The US Defense Minister (the United States Secretary of Defense ) is the official name of a ministerial position in the Cabinet of the President of the United States , which is responsible for all matters concerning the leadership of the United States Armed Forces in peacetime and wartime. He is the head of the US Department of Defense . Literally, the title of the position is translated as Secretary of Defense , the terms of the ministry and the minister in the United States are not used (the terms department and secretary are used instead). Appointed by the President with the approval of the Senate . By law, a citizen cannot be appointed a US defense secretary for seven years after being discharged from active service as an officer of the regular units of the US Armed Forces (10th United States Law, Section 113). The Secretary of Defense in the hierarchy is the seventh person in the state and the sixth in order of succession to the powers of the president.
| US Secretary of Defense | |
|---|---|
| United States Secretary of Defense | |
 US Department of Defense stamp | |
 Position is Mark Esper from June 24, 2019 | |
| Heads up | defense Department |
| Candidate is invited | President of the United States |
| Assigned | approved by the US Senate |
| Position appeared | |
| First in position | James forrestal |
| US Presidential Substitution | 6 |
| Site | www.defenselink.mil |
This post appeared in 1947 , when the naval forces, the army and the newly created air force were merged into the National Military Establishment . As a result of a major reorganization, the ministers of the US Army (land forces) ( Department of the Army ), the Air Force ( Department of the Air Force ) and the Navy ( Department of the Navy ) ceased to be members of the cabinet and were subordinated to the Secretary of Defense.
In 1949, the national defense ministry was renamed the Ministry of Defense; this name still exists.
Inside the US military, the Secretary of Defense is often referred to as SecDef ( Secretary of Defense ).
The Secretary of Defense and the President of the United States together are the Authorized National Command ( NCA ), which can activate strategic nuclear weapons . All nuclear weapons obey the two-man rule . According to this rule, they both must order to activate nuclear forces in order for the order to be executed.
The Minister of Defense is the head of the Ministry of Defense . Directly obey him:
- Deputy Minister of Defense, Deputy Minister of Defense Logistics ( Under Secretary of Defense for Technology, and Logistics ),
- Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller ), Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller)
- Head of Intelligence, Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness
- Under Secretary of Defense for Political Affairs ( Under Secretary of Defense for Policy ). All these deputies must be approved by the Senate .
The United States Secretary of Defense reports to the six heads of the Joint Chiefs of Staff , and he also commands nine joint commanders.
US Secretary of Defense
| Name | Dates of service | Served under the president |
|---|---|---|
| James Forrestal | September 17, 1947 - March 28, 1949 | Harry truman |
| Louis Arthur Johnson | March 28, 1949 - September 19, 1950 | Harry truman |
| George Marshall | September 21, 1950 - September 12, 1951 | Harry truman |
| Robert Lovett | September 17, 1951 - January 20, 1953 | Harry truman |
| Charles wilson | January 28, 1953 - October 8, 1957 | Dwight Eisenhower |
| Neil McElroy | October 9, 1957 - December 1, 1959 | Dwight Eisenhower |
| Thomas gates | December 2, 1959 - January 20, 1961 | Dwight Eisenhower |
| Robert McNamara | January 21, 1961 - February 29, 1968 | John kennedy , lyndon johnson |
| Clark Clifford | March 1, 1968 - January 20, 1969 | Lyndon johnson |
| Melvin laird | January 22, 1969 - January 29, 1973 | Richard Nixon |
| Eliot Richardson | January 30, 1973 - May 24, 1973 | Richard Nixon |
| James schlesinger | July 2, 1973 - November 19, 1975 | Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford |
| Donald Rumsfeld | November 20, 1975 - January 20, 1977 | Gerald ford |
| Harold brown | January 21, 1977 - January 20, 1981 | Jimmy Carter |
| Caspar Weinberger | January 21, 1981 - November 23, 1987 | Ronald reagan |
| Frank Carluchi | November 23, 1987 - January 20, 1989 | Ronald reagan |
| Richard Cheney | March 21, 1989 - January 20, 1993 | George Herbert Walker Bush |
| Espin Forest | January 21, 1993 - February 3, 1994 | Bill clinton |
| William Perry | February 3, 1994 - January 23, 1997 | Bill clinton |
| William Cohen | January 24, 1997 - January 20, 2001 | Bill clinton |
| Donald Rumsfeld | January 20, 2001 - December 18, 2006 | George Walker Bush |
| Robert Gates | December 18, 2006 - June 30, 2011 | George Walker Bush, Barack Obama |
| Leon Panetta | June 30, 2011 - February 27, 2013 | Barack Obama |
| Chuck Hagel | February 27, 2013 - February 17, 2015 | Barack Obama |
| Ashton carter | February 17, 2015 - January 20, 2017 | Barack Obama |
| James Mattis | January 20, 2017 - January 1, 2019 | Donald trump |
| Patrick Shanahan (Acting) | January 1, 2019 - June 24, 2019 | Donald trump |
| Mark Esper (Acting) | June 24, 2019 - to present | Donald trump |
Succession order
By order of December 22, 2005, US President George Walker Bush changed the order of succession in the Department of Defense, bringing it to the following form:
- Deputy Minister of Defense .
- Deputy Secretary of Defense for Intelligence.
- Deputy Minister of Defense for politico-military issues.
- Deputy Secretary of Defense for Logistics.
- State Secretary of the United States Army.
- Secretary of State of the United States Naval Forces.
- State Secretary of the United States Air Force.
- Deputy Minister of Defense for Human Resources and Combat Readiness and Deputy Minister of Defense (Comptroller / Chief Financial Inspector).
- Assistant to the Deputy Minister of Defense for Logistics, Assistant to the Deputy Minister of Defense for Political-Military Issues and Assistant to the Deputy Minister of Defense for Human Resources and Readiness.
- General Advisor to the Department of Defense, Assistant Secretary of Defense and Head of Operational Testing and Evaluation.
- Assistant to the Deputy Minister of Defense for Logistics and Material Preparedness and Head of the Department of Research and Development of the Ministry of Defense ( Director of Defense Research and Engineering ).
- Deputy commanders of the ground, air force, naval forces.
- Assistants and general advisers to the commanders of ground, air, and naval forces.
Links
- Biography of US Defense Ministers
- U.S. Department of Defense Order of December 22, 2005
- Famous US commanders - there are ministers and deputies.