Government Organizations

The government of the United States of America is made up of loads of different departments and organizations. How does one part know what the other one is doing? (In fact do they know what the other one is doing?) Who is in charge of what, who answers to whom, what do they all do? There are so many questions in this minefield of organizations, let’s try and sort out just a few of the larger departments.

Federal Government has an executive branch which includes the Executive Office of the President along with the US federal executive departments which has secretaries in the Cabinet – confused, you will be?

Executive Office of the President (EOP) – this is made up of all of the immediate staff of the President of the United States and is headed by the White House Chief of Staff.

Other entities in the EOP include:

• National Security Council
• Office of Administration
• Office of Management and Budget
• Council on Environmental Quality
• Council of Economic Advisors
• President’s Intelligence Advisory Board

It really is good stuff and there are sure to be some pretty amazing decisions being made behind the scenes at the White House, overseen, of course, by the man himself, Mr President.

Department of Education – many believe that the future of America lies in the education of its children, and there are many government departments who work hard to ensure that all children have the best chance possible of the education they rightfully deserve. The Department of Education is apparently the smallest of all cabinet level departments but still has around 5,000 employees. Education in the United States is largely de-centralized and the government does not interfere per se with the day-to-day curriculum etc of the state schools, however, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 was an act of Congress.

Department of Homeland Security – this Cabinet department of the US federal government has the primary concern of protecting the United States and territories from terrorist attacks. Whereas the Department of Defense concentrates mainly on military actions abroad, the Department of Homeland Security works to protect the United States from within. The terrorist acts of 9/11 brought home to the people of the United States the vulnerability of their lands from terrorism and the Department of Homeland Security was established to help prepare for, prevent and subsequently respond to emergencies at home, particularly terrorist emergencies. The DHS has more than 200,000 employees.

Department of Agriculture – the USDA or the Agriculture Department is responsible for the development and execution of government policy on agriculture, farming and food. They aim to meet the needs of ranchers and farmers, promote agricultural production and trade while working with the food standards agency to safeguard the safety of our foodstuffs. Their ultimate aim is to end hunger both in the United States and abroad.

Department of Commerce – charged with the aim of promoting job creation and thereby improving the living standards of all Americans is the Department of Commerce, who are primarily concerned with the economic growth of America. In order to remain competitive in the global marketplace we need to ensure that our workforce is trained and educated in the most advanced technology, for as you well know, technology never stands still.