The United States secretary of defense (SecDef) is the head of the United States Department of Defense,the executive department of the U.S. Armed Forces,and is a high-ranking member of the federal cabinet. The secretary of defense's position of command and authority over the military is second only to that of the president of the United States,who is the commander-in-chief. This position corresponds to what is generally known as a defense minister in many other countries. The secretary of defense is appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate,and is by custom a member of the Cabinet and by law a member of the National Security Council.
The United States order of precedence is an advisory document maintained by the Ceremonials Division of the Office of the Chief of Protocol of the United States which lists the ceremonial order,or relative preeminence,for domestic and foreign government officials at diplomatic,ceremonial,and social events within the United States and abroad. The list is used to mitigate miscommunication and embarrassment in diplomacy,and offer a distinct and concrete spectrum of preeminence for ceremonies. Often the document is used to advise diplomatic and ceremonial event planners on seating charts and order of introduction. Former presidents,vice presidents,first ladies,second ladies,and secretaries of state and retired Supreme Court justices are also included in the list.
Michael Walter Wynne is an American politician and business executive and was the 21st United States Secretary of the Air Force. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates asked for and received his resignation on June 5,2008,in the wake of the 2007 United States Air Force nuclear weapons incident and the mistaken shipment of Minuteman III parts to Taiwan in 2006,followed by an investigation by and a critical report from Admiral Kirkland H. Donald regarding the Minuteman incident.
Alex Michael Azar II is an American attorney,businessman,lobbyist,and former pharmaceutical executive who served as the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services from 2018 to 2021. Azar was nominated to his post by President Donald Trump on November 13,2017,and confirmed by the United States Senate on January 24,2018. He was also chairman of the White House Coronavirus Task Force from its inception in January 2020 to February 2020,when he was replaced by Vice President Mike Pence.
Joseph Devereux Kernan is a retired United States Navy vice admiral and the former under secretary of defense for intelligence. His last military assignment was serving as the military deputy commander of the United States Southern Command (USSOUTHCOM),Miami,Florida,from May 23,2011,to September 2013. He was the second-in-command of one of nine unified commands under the Department of Defense.
Michael Bruce Donley is a United States government official who is the director of administration and management in the Office of the Secretary of Defense since May 2021,having served in the same position from 2005 to 2008. In the Bush and Obama administrations,Donley served as the 22nd secretary of the Air Force,amongst other positions. Donley has 30 years of experience in the national security community,including service on the staff of the United States Senate,White House and The Pentagon.
Frank Graham Klotz served as Under Secretary of Energy for Nuclear Security and Administrator for the National Nuclear Security Administration of the U.S. Department of Energy. He was confirmed for the position on April 8,2014,and retired on January 20,2018.
John Holden Gibson II is an American businessman and government official. Gibson is the former Chief Management Officer of the United States Department of Defense. Prior to serving as CMO,Gibson served as the Deputy Chief Management Officer for the Defense Department from November 2017 to February 2018. He has been chief financial officer,chief operating officer,and managing director for several companies including a national consulting group. Gibson previously served as Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Management Reform and as Assistant Secretary of the Air Force.
The National Space Council is a body within the Executive Office of the President of the United States created in 1989 during the George H. W. Bush administration,disbanded in 1993,and reestablished in June 2017 by the Donald Trump administration. It is a modified version of the earlier National Aeronautics and Space Council (1958–1973).
Jovita Carranza is an American businesswoman who served as the 26th Administrator of the Small Business Administration from 2020 to 2021,having previously served as the 44th Treasurer of the United States from 2017 to 2020. She was appointed to both roles by President Donald Trump. Before that she served as the Deputy Administrator of the Small Business Administration from December 2006 to January 2009. Appointed by President George W. Bush,Carranza was unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Prior to her first appointment to the SBA,Carranza served as Vice President of Air Operations for United Parcel Service (UPS) at its facility in Louisville,Kentucky.
Christopher Pell Liddell is a New Zealand-American businessperson who served as Chief Financial Officer of Microsoft,the Vice Chairman of General Motors,Senior Vice President and CFO of International Paper,Director and Chairman of Xero and the White House Deputy Chief of Staff in the Trump Administration.
Joseph Keith Kellogg Jr. is a former United States government official and a retired lieutenant general in the United States Army. He previously served as the National Security Advisor to Vice President Mike Pence,and as the Executive Secretary and Chief of Staff of the United States National Security Council in the Trump administration. He served as National Security Advisor on an acting basis following the resignation of Michael T. Flynn.
This is a list of political appointments of current officeholders made by the 45th president of the United States,Donald Trump.
Eric M. Ueland is an American political advisor and government official in the Trump administration. He served as the acting Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security,Democracy,and Human Rights from 2020 to 2021 and previously as the Acting Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Organization Affairs in 2020.
Mark Thomas Esper is an American politician and manufacturing executive who served as the 27th United States secretary of defense from 2019 to 2020. A member of the Republican Party,he had previously served as the 23rd U.S. secretary of the Army from November 2017 to July 2019.
Irwin Steven Goldstein is a former American diplomat,government official,and businessman who served as Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs at the United States Department of State during Secretary Rex Tillerson's tenure in the Trump Administration. He was also Assistant to the Secretary and Director of Public Affairs at the United States Department of the Interior under Manuel Lujan Jr. during the Presidency of George H. W. Bush.
Kathryn Lynn Wheelbarger is an American attorney and government official,who served as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs from 2018 to 2020.
Anna Marie Manasco is an American attorney from Alabama who is a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama.
The core White House staff appointments,and most Executive Office of the President officials generally,are not required to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate,with a handful of exceptions. There are about 4,000 positions in the Executive Office of the President.
United States Army 