An enclosure for speakers. Sometimes shortened to 'cab'. Many stage guitar rigs include seperate amps and cabinets. Cabinets are usually described based on the sizes of speakers inside - for example 4x12 means four twelve inch speakers, or 2x6 + 16 means two six inch speakers and a sixteen inch speaker. Some cabinets serve special purposes, like "sub cabs" which are subwoofer enclosures for creating sub-audible range sounds, or leslie cabs, which are specially designed to create an effect called leslie.

“[The President] may require the Opinion, in writing, of the principal Officer in each of the executive Departments, upon any subject relating to the Duties of their respective Offices.” Article 2, Section 2

Without saying so directly, the U.S. Constitution created the Cabinet with those words. Note, however, that the Constitution does not go into what the executive departments will be, how many there will be, or what their duties should be. This area of contention has been interpreted differently by the presidents of the United States throughout its history.

The cabinet concept was pioneered in England with the Privy Council. In Britain, the Council evolved into today's Cabinet, a legal institution that advises the Prime Minister. In the U.S., the cabinet has no legal definition. One important difference in between the British and American cabinet is that Britain’s consists of members of parliament while it is illegal for a U.S. congressperson to hold a position in the executive branch, including the cabinet.

The Cabinet consists primarily of the principal officer in each of the executive departments as the U.S. Constitution suggests. These officials are called secretary in the United States. In other countries, these officials are typically called Ministers. These Secretaries are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. Cabinet members may be impeached just like any other federal officer.

George Washington formed the very first cabinet in the United States in 1789. At that time, the cabinet only consisted of four department heads: the Secretary of State, the Treasury Secretary, the Secretary of War, and the Attorney General. The first cabinet consisted of some familiar names:

Secretary of State: Thomas Jefferson
Treasury Secretary: Alexander Hamilton
Secretary of War: Henry Knox
Attorney General: Edmund Randolph


Since Washington’s day, many other departments have been added as the responsibilities of the executive branch of the federal government have expanded. In 1798, John Adams added the Department of the Navy in response to the XYZ Affair. Andrew Jackson added the Postmaster General in 1829. Zachary Taylor then added the Department of the Interior in 1849. The Department of Agriculture came next in 1889, added by Grover Cleveland. Theodore Roosevelt added a cabinet position that would oversee Commerce and Labor in 1903. This position was later separated into the separate departments of Commerce and Labor by Woodrow Wilson in 1913. Under Truman in 1947, the Navy and War Departments were combined into a new National Military Establishment (later called the Department of Defense). Eisenhower added the tenth cabinet position in 1953 with the addition of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. Johnson added the Department of Housing and Urban Development(1965) and the Department of Transportation(1966). Richard M. Nixon removed the Postmaster General from the cabinet in 1971. Carter augmented the cabinet by two with the addition of the Department of Energy in 1977 and by splitting the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare into the Department of Health and Human Services and a new Department of Education in 1979. The last official department added to the cabinet was the Department of Veterans Affairs added by George Bush Sr. in 1989. What had once been four departments is now fourteen.

In the cabinet also consists of the Vice President and any other person in the executive department that the President wishes, such as the Ambassador to the U.N. or a National Security Advisor. President George W. Bush created the Office of Homeland Security in 2001, adding its head to his Cabinet.

Typically, the cabinet meets on a regular basis but because the cabinet is not a constitutionally outlined institution, meetings can be at any interval. In fact, the cabinet may not necessarily ever meet at all. A President may even choose to not even have a cabinet. Some have questioned the need for a cabinet. The group does not always work effectively as a group and discussions between departments can break down into turf wars and petty rivalries. Some modern presidents have made little use of their cabinets. Former National Security Advisor under Jimmy Carter, Zbigniew Brzezinski, told of using the time to catch up on newspapers and magazines.



The Bush Cabinet (as of 09/21/2001):
Secretary of Agriculture (Ann Veneman)
Secretary of Commerce (Don Evans)
Secretary of Defense (Donald Rumsfeld)
Secretary of Education (Rod Paige)
Secretary of Energy (Spencer Abraham)
Secretary of Health and Human Services (Tommy Thompson)
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (Mel Martinez)
Secretary of Interior (Gale Norton)
Attorney General (John Ashcroft)
Secretary of Labor (Elaine Chao)
Secretary of State (Colin Powell)
Secretary of Transportation (Norman Mineta)
Secretary of Treasury (Paul O'Neill)
Secretary of Veterans Affairs (Anthony Principi)
Chief of Staff (Andrew Card)
Environmental Protection Agency (Christine Todd Whitman)
Office of Management and Budget (Mitchell Daniels)
Office of National Drug Control Policy (John Walters)
United States Trade Representative (Robert Zoellick)
Office of Homeland Security (Tom Ridge)

Cab"i*net (?), n. [F., dim. of cabine or cabane. See Cabin, n.]

1.

A hut; a cottage; a small house.

[Obs.]

Hearken a while from thy green cabinet, The rural song of careful Colinet. Spenser.

2.

A small room, or retired apartment; a closet.

3.

A private room in which consultations are held.

Philip passed some hours every day in his father's cabinet. Prescott.

4.

The advisory council of the chief executive officer of a nation; a cabinet council.

⇒ In England, the cabinet or cabinet council consists of those privy coucilors who actually transact the immediate business of the government. Mozley & W. -- In the United States, the cabinet is composed of the heads of the executive departments of the government, namely, the Secretary of State, of the Treasury, of War, of the Navy, of the Interior, and of Agiculture, the Postmaster-general ,and the Attorney-general.

5. (a)

A set of drawers or a cupboard intended to contain articles of value. Hence:

(b)

A decorative piece of furniture, whether open like an étagere or closed with doors. See Etagere.

6.

Any building or room set apart for the safe keeping and exhibition of works of art, etc.; also, the collection itself.

Cabinet council. (a) Same as Cabinet, n., 4 (of which body it was formerly the full title). (b) A meeting of the cabinet. -- Cabinet councilor, a member of a cabinet council. -- Cabinet photograph, a photograph of a size smaller than an imperial, though larger than a carte de visite. -- Cabinet picture, a small and generally highly finished picture, suitable for a small room and for close inspection.

 

© Webster 1913.


Cab"i*net, a.

Suitable for a cabinet; small.

He [Varnhagen von Ense] is a walking cabinet edition of Goethe. For. Quar. Rev.

 

© Webster 1913.


Cab"i*net, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Cabineted; p. pr. & vb. n. Cabineting.]

To inclose

[R.]

Hewyt.

 

© Webster 1913.

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