The Cabinet
George Washington and the Creation of an American Institution
- ISBN: 9780674986480
- Editorial: Harvard University Press
- Fecha de la edición: 2020
- Lugar de la edición: Cambridge. Estados Unidos de Norteamérica
- Encuadernación: Cartoné
- Medidas: 22 cm
- Nº Pág.: 432
- Idiomas: Inglés
On November 26, 1791, George Washington convened his department secretaries—Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, Henry Knox, and Edmund Randolph—for the first cabinet meeting. Why did he wait two and a half years into his presidency to call his cabinet? Because the U.S. Constitution did not create or provide for such a body. Washington was on his own.
Faced with diplomatic crises, domestic insurrections, and constitutional challenges—and finding congressional help lacking—Washington decided he needed a group of advisors he could turn to. He modeled his new cabinet on the councils of war he had led as commander of the Continental Army. In the early days, the cabinet served at the president’s pleasure. Washington tinkered with its structure throughout his administration, at times calling regular meetings, at other times preferring written advice and individual discussions.
11 photos
