continental Army During Revolutionary War] *Alexander Hamilton as Secretary of the Treasury [lawyer, MA philosophy--founded Federalist Party] and *Edmund Randolph as Attorney General [lawyer]
Scoot ahead from 1788 to 1861 and Abraham Lincoln's 7-member Cabinet had expanded by three. During his administration Lincoln filled the position of: Postmaster General, Secretary of the Navy and Secretary of the Interior.
Leaping into the 20th Century--in 1945 Harry Truman's Cabinet grew to--11. Along with circumstances like war[s] and massive manufacturing growth and governing a greater land mass, Truman needed to add: a Secretary of Defense, a Secretary of Agriculture, a Secretary of Commerce and a Secretary of Labor.
Mary, Mary quite contrary how does your [federal government] garden 'grow'? Substantially... And, not necessarily in keeping with the actual needs of an increase in population.
We have now arrived at our destination--2022 and "we-the-people" still get to vote George, but 234 years later there's a massive, unwieldy governing layer of people who are chosen for us...
Joe Biden's Cabinet has 23 appointed people. We didn't vote for any of these 23 people. People with Cabinet positions [with qualifications often arbitrary] who are permitted to head up a vast network of federal departments with substantial discretionary budgets and vast influence. [Example: Trump didn't make Ben Carson who was an actual medical doctor, our Secretary of Health and Human Servies--instead Dr. Carson became Secretary of Housing and Urban Development?? Then, Trump appointed former socialite Betsy DeVos [w/a BA in Business Economics] as our Secretary of Education??
[Resisting the urge to scream into a pillow I'll remind everyone here that I'm a Registered Independent, who has voted for candidates from both major parties though sadly, not necessarily for the one who could do the best job--but for the one who might do the least harm!] Moving on...
1.] Secretary of State Anthony Blinken--BA Social Studies from Harvard with a J.D. from Columbia School of Law. The Secretary of State, appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate is the President's chief foreign affairs adviser and carries out the Presidents foreign policies through the State Department and the U.S. Foreign Service. [2022 Budget $58 Billion]
2.] Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen--BA from Brown in Economics with MA and PhD in Economics from Yale then taught at Harvard. The Department of the Treasury is responsible for crucial functions that help keep the government running, that includes paying all U.S. bills and obligations, collecting taxes and managing all federal finances. [2022 Budget $1.7 Trillion--down from 6.8 Trillion in 2021.]
3.] Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin--4Star General, Graduate of West Point with a BA Science, MA Arts in Counselor-Education and MA Business Administration. The Constitution rests all military authority in Congress and the President. However, it's impractical for either Congress or the President to participate in every aspect of Defense affairs, therefore the Secretary of Defense and reporting officials exercise military authority. [2022 Budget $722 Billion]
4.] Attorney General Merrick Garland--BA Harvard in Social Studies with a J.D. from Harvard Law. The Attorney General is the Head of the Justice Department and attorney for the United States in all legal matters. The A.G. gives legal advice to the president and the heads of other government agencies on request. The Attorney General overseas the federal prison system and all other systems pertaining to incarceration. [2022 Budget $7 Billion]
5,] Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland--BA English with a JD in Indian Law from University of New Mexico. The Secretary of the Interior manages the conservation of federal land and natural resources along with other agencies: Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Geological Survey [USGS], Bureau of Indian Affairs and the National Parks Service. [2022 Budget $17.6 Billion]
7.] Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo--BA Economics with a MA in Philosophy & Sociology with a J.D. from Yale Law School. Primarily responsible for creating conditions for economic growth and opportunity. [2022 Budget $11.5 Billion]
8.] Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh--BA Social Science from Woods College of Boston College and former President of Labor Union Local 223. Department of Labor is responsible for standards and issues of wages and hours worked, occupational safety, employment services, unemployment benefits, labor statistics, work related rights and workplace conditions. [2022 Budget $504.5 Billion]
9.] Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra--BA Economics from Stanford and J.D. of Law from Standford. Responsible for health, welfare and income security programs--overseeing other agencies such as: Food and Drug Administration [FDA] the Center of Disease Control [CDC], National Institute of Health [NIH], Administration for Children and Families [ACF]/Foster-care and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services [CMS]. [2022 Budget $131.8 Billion]
10.] Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Marcia Fudge--BA of Science in Business from Ohio State University and J.D. from Ohio State Marshal College of Law. HUD is responsible for ensuring all communities provide housing and building handicapped accessible. Also fair, equal and affordable housing--both rental and owned. [2022 Budget $68.7 Billion]
