Donald Trump’s Cabinet, just like that of any other president in the history of the United States, is made up of a wide range of people that are selected to head various government departments, and then advice the president accordingly on what actions to take in regards to specific issues concerning them.
Since becoming president, Trump’s cabinet has taken different forms, following the firing and resignation of some members as well as the hiring of others to replace them. As of February 2019, these are the current members of Donald Trump’s cabinet.
Current Members of Donald Trump’s Cabinet
1. Mike Pence – Vice President
took over office together with President Trump on January 20, 2017, as the 48th vice president of the United States. Before taking office, he served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from 2001 to 2003 and then as the 50th governor of Indiana from 2013 to 2017. He attended and graduated from Hanover College before obtaining a degree from the Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law. He once worked as a radio and TV talk show host.
2. Mike Pompeo – Secretary of State
was announced as the Secretary of State on March 13, 2018. He was subsequently confirmed on April 23 by the Senate. He was appointed to replace Rex Tillerson.
Prior to his new role, Pompeo served as the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, from January 23, 2017, until he became the Secretary of State. One of his most important achievements as the CIA director was leading the negotiations for the 2018 North Korea-United States Summit.
For his education, he attended Los Amigos High School before enrolling at the United States Military Academy at West Point and then serving in the U.S Army. He got a Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School.
3. Steven Mnuchin – Secretary of the Treasury
Steven Mnuchin was nominated as U.S. Secretary of the Treasure by Trump on On November 30, 2016, and was confirmed on February 13, 2017. Before his appointment, Mnuchin worked with Goldman Sachs and Hedge funds, while he also ran his own businesses. More so, he had a career as a movie producer, serving as the executive movie producer of The Lego Batman Movie Fist Fight, King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, and Wonder Woman.
4. Patrick M. Shanahan – Secretary of Defense
Patrick M. Shanahan became the acting United States Secretary of Defense in 2019 following the resignation of Retired General James N. Mattis. Between 2017 and 2019, he was the Deputy Secretary of Defense.
Before becoming a member of the United States Department of Defense in 2017, Shanahan was a member of the Boeing Executive Council. He has a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Washington, and a Master of Science (M.S.) degree in mechanical engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
5. Matthew Whitaker – Attorney General
Since the moment Donald Trump started hitting out on for recusing himself from the Muller Investigation, it was obvious that his days as the Attorney General were numbered. It finally came to an end after the 2018 mid-terms when he was made to resign by the president.
In his place, Trump brought in Matthew Whitaker who sits in an acting capacity. He was the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Iowa from 2004 to 2009. From then on, he got involved in private practice.
6. David Bernhardt – Secretary of the Interior
David Bernhardt is an attorney and lobbyist who has since 2001, been working for the United States Department of the Interior. From 2006 to 2009, he was the department’s solicitor. He was nominated by President Donald Trump on April 28, 2017, to become the United States Deputy Secretary of the Interior, under the then Secretary Ryan Zinke. Following Zinke’s resignation in 2019, Bernhardt became Acting Secretary of the Interior.
7. Sonny Perdue – Secretary of Agriculture
Sonny Perdue was nominated by President Trump on January 18, 2017, as Secretary of Agriculture. He was later confirmed to the position on April 24 that same year.
Perdue is a veterinarian, businessman, and politician who served as a Member of the Georgia Senate from the 18th district from 1991 to 2002. Between 2003 and 2011, he served as the 81st Governor of Georgia. Before he joined politics, he served in the U.S Air Force and rose to the rank of captain.
8. Wilbur Ross – Secretary of Commerce
Wilbur Ross is an American investor and billionaire. He got nominated by the US president as Secretary of Commerce on November 30, 2016, and then he took office on February 28, 2017.
Prior to his appointment, Ross was a banker that made a name for himself by successfully restructuring failed companies in the steel, coal, and telecommunications industries, among others. Ross made it clear that he was going to support Trump to get the United States out of bad trade deals. He has since been an advocate of tariffs on China.
9. Alex Acosta – Secretary of Labor
Alex Acosta was nominated by Trump on February 16, 2017, and he took office on April 28, 2017. Prior to his new role, he was Assistant Attorney General for civil rights in the Department of Justice and had also served in different positions in the administration of President .
Acosta is the only Hispanic in Donald Trump’s cabinet. He was tipped as the successor of former US Attorney General Jeff Sessions, but his name was later dropped from consideration following his role in the approval of a controversial plea agreement for billionaire Jeffrey Epstein, which granted him immunity from federal criminal charges on crimes of sex abuse.
