Difference between revisions of "United States Department of State"

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''This article refers to the '''United States Department of State''' or '''State Department'''.
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The '''United States Department of State''' (or '''State Department''') is a Cabinet-level agency of the [[United States]] government that deals with foreign affairs.  The DoS falls under the [[United States Secretary of State|Secretary of State]]'s administration.  Their headquarters is located in the Harry S Truman Building in Washington, DC.  The current Secretary of State is [[Rex Tillerson]].
  
The Department of State is a Cabinet-level agency of the [[United States]] government that deals with foreign affairs.  The DoS falls under the [[United States Secretary of State|Secretary of State]]'s administration.  Their headquarters is located in the Harry S Truman Building in Washington, DC.
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Its nickname is '''Foggy Bottom,''' a reference to its neighborhood in Washington, with a hint of muddled foggyness.
  
 
==History==
 
==History==
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{{see also|American foreign policy}}
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Shortly after the [[U.S. Constitution|Constitution]] was created it became clear that the President would need an executive department to support his foreign affairs.
 
Shortly after the [[U.S. Constitution|Constitution]] was created it became clear that the President would need an executive department to support his foreign affairs.
  
 
On July 21, 1789 the House of Representatives and Senate established a '''Department of Foreign Affairs'''.  On July 27 of that year, President [[George Washington]] signed the legislation into law making the Department of Foreign Affairs the first federal agency.  Later that year the name was changed to the present name of Department of State.
 
On July 21, 1789 the House of Representatives and Senate established a '''Department of Foreign Affairs'''.  On July 27 of that year, President [[George Washington]] signed the legislation into law making the Department of Foreign Affairs the first federal agency.  Later that year the name was changed to the present name of Department of State.
  
===1933-1953===
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==Presidential control==
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The history of [[American foreign policy]] shows periods of presidential control and periods where the State Department shaped policy.
  
[[Cordell Hull]] assumed the office of [[Secretary of State]] on March 4, 1933.
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The White House ran policy under [[Theodore Roosevelt]] (1901-1909), [[Woodrow Wilson]] (1913–21), [[Franklin Roosevelt]] (1933–45),<ref>During the war Roosevelt worked through [[Harry Hopkins]]. In 1939, Secretary Cordell Hull complained,  "Roosevelt …doesn't consult me or confide in me and I have to feel my way in the dark." Hull ''Memoirs of Cordell Hull'', (1948), pg. 1227.</ref> [[Lyndon Johnson]] (1963–69), [[Richard Nixon]] (1969-74), and [[Ronald Reagan]] (1981–89).
  
In 1939, Hull said: " Roosevelt …doesn't consult me or confide in me and I have to feel my way in the dark."<ref>''Jim Farley's Story'', James A. Farley (New York, 1948), pg. 233; ''Memoirs of Cordell Hull'', Cordell Hull (New York, 1948), pg. 1227.</ref>
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The State Department was in charge during the presidencies of [[Warren Harding]] (1921–23), [[Calvin Coolidge]] (1923–29), [[Herbert Hoover]] (1929–33), [[Harry Truman]] (1945-53)<ref>[[Dean Acheson]] was the main policy maker.</ref> and [[Dwight Eisenhower]] (1953–61).
 
