The Secretary of Defense is the primary advisor to the president of the united states on all matters concerning the Department of Defense. The duties of this office include creating and executing defense policies under the advisement of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and managing the operations of the Department of Defense.


The Secretaries of Defense and their Time in Office

  1. James V. Forrestal (1947 - 1949)
  2. Louis A. Johnson (1949 - 1950)
  3. George C. Marshall (1950 - 1951)
  4. Robert A. Lovett (1951 - 1953)
  5. Charles E. Wilson (1953 - 1957)
  6. Neil H. McElroy (1957 - 1959)
  7. Thomas S. Gates (1959 - 1961)
  8. Robert S. McNamara (1961 - 1968)
  9. Clark M. Clifford (1968 - 1969)
  10. Melvin R. Laird (1969 - 1973)
  11. Elliot L. Richardson (1973 - 1973)
  12. James R. Schlesinger (1973 - 1975)
  13. Donald H. Rumsfeld (1975 - 1977)
  14. Harold Brown (1977 - 1981)
  15. Caspar W. Weinberger (1981 - 1987)
  16. Frank C. Carlucci (1987 - 1989)
  17. Richard B. Cheney (1989 - 1993)
  18. Les Aspin, Jr. (1993 - 1994)
  19. William J. Perry (1994 - 1997)
  20. William S. Cohen (1997 - 2001)
  21. Donald H. Rumsfeld (2001 - 2006)
  22. Robert M. Gates - (2006-present)


reference: www.defenselink.mil, www.encyclopedia.com, www.britanica.com

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