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United States Secretary of State

The United States secretary of state (SecState[5]) is a member of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States and the head of the U.S. Department of State. The office holder is the second-highest-ranking member of the president's Cabinet, after the Vice President, and ranks fourth in the United States presidential line of succession; first amongst cabinet secretaries.

United States Secretary of State
Seal of the secretary of state
Flag of the secretary of state
Incumbent
Antony Blinken
since January 26, 2021
Department of State
StyleMr. Secretary (informal)
The Honorable[1] (formal)
His Excellency[2] (diplomatic)
Member ofCabinet
National Security Council
Reports toPresident
SeatWashington, D.C.
AppointerPresident
with Senate advice and consent
Constituting instrument22 U.S.C. § 2651
PrecursorSecretary of Foreign Affairs
FormationJuly 27, 1789; 234 years ago (1789-07-27)
First holderThomas Jefferson
SuccessionFourth[3]
DeputyDeputy Secretary
SalaryExecutive Schedule, Level I[4]

Created in 1789 with Thomas Jefferson as its first office holder, the secretary of state represents the United States to foreign countries, and is therefore considered analogous to a minister of foreign affairs in other countries.[6][7] The secretary of state is nominated by the president of the United States and, following a confirmation hearing before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, is confirmed by the United States Senate. The secretary of state, along with the secretary of the treasury, secretary of defense, and attorney general, are generally regarded as the four most crucial Cabinet members because of the importance of their respective departments.[8]

Secretary of State is a Level I position in the Executive Schedule and thus earns the salary prescribed for that level (US$221,400, as of January 2021).[9][4] The current secretary of state is Antony Blinken, who was confirmed on January 26, 2021, by the Senate by a vote of 78–22.[10]

History edit

The secretary of state originates from the government under the Articles of Confederation. The Congress of the Confederation established the Department of Foreign Affairs in 1781 and created the office of secretary of foreign affairs.[11] After the Constitution of the United States was ratified, the 1st United States Congress reestablished the department, renaming it the Department of State, and created the office of secretary of state to lead the department.[12]

Duties and responsibilities edit

The stated duties of the secretary of state are to supervise the United States foreign service and immigration policy and administer the Department of State. The secretary must also advise the president on U.S. foreign matters such as the appointment of diplomats and ambassadors, advising the president of the dismissal and recall of these people. The secretary of state can conduct negotiations, interpret, and terminate treaties relating to foreign policy. The secretary also can participate in international conferences, organizations, and agencies as a representative of the United States. The secretary communicates issues relating to the U.S. foreign policy to Congress and citizens. The secretary also provides services to U.S. citizens living or traveling abroad such as providing credentials in the form of passports. Doing this, the secretary also ensures the protection of citizens, their property, and interests in foreign countries.[13]

What are the Qualifications of a Secretary of State? He ought to be a Man of universal Reading in Laws, Governments, History. Our whole terrestrial Universe ought to be summarily comprehended in his Mind.

John Adams[14]

Secretaries of state also have domestic responsibilities. Most of the historical domestic functions of the Department of State were gradually transferred to other agencies by the late 19th century as part of various administrative reforms and restructurings.[15] Those that remain include storage and use of the Great Seal, performance of protocol functions for the White House, and the drafting of certain proclamations. The secretary also negotiates with the individual states over the extradition of fugitives to foreign countries.[16] Under federal law, the resignation of a president or of a vice president is valid only if declared in writing, in an instrument delivered to the office of the secretary of state.[17] Accordingly, the resignations of President Richard Nixon and of Vice President Spiro Agnew were formalized in instruments delivered to then-Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.

Although they have historically decreased over time, Congress may occasionally add to the responsibilities of the secretary of state. One such instance occurred in 2014, when Congress passed the Sean and David Goldman International Child Abduction Prevention and Return Act which mandated actions the Secretary of State must take in order to facilitate the return of abducted children from nations who are party to the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction.[18]

As the highest-ranking member of the cabinet, the secretary of state is the third-highest official of the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president and vice president, and is fourth in line to succeed the presidency, after the vice president, the speaker of the House of Representatives, and the president pro tempore of the Senate.