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Throughout [[World War II]], Hull had been a very sick man and  [[Sumner Welles]] had been Secretary in all but name. After Hull’s  his visit to Moscow in September 1943, Hull forced President [[Franklin Roosevelt]] to dismiss Welles. [[Edward Stettinius]] then became Under-Secretary and when Hull resigned in October 1944, Stettinius moved up as Secretary of State.  [[Joseph C. Grew]], who had been ambassador in Japan for many years, was made Under-Secretary. Grew held that post for only nine months.
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[[Dean Acheson]] had been appointed an Assistant Secretary of State in 1941. When Grew resigned in 1945, Acheson became Under-Secretary and remained in that post during the term as Secretary of [[James F. Byrnes]] and part of the term of [[George C. Marshall]]. In 1949 Acheson became Secretary of State upon Marshall's resignation.
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When the Office of Special Political Affairs (OSPA) was created in 1944, [[Alger Hiss]] became the deputy director and late director.  Hiss and others worked on the first drafts of the [[United Nations]] Charter. <ref>Ralph de Toledano and Victor Lasky, [http://www.americandeception.com/index.php?action=downloadpdf&photo=/PDFsml_AD/Seeds_Of_Treason-Ralph_de_Toledano_and_Victor_Lasky-1950-278pgs-POL.sml.pdf&id=343&PHPSESSID=b964065077a1de19538c4c7b1cf9e825 ''Seeds of Treason''], (NY: Funk and Wagnalls, 1950), pg. 107.</ref>  [[John Carter Vincent]] was appointed head of the Far Eastern Division in 1945. John Carter Vincent was completely anti-[[Kuomintang]] (KMT) and pro-[[Chinese Communist Party]] (CCP).
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The State Department had a Coordinating Committee of which had "responsibility for considering matters of policy or actions and questions of inter-office relations referred to it by the Secretary, Under Secretary and Secretary's Staff Committe or initiated by the members." Dean Acheson was chairman. Hiss and John Carter Vincent were also members. In 1946 Hiss drew up a plan for reorganizing the State Department. Another official presented a protest in which he pointed out it was designed to give Hiss and his group "astounding control of the Department." A suggestion was made that the matter be brought to the attention of the [[FBI]].
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[[Adolph Berle]], who had been an Assistant Secretary of State, testified before a Congressional investigating committee,
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:"in the fall of 1944, there was a difference of opinion in the State Department. I felt that the  Russians were not going to be sympathetic and cooperative. Victory was then assured… and the intelligence reports which were in my charge, among other things, indicated a very aggressive policy, not at all in line with the kind of cooperation everyone was hoping for…The opposite group in the State Department was largely the men—Mr. Acheson's group, of course—with Mr. Hiss as a principal assistant in the matter.”<ref>Testimony of Adolph Berle before the [[House Committee on Un-American Activities]], August
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30, 1948.</ref>
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==Past Responsibilities==
 
==Past Responsibilities==
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==Current Responsibilities==
 
==Current Responsibilities==
The Department of State developes and implements the [[President of the United States of America|President]]'s foreign policy around the world.  The DoS also supports other U.S. Government agencies that are active in foreign affairs, such as the U.S. Department of Commerce and the U.S. Agency for International Development.
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The Department of State develops and implements the [[President of the United States of America|President]]'s foreign policy around the world.  The DoS also supports other U.S. Government agencies that are active in foreign affairs, such as the U.S. Department of Commerce and the U.S. Agency for International Development.
  
 
The purpose of the Department of State includes:
 
The purpose of the Department of State includes:
*Protecting and asisting U.S. citizens living or traveling abroad
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*Protecting and assisting U.S. citizens living or traveling abroad
 
*Assisting U.S. business in the international marketplace
 
*Assisting U.S. business in the international marketplace
 
*Coordinating and supporting U.S. agencies in the international activities and official overseas visits.
 
*Coordinating and supporting U.S. agencies in the international activities and official overseas visits.
 
*Keeping the public informed about U.S. foreign policy
 
*Keeping the public informed about U.S. foreign policy
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==Further reading==
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* Dorman, Shawn. ''Inside a U.S. Embassy: How the Foreign Service Works for America'' (2nd ed. 2005) [http://www.amazon.com/Inside-U-S-Embassy-Foreign-Service/dp/0964948826/ref=pd_cp_b_1 excerpt and text search]
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* Findling, John E. ed. ''Dictionary of American Diplomatic History'' 2nd ed. 1989. 700pp; 1200 short articles.
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* Flanders, Stephen A, and Carl N. Flanders. ''Dictionary of American Foreign Affairs'' (1993) 835 pp, short articles
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* Herring, George C. ''From Colony to Superpower: U.S. Foreign Relations Since 1776'' (Oxford History of the United States) (2008), 1056pp; the latest survey. [http://www.amazon.com/Colony-Superpower-Foreign-Relations-History/dp/0195078225/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1238879749&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
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* Plischke, Elmer. ''U.S. Department of State: A Reference History'' (1999) [http://www.questia.com/library/book/us-department-of-state-a-reference-history-by-elmer-plischke.jsp online edition], a comprehensive history to the present
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* Plischke, Elmer. ''United States diplomats and their missions: A profile of American diplomatic emissaries since 1778'' (1975)
  
