The President's Advisors

Presidents depend on the cabinet and the Executive Office of the President to do their jobs. President George Washington was the first to have a cabinet, or a group of advisors. President Franklin D. Roosevelt was the first to have the Executive Office.

The Executive Office of the President

The Executive office of the President is a group of agencies. The President has named his most trusted assistants to these agencies. The major ones are:

1.White House Office: Its members are the President's personal aides. They advise the President on foreign policy, defense, relations with Congress, and politics. They are usually the advisors closet to the President.

2. National Security Council: It advises the President about the military and other matters about the nation's safety. Members include the Vice President and secretaries of state and defense. The director of the Central Intelligence Agency and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff also come to the meetings.

3. Office of Management and Budget: It prepares the federal budget. This is a plan of how much money the Federal Government expects to take in and spend. The agency also checks to see that money is spent as Congress had planned it.

4. Office of National Drug Control Policy: It plans drug policy and watches over some 50 agencies that work to rid this country of illegal drugs.

5. Council of Economic Advisors: It suppliess information on the nation's financial state. It helps the President write his annual economic report.

The Cabinet

By tradition, the heads of the executive departments make up the cabinet. The chart below lists these leaders. In recent years Presidents have invited the director of the Office of Management and Budget, the trade representative, and White House advisors to the cabinet. The Vice President also is a member.

The President selects cabinet members. The Senate approves them. The choices usually come from the President's political party. They generally have experience in the business of their department. For example, the treasury secretary may have worked in banking. Presidents also try to have advisors from different parts of the country. Recent Presidents have named women and minorities to the cabinet.

Cabinet members have two major jobs. Each one runs an executive department. Together, they advise the President. Some Presidents have asked for much help from their cabinets. Others have relied more on friends.

The President's Cabinet:

Cabinet Post- Year Created-

Secretary of State 1789

Secretary of the Treasury 1789

Secretary of Defense 1947

Attorney General 1947

Secretary of the the Interior 1849

Secretary of Agriculture 1889

Secretary of Commerce 1903

Secretary of Labor 1913

Secretary of Health and Human Services 1953

Secretary of Housing and Urban Development 1965

Secertary of Transportation 1967

Secretary of Energy 1977

Secretary of Education 1979

Secretary of Veteran Affairs 1989

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