Six past secretaries of state – Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, John Quincy Adams, Van Buren and Buchanan – have gone on to be elected president. Others, including Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, Lewis Cass, John C. Calhoun, John M. Clayton, William L. Marcy, William Seward, Edward Everett, Jeremiah S. Black, James Blaine, Elihu B. Washburne, Thomas F. Bayard, John Sherman, Walter Q. Gresham, William Jennings Bryan, Philander C. Knox, Charles Evans Hughes, Elihu Root, Cordell Hull, Edmund Muskie, Alexander Haig, John Kerry, and Hillary Clinton have also campaigned as presidential candidates, either before or after their term of office as Secretary of State, but were ultimately unsuccessful. The position of Secretary of State has therefore been viewed to be a consolation prize for failed presidential candidates.[19]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Protocol Reference". United States Department of State. from the original on January 30, 2021. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  2. ^ (PDF). United Nations. January 29, 2021. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 14, 2020. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  3. ^ "3 U.S. Code § 19 – Vacancy in offices of both President and Vice President; officers eligible to act". Cornell Law School. from the original on December 26, 2018. Retrieved February 4, 2017.
  4. ^ a b 5 U.S.C. § 5312.
  5. ^ "Abbreviations and Terms" (PDF). 2001-2009.state.gov. (PDF) from the original on January 18, 2022. Retrieved July 18, 2023.
  6. ^ , Protocol and Liaison Service, United Nations. Retrieved November 2, 2012.
  7. ^ NATO Member Countries October 1, 2017, at the Wayback Machine, NATO. Retrieved November 2, 2012.
  8. ^ "Cabinets and Counselors: The President and the Executive Branch" (1997). Congressional Quarterly. p. 87.
  9. ^ "Salary Table No. 2021-EX Rates of Basic Pay for the Executive Schedule (EX)" (PDF). (PDF) from the original on January 29, 2022. Retrieved March 19, 2021.
  10. ^ "U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 117th Congress – 1st Session". U.S. Senate. from the original on January 30, 2021. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  11. ^ Short 1923, pp. 55–56.
  12. ^ "1 United States Statutes at Large, Chapter 4, Section 1". from the original on April 8, 2022. Retrieved March 29, 2022.
  13. ^ "Duties of the Secretary of State". U.S. Department of State. from the original on August 8, 2019. Retrieved February 1, 2017.
  14. ^ Ford, Worthington C., ed. (1927). Statesman and Friend: Correspondence of John Adams with Benjamin Waterhouse, 1784–1822. Boston, MA: Little, Brown, and Company. p. 57.
  15. ^ "Administrative Timeline of the Department of State – Department History – Office of the Historian". history.state.gov. from the original on November 11, 2021. Retrieved January 10, 2022.
  16. ^ "Duties of the Secretary of State of the United States". www.state.gov. United States Department of State. January 20, 2009. from the original on August 8, 2019. Retrieved March 28, 2010.
  17. ^ "3 U.S. Code § 20 – Resignation or refusal of office". LII / Legal Information Institute. from the original on December 2, 2017. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  18. ^ "H.R.3212 – 113th Congress (2013–2014): Sean and David Goldman International Child Abduction Prevention and Return Act of 2014". Congress.gov. August 8, 2014. from the original on May 1, 2022. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  19. ^ Stone, Andrea (August 12, 2014). "Why Do Secretaries of State Make Such Terrible Presidential Candidates?". Smithsonian Magazine. from the original on September 18, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.

Bibliography edit

  • Short, Lloyd Milton (1923). The Development of National Administrative Organization in the United States, Issue 10. United States: Johns Hopkins Press. ISBN 0598686584.

Further reading edit

  • Bemis, Samuel Flagg, ed. (1963) The American Secretaries of State and Their Diplomacy (19 vols.), scholarly biographies
  • Graebner, Norman A., ed. (1961) An Uncertain Tradition: American Secretaries of State in the Twentieth Century scholarly essays on John Hay through John Foster Dulles.
  • Hopkins, Michael F. (2008) "President Harry Truman's Secretaries of State: Stettinius, Byrnes, Marshall and Acheson" Journal of Transatlantic Studies v.6 n.3 pp. 290–304.
  • Mihalkanin, Edward, ed. (2004) online American Statesmen: Secretaries of State from John Jay to Colin Powell short scholarly articles by experts

External links edit

Listen to this article (2 minutes)
 