 
==References==
 
==References==
 
<references/>
 
<references/>
  
==External link==
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==External links==
 
*U.S. State Department [http://www.state.gov/s/inr/ Bureau of Intelligence and Research]
 
*U.S. State Department [http://www.state.gov/s/inr/ Bureau of Intelligence and Research]
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*U.S. State Department  [http://www.state.gov/ homepage]
  
[[category:United States]]
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[[Category:United States]]
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[[Category:United States History]]
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[[Category:Diplomacy]]
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[[Category:United States Cabinet]]
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[[Category:United States Government Agencies]]

Revision as of 20:41, March 3, 2017

The United States Department of State (or State Department) is a Cabinet-level agency of the United States government that deals with foreign affairs. The DoS falls under the Secretary of State's administration. Their headquarters is located in the Harry S Truman Building in Washington, DC. The current Secretary of State is Rex Tillerson.

Its nickname is Foggy Bottom, a reference to its neighborhood in Washington, with a hint of muddled foggyness.

History

See also: American foreign policy

Shortly after the Constitution was created it became clear that the President would need an executive department to support his foreign affairs.

On July 21, 1789 the House of Representatives and Senate established a Department of Foreign Affairs. On July 27 of that year, President George Washington signed the legislation into law making the Department of Foreign Affairs the first federal agency. Later that year the name was changed to the present name of Department of State.

Presidential control

The history of American foreign policy shows periods of presidential control and periods where the State Department shaped policy.

The White House ran policy under Theodore Roosevelt (1901-1909), Woodrow Wilson (1913–21), Franklin Roosevelt (1933–45),[1] Lyndon Johnson (1963–69), Richard Nixon (1969-74), and Ronald Reagan (1981–89).

The State Department was in charge during the presidencies of Warren Harding (1921–23), Calvin Coolidge (1923–29), Herbert Hoover (1929–33), Harry Truman (1945-53)[2] and Dwight Eisenhower (1953–61).

Past Responsibilities

Current Responsibilities

The Department of State develops and implements the President's foreign policy around the world. The DoS also supports other U.S. Government agencies that are active in foreign affairs, such as the U.S. Department of Commerce and the U.S. Agency for International Development.

The purpose of the Department of State includes:

  • Protecting and assisting U.S. citizens living or traveling abroad
  • Assisting U.S. business in the international marketplace
  • Coordinating and supporting U.S. agencies in the international activities and official overseas visits.
  • Keeping the public informed about U.S. foreign policy

Further reading

  • Dorman, Shawn. Inside a U.S. Embassy: How the Foreign Service Works for America (2nd ed. 2005) excerpt and text search
  • Findling, John E. ed. Dictionary of American Diplomatic History 2nd ed. 1989. 700pp; 1200 short articles.
  • Flanders, Stephen A, and Carl N. Flanders. Dictionary of American Foreign Affairs (1993) 835 pp, short articles
  • Herring, George C. From Colony to Superpower: U.S. Foreign Relations Since 1776 (Oxford History of the United States) (2008), 1056pp; the latest survey. excerpt and text search
  • Plischke, Elmer. U.S. Department of State: A Reference History (1999) online edition, a comprehensive history to the present
  • Plischke, Elmer. United States diplomats and their missions: A profile of American diplomatic emissaries since 1778 (1975)

References

  1. During the war Roosevelt worked through Harry Hopkins. In 1939, Secretary Cordell Hull complained, "Roosevelt …doesn't consult me or confide in me and I have to feel my way in the dark." Hull Memoirs of Cordell Hull, (1948), pg. 1227.
  2. Dean Acheson was the main policy maker.

External links