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The Cabinet Secretaries – including State, Defense, Education, and others – are anything but secretaries listening to a boss. Each must excel in their field through education and experience. Their jobs are to advise the President and carry out directives to achieve successful outcomes. While some political appointees entered their roles with limited experience, many adapted quickly by learning or finding expert support. The President appoints all Secretaries, the Senate confirms them by majority vote, and no, shorthand is not required.
Robert White | History Columnist
Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick, will go through the process once the new Congress is seated in January.
The Cabinet has evolved with America’s needs. While some positions like Secretary of State date to our nation’s founding, others emerged more recently. The Department of Education began in May 1980, building on educational initiatives dating to 1867 under President Andrew Johnson. That same year saw the Department of Health and Human Services emerge from the Department of Health Education and Welfare. The original Cabinet included Alexander Hamilton as Treasury Secretary, Thomas Jefferson as Secretary of State, Henry Knox as Secretary of War, and Edmund Randolph as Attorney General. Some roles have vanished – the Postmaster General served as a Cabinet position for over 140 years. Today’s Cabinet comprises the Vice President plus 15 executive departments.
The Secretary of Defense position, created in 1949 after World War II, transformed the earlier Secretary of War role for the nuclear age. This change recognized America’s need for constant military preparedness, not just during wartime. By law, appointees cannot have served as military officers within seven years of their appointment, with a ten-year requirement for generals and admirals. While military experience might seem essential, six Secretaries of Defense served without it: Charles Wilson, Neil McElroy, James Schlesinger, Dick Cheney, Harold Brown (a nuclear physicist), and Mark Esper (who worked in government and private sectors).
The qualities of successful Defense Secretaries vary with circumstances. Only two graduated from military academies: George Marshall from Virginia Military Institute and current Secretary Lloyd Austin from West Point. Both required exceptions to the National Defense Act’s service restrictions. Congress has clearly prioritized exceptions over rules. America’s defense leaders have brought diverse expertise to the role. James Forrestal, though he never completed his studies at Dartmouth and Princeton, earned his place in history through his success containing Communist expansion in Yugoslavia, leading to the naming of one of America’s first supercarriers in his honor.
Most Defense Department leaders graduated from prestigious universities – Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Columbia, and Pennsylvania. Their backgrounds span law, investment banking, military service, and corporate leadership. Two brought scientific expertise as nuclear physicists, while others transitioned from leading major corporations like Ford and General Motors.
President-elect Trump’s nomination of Hegseth draws interesting parallels with past appointees. Like Forrestal, who began as a newspaper reporter, Hegseth built his career in media at Fox News – perhaps today’s equivalent of the influential newspapers of the early 1900s. He holds political science degrees from Princeton and Harvard, has authored several books, and generates big headlines in news outlets. His early career mirrors Forrestal’s path through investment banking, having worked as an analyst at Bear Stearns in 2005. Hegseth served with distinction in the Army and reserves, though his attempt to serve on January 6th in Washington DC ended, emails show, when officials rejected him over a Jerusalem Cross tattoo. His management record shows mixed results leading veterans’ organizations.
As with all Cabinet appointments, politics plays a central role. Hegseth’s advocacy for veterans strengthens his case, though he needs an exemption from the National Defense Act, having retired as a Major in the reserves within the seven-year window. Despite past management challenges, his commitment to veterans’ interests suggests he could serve effectively as Secretary of Defense.
There is one thing that we should consider in terms of Hegseth’s nomination. Based on past, (and what many would consider successful Secretaries of Defense), it is not unusual. In fact, in recent history, his background is more the norm than the exception. Generally, I think he could be a great Secretary of Defense, and I support any Secretary of Defense who puts veterans first.
–Robert White | Metro Voice. Bob is a local financial and retirement planner and historian.