This audio file was created from a revision of this article dated 23 February 2010 (2010-02-23), and does not reflect subsequent edits.
  •   Media related to Secretaries of State of the United States at Wikimedia Commons
  •   Quotations related to United States Secretary of State at Wikiquote
  • Official website  
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by Order of precedence of the United States
as Secretary of State
Succeeded by
Preceded by
Otherwise Mike Pence
as Former Vice-President
Succeeded byas Secretary-General of the United Nations
U.S. presidential line of succession
Preceded by 4th in line Succeeded by

united, states, secretary, state, confused, with, secretary, state, state, government, united, states, secretary, state, secstate, member, executive, branch, federal, government, united, states, head, department, state, office, holder, second, highest, ranking. Not to be confused with Secretary of state U S state government The United States secretary of state SecState 5 is a member of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States and the head of the U S Department of State The office holder is the second highest ranking member of the president s Cabinet after the Vice President and ranks fourth in the United States presidential line of succession first amongst cabinet secretaries United States Secretary of StateSeal of the secretary of stateFlag of the secretary of stateIncumbentAntony Blinkensince January 26 2021Department of StateStyleMr Secretary informal The Honorable 1 formal His Excellency 2 diplomatic Member ofCabinetNational Security CouncilReports toPresidentSeatWashington D C AppointerPresidentwith Senate advice and consentConstituting instrument22 U S C 2651PrecursorSecretary of Foreign AffairsFormationJuly 27 1789 234 years ago 1789 07 27 First holderThomas JeffersonSuccessionFourth 3 DeputyDeputy SecretarySalaryExecutive Schedule Level I 4 Created in 1789 with Thomas Jefferson as its first office holder the secretary of state represents the United States to foreign countries and is therefore considered analogous to a minister of foreign affairs in other countries 6 7 The secretary of state is nominated by the president of the United States and following a confirmation hearing before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations is confirmed by the United States Senate The secretary of state along with the secretary of the treasury secretary of defense and attorney general are generally regarded as the four most crucial Cabinet members because of the importance of their respective departments 8 Secretary of State is a Level I position in the Executive Schedule and thus earns the salary prescribed for that level US 221 400 as of January 2021 9 4 The current secretary of state is Antony Blinken who was confirmed on January 26 2021 by the Senate by a vote of 78 22 10 Contents 1 History 2 Duties and responsibilities 3 See also 4 References 4 1 Bibliography 5 Further reading 6 External linksHistory editThe secretary of state originates from the government under the Articles of Confederation The Congress of the Confederation established the Department of Foreign Affairs in 1781 and created the office of secretary of foreign affairs 11 After the Constitution of the United States was ratified the 1st United States Congress reestablished the department renaming it the Department of State and created the office of secretary of state to lead the department 12 Duties and responsibilities editThe stated duties of the secretary of state are to supervise the United States foreign service and immigration policy and administer the Department of State The secretary must also advise the president on U S foreign matters such as the appointment of diplomats and ambassadors advising the president of the dismissal and recall of these people The secretary of state can conduct negotiations interpret and terminate treaties relating to foreign policy The secretary also can participate in international conferences organizations and agencies as a representative of the United States The secretary communicates issues relating to the U S foreign policy to Congress and citizens The secretary also provides services to U S citizens living or traveling abroad such as providing credentials in the form of passports Doing this the secretary also ensures the protection of citizens their property and interests in foreign countries 13 What are the Qualifications of a Secretary of State He ought to be a Man of universal Reading in Laws Governments History Our whole terrestrial Universe ought to be summarily comprehended in his Mind John Adams 14 Secretaries of state also have domestic responsibilities Most of the historical domestic functions of the Department of State were gradually transferred to other agencies by the late 19th century as part of various administrative reforms and restructurings 15 Those that remain include storage and use of the Great Seal performance of protocol functions for the White House and the drafting of certain proclamations The secretary also negotiates with the individual states over the extradition of fugitives to foreign countries 16 Under federal law the resignation of a president or of a vice president is valid only if declared in writing in an instrument delivered to the office of the secretary of state 17 Accordingly the resignations of President Richard Nixon and of Vice President Spiro Agnew were formalized in instruments delivered to then Secretary of State Henry Kissinger Although they have historically decreased over time Congress may occasionally add to the responsibilities of the secretary of state One such instance occurred in 2014 when Congress passed the Sean and David Goldman International Child Abduction Prevention and Return Act which mandated actions the Secretary of State must take in order to facilitate the return of