10. Alex Azar – Secretary of Health and Human Services
Following the departure of Tom Price in September 2017, Trump nominated Alex Azar as Secretary of Health and Human Services on November 13, 2017, and he was confirmed on January 31, 2017. Under President George W. Bush, Azar served as Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services from 2005 to 2007. Between 2012 and 2017, he was President of the US division of the Pharmaceutical company; Eli Lilly and Company.
11. Ben Carson – Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
The former neurosurgeon was announced to be a member of Donald Trump’s cabinet as the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development on December 5, 2016. He took the office on March 2, 2017. Prior to his appointment, had never held any political position, even though he frequently commented on political issues and sought to clinch the Republican presidential nomination ahead of the 2016 US Presidential elections. He later abandoned his ambition to support the candidacy of Trump.
12. Elaine Chao – Secretary of Transportation
was labor secretary under President George W. Bush, from 2001 to 2009. On November 29, 2016, she was nominated by Trump to become Secretary of Transportation and was confirmed on January 31, 2017. She is the first Chinese American in U.S. history as well as the first Asian American woman to be appointed to a president’s cabinet.
13. Rick Perry – Secretary of Energy
While seeking the Republican nomination for president in 2011, promised that he was going to scrap the Energy Department if he got to the White House. On December 14, 2016, however, he was nominated by Trump to lead the same department and he took office on March 2, 2017.
Perry was a Member of the Texas House of Representatives from the 64th district from 1985 to 1991 and then in 1999, he became the 39th Lieutenant Governor of Texas until 2000. He served as the 47th Governor of Texas from 2000 to 2015.
14. Betsy DeVos – Secretary of Education
An activist for school choice, narrowly got confirmed as the Education Secretary on February 7, 2017, after a highly partisan screening. Prior to this role, DeVos, who is the daughter of Edgar Prince, founder of the Prince Corporation, and brother of Erik Prince, a former U.S. Navy SEAL officer who founded the private military company, Blackwater USA, held various positions in the Republican Party, including Republican National Committeewoman for Michigan and chair of the Michigan Republican Party.
15. Robert Wilkie – Secretary of Veterans Affairs
David Shulkin was the first United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs in Donald Trump’s cabinet, however, he was fired on March 28, 2018, and replaced by Robert Wilkie, who was previously the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness under the same administration, serving from November 30, 2017, to July 30, 2018.
16. Kirstjen Nielsen – Secretary of Homeland Security
Of all the positions on Donald Trump’s cabinet, the Homeland Security Department has seen the most changes. When Trump first came into power, he appointed who served from January 2, 2017, to July 31, 2017, before he was replaced with Elaine Duke, who was in charge until December 6, 2017.
Kirstjen Nielsen was announced the Secretary of Homeland Security on October 12, 2017, and she took office on December 6, 2017. Under Donald Trump, she previously served as Principal Deputy White House Chief of Staff and then chief of staff to John F. Kelly when he was Secretary of Homeland Security.
Cabinet-Level Officials
17. Mick Mulvaney – Chief of Staff
Under the Donald Trump administration, was first White House Chief of Staff from January 20, 2017, to July 31, 2017, when he resigned and was replaced by John F. Kelly.
After Kelly, Mick Mulvaney became the acting Chief of Staff on January 2, 2019. He also serves as the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). From November 2017 to December 2018, he was the acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).
18. Robert Lighthizer – United States Trade Representative
Robert Lighthizer served under the Ronald Reagan administration as the 1st Deputy United States Trade Representative, from 1983 to 1985. He was nominated by Donald Trump on January 3, 2017, and he assumed office on May 15, 2017.
19. Dan Coats – Director of National Intelligence
Dan Coats was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Indiana’s 4th district from 1981 to 1989. He later served as the United States Ambassador to Germany under the George W. Bush administration, from 2001 to 2005. He became a United States Senator from Indiana from 2011 until 2017.
20. Gina Haspel – Director of the Central Intelligence Agency
On March 13, 2018, Trump announced Gina Haspel, who was the Central Intelligence Agency Deputy Director, as the new Director of the CIA. She took over the office that was being vacated by Mike Pompeo who was appointed to head the State Department. Haspel took office on May 21, 2018, becoming the first woman to take the position.
21. Andrew R. Wheeler – Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
Andrew R. Wheeler was first nominated by Donald Trump to be the deputy administrator of the agency in October 2017. He was renominated again in January 2018 before he was confirmed to the position in April 2018. Following the resignation of his boss Scott Pruitt, The lawyer and former coal lobbyist rose to become Acting Administrator.
22. Linda McMahon – Administrator of the Small Business Administration
was nominated on December 7, 2016, and she took office on February 14, 2017. She was a former professional wrestling executive before she left the World Wrestling Entertainment to run for a United States Senate seat from Connecticut under the Republican Party. She, however, lost to Richard Blumenthal of the Democratic Party.
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