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President-elect Bush’s Cabinet Nominations

These are the positions nominated by President-elect George W. Bush.

All Cabinet nominations must be confirmed by a vote of the Senate.

President Bush’s Cabinet – 2001
No. Department Year Established Notes Nominee
1
State
1789
Originally named Department of Foreign Affairs but redesignated Department of State in 1789
Gen. Colin Powell
2
Treasury
1789
Expanded through a subsequent series of statutes
Paul O’Neill
3
Interior
1849
Created by the merger of the General Land Office, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Pension Office, and Patent Office
Gale Norton
4
Agriculture
1862
Originally administered by a commissioner, the department saw its powers expand in 1889
Ann Veneman
5
Justice/Attorney General
1870
Before 1870 the attorney general was a cabinet officer but not head of a department
John Ashcroft
6
Labor
1913
Originally a bureau within the Department of Interior, it became an independent department in 1913
Elaine Chao 
Linda Chavez (withdrew)
7
Commerce
1913
Designated a department when the Department of Commerce and Labor, created in 1903, was reorganised
Don Evans
8
Defense
1949
After several reorganisations, the original Departments of War (1789) and Navy (1798) were merged into the Department of Defence
Donald Rumsfeld
9
Health and Human Services
1953
Established as the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare but redesignated Health and Human Services when Education was made a separate department in 1979
Tommy Thompson
10
Housing and Urban Affairs
1965
Created by combining agencies responsible for housing, including the Housing and Home Finance Agency, with those involved in urban development
Mel Martinez
11
Transportation
1966
Created out of eight existing agencies
Norman Y. Mineta
12
Energy
1977
Created by transferring existing energy agencies and bureaus to the new department
Spencer Abraham
13
Education
1979
Originally the Office of Education in the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare
Rod Paige
14
Veterans Affairs
1988
Created by elevating the Veterans Administration to cabinet-level status
Anthony Principi

 

Other Appointments – 2001
No. Position/Office Nominee
1
Chief of Staff Andrew Card
2
National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice
3
Press Secretary Ari Fleischer
4
President’s Counselor Karen Hughes
5
White House Counsel Alberto R. Gonzales
6
Environmental Protection Agency Christine Todd Whitman
7
Office of Management and Budget Director Mitchell E. Daniels Jr.
8
White House Economic Adviser Lawrence B. Lindsey
AustralianPolitics.com
Malcolm Farnsworth
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