The U.S. Constitution never established a presidential cabinet—the delegates to the Constitutional Convention explicitly rejected the idea. So how did George Washington create one of the most powerful bodies in the federal government?
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.
The Cabinet reveals the far-reaching consequences of Washington’s choice. The tensions in the cabinet between Hamilton and Jefferson heightened partisanship and contributed to the development of the first party system. And as Washington faced an increasingly recalcitrant Congress, he came to treat the cabinet as a private advisory body to summon as needed, greatly expanding the role of the president and the executive branch.
Doris Kearns Goodwin made a big splash with Team of Rivals, trying to peg Lincoln's political genius in part to his foresight in creating, well, the title for his cabinets. Was it that unique though? Looking at early American politics, that first decade or so seems to be as cantankerous a group as one could have, putting Hamilton and Jefferson together! Do you see Lincoln as really that unique and 'changing the mold' of what the cabinet looked like during the Early Republic, or was there a lot of clashing personalities in the early days too?
I'm sure a lot of AskHistorians readers are familiar with the idea "Team of Rivals" and the musical Hamilton's portrayal of Hamilton and Jefferson's disagreements. How did Washington handle intense disagreements within his cabinet and did he see these debates as a positive? Did it effect how often he sought advice from the cabinet as a collective versus individual conversations?
While I'm here- do you want to plug any of your digital work?
When Adams took over as president from Washington, did he keep the same cabinet structure? If so, did he keep any of Washington's cabinet members?
What were the Convention's grounds for rejecting the idea of a cabinet? As the Washington presidency progressed, did opponents continue to use these critiques, or did the opposition use different talking points over time?
Thanks so much to everyone for their great questions! I have to go get ready for my live book launch event tonight, but I'll be back on later to answer more questions, so keep them coming!
If you want to watch the event tonight, here is the page: https://www.facebook.com/events/513154229359894/
And of course, here is the book! https://www.amazon.com/Cabinet-Washington-Creation-American-Institution/dp/0674986482/
I understand Washington mostly leaned on Hamilton's policies and had a somewhat Federalist mindset/policy, but was there anything Jefferson made strides in that Washington implemented into his policy that were directly counter-intuitive to Hamilton's goals?
Hi! Thanks for coming here to answer our questions. Knowing nothing about the first cabinet, I have to ask - was there fierce competition to these positions, once they were created?
I was reading an old Yellow Fever article by Martin S. Pernick and he called Knox, "Hamilton's tool". I wonder what was their real relationship? And Knox's with Jefferson?
The U.S. Constitution never established a presidential cabinet—the delegates to the Constitutional Convention explicitly rejected the idea.
What was the convention’s plan to handle the duties the cabinet wound up taking? Back then it certainly was a lot less than there is now—seems like it was around five or so people—but in writing the constitution, was the president expected to do everything?
Hello Dr, thank you greatly for this fascinating AMA! I had no idea the cabinet meetings were an evolution of Washington's council of war. Was there much inspiration from various European councils or cabinets, or was there a real push to purposely differentiate them?
Separately, did this mean the future cabinets had a very military feel to them? Or did that change relatively quickly?
What was the relationship between Washington and his VP Adams really like? Given that the Cabinet seems to have been more important to Washington in terms of seeking advice, was he personally disinclined to ask Adams for his opinion? Or did he view the VP office as effectively non-executive due to the Senate President title?
Probably a far reaching question but as Washington noticed factions developing as a result of his cabinet members and their allies do you think he would have liked to take the Trump approach and just fire those with whom he couldn't work with or get on board with something? This wasn't the case but what do you think Washington would think of this strategy?
If it took Washington two and a half years to call his first cabinet meeting, how involved was he with each department before this? Was he in fairly frequent correspondence with his secretaries or was he mostly just a figurehead?
What would you most like to tell us that no one ever asks about?
In high school history class, I’m sure a lot of us heard about Andrew Jackson’s informal “kitchen cabinet,” which was just a bunch of advisors without portfolio, which doesn’t sound that different from the original Cabinet, minus the without portfolio bit. Even through to today we hear a lot about informal advisors who have a great deal of influence with a President. What in between Washington and Jackson caused the transition to having an “official” Cabinet and an informal one that sounds pretty similar to the original idea of the Cabinet as Washington envisioned it?
What was your favorite source found during your research?
The cabinet has grown over the years. What serves as the impetus for a president to add a department to the Cabinet? Obviously 9/11 and DHS is an extenuating circumstance, but I remember Obama wanted to add the SBA to the cabinet. How often and why does something like that happen?
Thanks for doing this! Washington is often said to have opposed party politics but didn’t he act as a de facto party leader, opposed by Jefferson and Madison? Did American voters (fond of Washington) identify as Federalist or can the term not be applied to the masses?
You said in another part of this, either a comment or the post, that Washington’s cabinet mirrored the war councils he had. Do you believe this set-up was hard for non-military presidents after him to deal with? I think of Madison, who historian JCA Stagg notes, was often at odds with his cabinet who were constantly fighting with each other. Obviously the two presidents circumstances are vastly different but do you believe Washington’s military background positioned him well for the executive position that others afterwards couldn’t replicate?
Two related questions:
First, if John Quincy Dog Adams were to be selected for a cabinet position, what cabinet position would he be best suited to hold?
Second, when giving him belly rubs, would you switch from saying "Who's the best boy?" to "Who's the best cabinet secretary?"
I graduated with a history degree in 2015 from the University of Oklahoma and I work as a teacher now. I recently saw the documentary on Washington's life and I want to ask if you think at some point his cabinet decided to go for their own gains during this crisis or did they stick to the greater good of things that forged the nation?
I know nothing about any of this. What sort of stuff did Washington's cabinet do? And how exactly did tensions in it contribute to the development of the party system?
Did washington have concerns over the dangers of expanding cabinet offices?
Can you examine John Adams' role: how Washington treated him; how that treatment changed; how the vice president was in limbo or how he may have been included more in the cabinet as the years went on. Thanks!
How did early American politicians, especially Washington and those close to him reconcile the isolationism wit respect to Europe and the more realpolitik with American Indians? Was there an overarching philosophy/decision rule to their decision?
What was Aaron Burr's power base? He was not prominent in the Revolutionary War but suddenly in 1804 he is contesting the Presidency with Thomas Jefferson. It wasn't because of his principles, because from what I read he didn't have any.
I have added your book to my reading list!
I don’t have a question, but it is coincidental to see this post as I was reading specifically about Washington’s cabinet earlier today. Revolutionary era history is just fascinating.
Can’t wait to read the book, thank you for putting this kind of work out there!