Secretary of State: Difference between revisions

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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 [[Ministry of foreign affairs|minister of foreign affairs]] in other countries.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120927014351/http://www.un.int/protocol/documents/Hspmfm.pdf "Heads of State, Heads of Government, Ministers for Foreign Affairs"], Protocol and Liaison Service, [[United Nations]]. Retrieved November 2, 2012.</ref><ref>[http://www.nato.int/cps/en/SID-C0FDE451-36F2483B/natolive/nato_countries.htm NATO Member Countries] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171001021817/http://www.nato.int/cps/en/SID-C0FDE451-36F2483B/natolive/nato_countries.htm |date=October 1, 2017 }}, [[NATO]]. Retrieved November 2, 2012.</ref> The secretary of state is nominated by the president of the United States and, following a [[United States congressional hearing|confirmation hearing]] before the [[United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations|Senate Committee on Foreign Relations]], is confirmed by the [[United States Senate|Senate]]. The secretary of state, along with the [[United States Secretary of the Treasury|secretary of the treasury]], [[United States Secretary of Defense|secretary of defense]], and [[United States Attorney General|attorney general]], are generally regarded as the four most crucial Cabinet members because of the importance of their respective departments.<ref>"Cabinets and Counselors: The President and the Executive Branch" (1997). ''[[Congressional Quarterly]]''. p. 87.</ref>

== History ==

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.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Administrative Timeline of the Department of State – Department History – Office of the Historian|url=https://history.state.gov/departmenthistory/timeline/1789-1899|access-date=January 10, 2022|website=history.state.gov|archive-date=November 11, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211111183128/https://history.state.gov/departmenthistory/timeline/1789-1899|url-status=live}}</ref> Those that remain include storage and use of the Great Seal, performance of [[Protocol (diplomacy)|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.<ref name="duties">{{cite web|url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/secretary/115194.htm|title=Duties of the Secretary of State of the United States|date=January 20, 2009|publisher=United States Department of State|work=www.state.gov|access-date=March 28, 2010|archive-date=August 8, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190808114347/https://2009-2017.state.gov/secretary/115194.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{Cite web|title=3 U.S. Code § 20 – Resignation or refusal of office|url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/3/20|access-date=January 31, 2021|website=LII / Legal Information Institute|language=en|archive-date=December 2, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171202201822/https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/3/20|url-status=live}}</ref> Accordingly, the resignations of President [[Watergate scandal#Final investigations and resignation|Richard Nixon]] and of Vice President [[Spiro Agnew]] were formalized in instruments delivered to then-Secretary of State [[Henry Kissinger]].

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 [[United States presidential line of succession|line to succeed the presidency]], after the [[Vice President of the United States|vice president]], the [[Speaker of the United States House of Representatives|speaker of the House of Representatives]], and the [[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|president pro tempore of the Senate]].

==See also==