Importance of the cabinet

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 Importance of the cabinet

A cabinet is a high ranking body of the executive branch of the government that consist

of executive branch members known as the cabinet ministers. After assuming office, the

president is mandated with selecting a body that will be responsible for the day to day operations

in addition to working on emergency and quick decisions. The cabinet secretaries are selected

based on their expertise, geographic and gender balances in addition to party loyalty. The cabinet

secretaries are suggested by the president and then vetted and confirmed by the senate after they

which they resume their duties, the cabinet play key role in the administration such as advising

the president, heading their respective ministries and present bills that are present from their

governmental ministries1.

First, the cabinet acts as the primary adviser to the president. In America the cabinet of

mandated with the primary role of advising the president and it is the decision of the president to

accept the advice or not. The cabinet is divided into twelve departments namely the secretary of

state, interior, labor, trade, defense, treasury, agriculture, health, transport, housing, and urban

development. All of these departments are mandated to give suggestion on any issue as well as

report to the president during the cabinet meetings. With respect, the cabinet discusses and

decides the collective direction of the government with regard to the decisions and laws that have

been passed by the parliament. In addition, in the case of war or emergencies, the parliament acts

as an advisory arm of the government on the course of action that should be taken. Therefore, the

1
Lewis, David E. "Presidential appointments and personnel." Annual Review of Political Science 14

(2011): 47-66.
cabinet spends most of the time discussing on national issues and the solving to challenges

facing the country.

Secondly, Parliament plays an administrative function. The cabinet plays the role of

policymaking as it formulates both internal and external domestic policies. In addition, the

cabinet is responsible for making sure critical decisions on matters such as the economy, defense,

industrial policy, electoral reforms as well as the security needs are taken cares of. Even though

the ministers in charge of these dockets have the freedom to make a certain decision on the

above matters, they have to consult from the cabinet on critical matters. In addition to this, the

parliament plays the role of policy implementation, any of the decisions that are made by the

cabinet are passed to the respective ministers who see to it that they are implemented with the

help of the civil servants2. Notably, the cabinet together with other departments formulates

policies that ensures smooth implementation of the state policies as well as a suggestion of

presidential appointments.

Additionally, the cabinet is important as it plays a part in legislative powers. Together

with the administrative departments, the cabinet takes part in the drafting of a bill relating to

their respective ministries. Majority of the bills that are presented in the cabinet are from the

cabinet ministers with suggestions on the reforms that would like in their sectors3. Notably, the

minister acts as a source of information link from the public as well as providing information to

the investigating committees concerning their decisions. In addition, the cabinet monitors and

2
Martínez-Gallardo, Cecilia. "Out of the cabinet: what drives defections from the government in

presidential systems?." Comparative Political Studies 45, no. 1 (2012): 62-90.

3
Martínez-Gallardo, Cecilia. "Out of the cabinet: what drives defections from the government in

presidential systems?." Comparative Political Studies 45, no. 1 (2012): 62-90.

ensures that the expenditure of the government is on the check. Other than this the cabinet plays

a crucial role in helping the president prepare the report of the state union.

To sum this up, the cabinet is an important body of the government, and it acts as an

advisory body to the government on crucial matter relation to government function as well as

ministries’ decisions. In addition, the cabinet plays the administrative role through proposing of

bills and drafting them as well as keeping check of the government of the government on its

expenditure and giving advise accordingly.

References

Lewis, David E. "Presidential appointments and personnel." Annual Review of Political

Science 14 (2011): 47-66.

Martínez-Gallardo, Cecilia. "Out of the cabinet: what drives defections from the government in

presidential systems?." Comparative Political Studies 45, no. 1 (2012): 62-90.