abducted children from nations who are party to the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction 18 As the highest ranking member of the cabinet the secretary of state is the third highest official of the executive branch of the U S federal government after the president and vice president and is fourth in line to succeed the presidency after the vice president the speaker of the House of Representatives and the president pro tempore of the Senate Six past secretaries of state Jefferson Madison Monroe John Quincy Adams Van Buren and Buchanan have gone on to be elected president Others including Henry Clay Daniel Webster Lewis Cass John C Calhoun John M Clayton William L Marcy William Seward Edward Everett Jeremiah S Black James Blaine Elihu B Washburne Thomas F Bayard John Sherman Walter Q Gresham William Jennings Bryan Philander C Knox Charles Evans Hughes Elihu Root Cordell Hull Edmund Muskie Alexander Haig John Kerry and Hillary Clinton have also campaigned as presidential candidates either before or after their term of office as Secretary of State but were ultimately unsuccessful The position of Secretary of State has therefore been viewed to be a consolation prize for failed presidential candidates 19 See also editList of secretaries of state of the United States List of international trips made by secretaries of state of the United StatesReferences edit Protocol Reference United States Department of State Archived from the original on January 30 2021 Retrieved January 31 2021 United Nations Heads of State Protocol and Liaison Service PDF United Nations January 29 2021 Archived from the original PDF on September 14 2020 Retrieved January 31 2021 3 U S Code 19 Vacancy in offices of both President and Vice President officers eligible to act Cornell Law School Archived from the original on December 26 2018 Retrieved February 4 2017 a b 5 U S C 5312 Abbreviations and Terms PDF 2001 2009 state gov Archived PDF from the original on January 18 2022 Retrieved July 18 2023 Heads of State Heads of Government Ministers for Foreign Affairs Protocol and Liaison Service United Nations Retrieved November 2 2012 NATO Member Countries Archived October 1 2017 at the Wayback Machine NATO Retrieved November 2 2012 Cabinets and Counselors The President and the Executive Branch 1997 Congressional Quarterly p 87 Salary Table No 2021 EX Rates of Basic Pay for the Executive Schedule EX PDF Archived PDF from the original on January 29 2022 Retrieved March 19 2021 U S Senate Roll Call Votes 117th Congress 1st Session U S Senate Archived from the original on January 30 2021 Retrieved January 31 2021 Short 1923 pp 55 56 1 United States Statutes at Large Chapter 4 Section 1 Archived from the original on April 8 2022 Retrieved March 29 2022 Duties of the Secretary of State U S Department of State Archived from the original on August 8 2019 Retrieved February 1 2017 Ford Worthington C ed 1927 Statesman and Friend Correspondence of John Adams with Benjamin Waterhouse 1784 1822 Boston MA Little Brown and Company p 57 Administrative Timeline of the Department of State Department History Office of the Historian history state gov Archived from the original on November 11 2021 Retrieved January 10 2022 Duties of the Secretary of State of the United States www state gov United States Department of State January 20 2009 Archived from the original on August 8 2019 Retrieved March 28 2010 3 U S Code 20 Resignation or refusal of office LII Legal Information Institute Archived from the original on December 2 2017 Retrieved January 31 2021 H R 3212 113th Congress 2013 2014 Sean and David Goldman International Child Abduction Prevention and Return Act of 2014 Congress gov August 8 2014 Archived from the original on May 1 2022 Retrieved May 1 2022 Stone Andrea August 12 2014 Why Do Secretaries of State Make Such Terrible Presidential Candidates Smithsonian Magazine Archived from the original on September 18 2021 Retrieved September 15 2021 Bibliography edit Short Lloyd Milton 1923 The Development of National Administrative Organization in the United States Issue 10 United States Johns Hopkins Press ISBN 0598686584 Further reading editBemis Samuel Flagg ed 1963 The American Secretaries of State and Their Diplomacy 19 vols scholarly biographies Graebner Norman A ed 1961 An Uncertain Tradition American Secretaries of State in the Twentieth Century scholarly essays on John Hay through John Foster Dulles Hopkins Michael F 2008 President Harry Truman s Secretaries of State Stettinius Byrnes Marshall and Acheson Journal of Transatlantic Studies v 6 n 3 pp 290 304 Mihalkanin Edward ed 2004 online American Statesmen Secretaries of State from John Jay to Colin Powell short scholarly articles by expertsExternal links editListen to this article 2 minutes source source nbsp This audio file was created from a revision of this article dated 23 February 2010 2010 02 23 and does not reflect subsequent edits Audio help More spoken articles nbsp Media related to Secretaries of State of the United States at Wikimedia Commons nbsp Quotations related to United States Secretary of State at Wikiquote Official website nbsp U S order of precedence ceremonial Preceded byAmbassadors from the United States while at their posts Order of precedence of the United Statesas Secretary of State Succeeded byAmbassadors to the United States in order of tenure Preceded byOtherwise Mike Penceas Former Vice President Succeeded byOtherwise Antonio Guterresas Secretary General of the United NationsU S presidential line of successionPreceded byPresident pro tempore of the SenatePatty Murray 4th in line Succeeded bySecretary of the TreasuryJanet Yellen Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title United States Secretary of State amp oldid 1214999792, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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