In the politics of the United States of America are involved in many structures and divisions. All of them interact as a single and very complex mechanism. This article will talk about the highest federal government agency in the United States, namely the Department of State.
History of creation
Initially, the US Department of State was called the Department of Foreign Affairs and was founded in 1789. At the same time, congressmen were deciding on the creation of the Department of the Interior. However, President George Washington solved this problem by killing two birds with one stone. Thanks to his decision, the Department of Foreign and Internal Affairs was merged into one structure and was named the Department of State of Affairs. He appointed Thomas Jefferson as head of this organization. According to some reports, Washington founded this post specifically for Thomas, as he respected him very much.
It was during this period that numerous military operations took place between Mexico and the United States. Thanks to these wars, the United States of America annexed a large number of lands to its territories. Subsequently, the question arose of the competent management of these territories. As a result, the Department of State of Affairs was disbanded and performed only the functions of the Department of Foreign Affairs. But George Washington did not rename this unit and this structure continued to exist as the Department of State of Affairs.
Secretary of State - what kind of position?
The head of the State Department is the Secretary of State. Why? Such a stance came to the United States from England, in which at that time the monarch of the state served as secretary. If we translate from English the phrase "state structure" into Russian, then we will get our usual name - "state department".
Who chooses the secretary of state?
According to the US Constitution, only the incumbent president of the state can nominate a candidate for this position. But at the same time, the Senate must approve the candidate for this position by voting.
Where is the state department located?
The building is located in the "Misty bottom". This name was given by local residents due to the fact that in the past there was one continuous swamp on this place. Currently, the house of Harry Truman is built here, which he transferred to the state under the building of the US State Department. A few blocks away is the White House.
State Department and the public
Recently, a large number of official representatives of the US State Department have been replaced. Among the last state secretaries, I would like to mention Madeleine Albright, who is known primarily for her phrases about Siberia, namely, that it should be common, and not belong to Russia. She also became famous for her hatred of the Serbs and harsh remarks about the imposed sanctions against Iraq. It is known that Madeleine Albright took part in the selection of targets during the bombing of Yugoslavia.
Since April 2014, she headed the US Department of State, Jen Psaki. The period of its activity coincided with the height of the war in the South-East of Ukraine. And the Secretary of State has repeatedly covered this problem with the public. And it was on this basis that she was faced with numerous criticisms of the Russian media. She openly supported the actions of Ukrainian politicians and constantly avoided provocative issues on the air. One of the famous state media holdings in Russia called Jennifer a symbol of the government apparatus of Barack Obama, his terrible foreign policy. Many of the accusations against her, of course, were not substantiated and were ignored in every possible way by the Secretary of State. But after some time, namely in June 2014, she officially declared that she was a “victim of Russian propaganda,” and accused Russia of waging an information war.
On May 12, 2015, the post of Secretary of State was held by the US Navy, Rear Admiral John Kerby. After Jennifer Psaki resigned as Secretary General of the Department of State, the whole scandal came to naught. When the 44th president of the United States, Barack Obama, resigned - the entire government apparatus of the president has changed, and at the moment the chair of the state secretary is Mike Pompeo, who is the former director of the Central Intelligence Agency.