12.] Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm--[Had early ambitions for a Hollywood career and appeared on The Dating Game] then earned a BA Political Science and French from California Berkley, later earned a J.D. from Harvard. Department of Energy is responsible for managing the U.S. nuclear weapons program, energy infrastructure policy and funds scientific research related to energy production and distribution. [2022 Budget 227.8 Billion]
13.] Secretary of Education Dr. Miguel Cardona--BA Science Education from Connecticut State University, followed by a MA Science in Bilingual & Bicultural Education, then a PhD in Education. Mainly oversees [recommends] matters related to education in the U.S. from kindergarten to college and university. However, since education in the U.S. is not centralized as it is in most other nations, the department scope is limited. [In 1993 public school education in America was rated 6th globally, by 2018 global standards for public school education rated America at 27th! What happened?] Since Covid, the numbers are not clear. [2022 Budget $188.16 Billion]
14.] Secretary of Veteran Affairs Denis McDonough--BA History & Spanish & taught History in Belize then earned a MA Science in Financial Services from Georgetown School of Foreign Service. The V.A. is charged to provide health, education, disability, funeral and financial benefits earned by all veterans who served in the United States Armed Forces. [2022 Budget $301.4 Billion]
16.] Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency Michael Regan--BA Earth & Environmental Science from North Carolina State University then MA Public Administration from Georgetown University DC. The EPA oversees national efforts for clean air and water, ensuring contaminated lands and toxic sites are cleaned by responsible parties and enforce environmental standards and regulations as directed by Congressional Laws. [2022 Budget $11.2 Billion]
17.] Director of National Intelligence Agency Avril Haines--BA Physics and J.D. from Georgetown University. Has principal authority to ensure maximum availability of and access to [any/all] intelligence information within the intelligence community, consistent with national security requirements. Oversees and directs the implementation of the National Intelligence program and acts as principal adviser to the President and Homeland Security. [2022 NIA Budget 4.2 Billion, CIA $62.3 Billion, Military Intelligence $23.3 Billion]
18.] United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai--BA History from Yale University and J.D. from Harvard. The USTR works toward opening world markets and to create higher living standards for other nations. Provides trade policy leadership and negotiations for multilateral trade and investment. [2022 Budget $73 Million]
19.] U.S. Ambassador at the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield--BA Arts from Louisianna State University and MA Public Administration from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Represents U.S. interests globally and keeps the U.S. State Department informed of events at the United Nations. [2022 Budget included in State Department]
21.] Administrator of Small Business Administration Isabel Guzman--BA Science from University of Pennsylvania, Warton School of Business. SBA mission is to provide small business owners with resources and support to start, grow and expand their business. Offers financial counseling, contracts loans and loan guarantees by partnering with local and national banks. [2022 Budget $1.06 Billion]
22.] Office of Budget and Management Shalanda Young--BA Psychology from Loyola University of New Orleans and MA of Heath Administration from Tulane University. Prepares the President's budget proposals. Budget development and execution for government-wide implementation of policies, priorities and actions in everything from the department of defense to NASA. [2022 Budget $98.5 Billion]
23.] White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain--BA Arts from Georgetown University and J.D. from Harvard Law. Managing and designing overall White House staffing system, control flow of people into the Oval Office, managing flow of information and decisions to and from President's desk, directing and overseeing all policy development, advise on various issues set for the president, protecting all political interests of the President, negotiating for legislation support and appropriating funds with Congressional leaders, Cabinet secretaries and additional political groups to further the President's agenda. [2022 White House [staff budget] of $49.6 Million for 567 people.]
*Vice President Kamala Harris--BA Political Science & Economics with J.D. from Hastings College of Law...The V.P. is second in the presidential line of succession. As President of the Senate the V.P. operates in both the executive and legislative branches of government and is sometimes formidable [Dick Chaney] but too often marginalized.
**United States President Joeseph R. Biden--BA double major History & Political Science, minor English with J.D. from Syracuse University College of Law. Harry S. Truman described the job of the U. S. President [besides the obvious] as responsible for Foreign Policy, is the Social Head of State, spends a lot of time persuading people to do what they 'should' do without persuasion, has the most authority but believes in the Magna Carts and the Bill of Rights and should be a Cincinnatus [of civic virtue as understood by the concept of citizenship]... [2021-2022 Budget $6.011 Trillion]
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And, now--Fellow Travelers--you may have notice that one million dollars doesn't go as far as it once did--quite scary. You also know who to call or write to...Please do.
