George Washington

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The Constitution also says the president may ask the heads of government departments to give their opinion on different subjects, but does not say how closely the president should work with the department heads. Washington decided to make them his group of advisors. He met with them regularly to discuss what was going on in each department. The decisions Washington made about how to handle these situations created precedents or examples that were followed by presidents in the future. Presidents today still give a State of the Union speech and work closely with the heads of government departments.

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When Washington became President, nobody had ever been president before. Basic presidential powers were written in the constitution, but many issues came up that the Constitution did not address. For example, the Constitution requires the president to give Congress information "from time to time" about how the country is doing, but doesn't say how the president should deliver this information. Washington decided that once a year he would talk to Congress by giving a "State of the Union" speech.

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George Washington is known as the "father of our country." He was born in Virginia on February 22, 1732. Most of the people know Washington was the first president of the United States. But before he became involved in government, Washington had a successful military career. During the Revolutionary War, Washington led the American colonists to victory against the British. He became a military hero, and citizens of the new United States respected and admired him.

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The president had the power to choose the heads of these departments, who were to assist the president with the many issues and problems he had to face. These heads of departments became his cabinet. The Congress created three departments. In his first major tasks as president, Washington chose talented people to run them. for secretary of war, he picked Henry Knox, a trusted general during the Revolution. It was Knox's job to oversee the nation's defenses. For secretary of state, Washington chose Thomas Jefferson. The States of Department oversaw relations between the United States and other countries.