- When a new president enters the White House, he appoints leaders of 15 departments per Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution. These cabinet members act as advisers and include the secretaries of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Labor, State, Transportation, Treasury, and Veterans Affairs. The president also appoints an attorney general. In addition to advising the president on their respective task areas, these leaders are directly accountable to him. A president may choose to keep advisers from the previous president or appoint his own. Additionally, cabinet secretaries may resign or be requested to step down in the middle of a term.
- The president is also the Commander in Chief of the U.S. military. One chief each from the Air Force, Army, Navy and Marines in addition to the chairman and vice Chairman compose the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The Joint Chiefs of Staff were created by the National Security Act of 1947 and they are accountable to the president regarding all U.S. military operations.
- The National Security Council (NSC) was also created by the National Security Act of 1947. The council is the president's stage to discuss and receive advice on national security and foreign policy concerns. The NSC also acts as a liaison between the president and other federal agencies. The vice president, the secretary of state, the secretary of the treasury, the secretary of defense, and the assistant to the president for national security affairs are required to attend NSC meetings with the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff as director of national intelligence. Other officials who are invited, but do not necessarily need to attend, include the chief of staff to the president, counsel to the president, and the assistant to the president for economic policy. The attorney general and the director of the Office of Management and Budget are also invited to NSC meetings.
- The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), whose director is nominated by the president, has a history spotted with success and scandal. Its primary function is to provide intelligence about national security to the president and other senior policy makers, but it has been responsible for an unknown number of covert operations. Well-known operations include the Bay of Pigs Invasion under John F. Kennedy and the 1953 coup against Iranian nationalist Mohammad Mosaddegh. In addition to the director of the CIA being accountable to the president, the president may personally request the CIA to carry out covert operations.
previous post