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.
- James V. Forrestal (1947 - 1949)
- Louis A. Johnson (1949 - 1950)
- George C. Marshall (1950 - 1951)
- Robert A. Lovett (1951 - 1953)
- Charles E. Wilson (1953 - 1957)
- Neil H. McElroy (1957 - 1959)
- Thomas S. Gates (1959 - 1961)
- Robert S. McNamara (1961 - 1968)
- Clark M. Clifford (1968 - 1969)
- Melvin R. Laird (1969 - 1973)
- Elliot L. Richardson (1973 - 1973)
- James R. Schlesinger (1973 - 1975)
- Donald H. Rumsfeld (1975 - 1977)
- Harold Brown (1977 - 1981)
- Caspar W. Weinberger (1981 - 1987)
- Frank C. Carlucci (1987 - 1989)
- Richard B. Cheney (1989 - 1993)
- Les Aspin, Jr. (1993 - 1994)
- William J. Perry (1994 - 1997)
- William S. Cohen (1997 - 2001)
- Donald H. Rumsfeld (2001 - 2006)
- Robert M. Gates - (2006-present)
reference: www.defenselink.mil, www.encyclopedia.com, www.britanica.com