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Federal government
Main article: United States Secretary of State
In the United States federal government, “Secretary of State” uniquely refers to the official responsible for foreign policy, the analogue of the foreign secretary or foreign minister of a country that has one or the other. The U.S. Secretary of State is head of the United States Department of State.
The now long-established terms “Department …” and “Secretary of State” were preceded (for two months following the effective date of the Constitution) by the narrower title Secretary of Foreign Affairs and the corresponding departmental name; the change reflected addition of some miscellaneous domestic responsibilities.
The position is widely regarded as the most senior in the cabinet.[citation needed] In the presidential line of succession the Secretary of State falls first among Cabinet officers, and fourth overall. The Secretary of State is also, in protocol, the first cabinet member in the order of precedence, immediately preceding any former presidents and former first ladies, who are followed by the rest of the Cabinet.
The U.S. Secretary of State as of 2008 is Condoleezza Rice, the second woman to hold the position, following Madeleine Albright. Secretary Rice is also the second African-American to hold the position, following President Bush’s first Secretary of State, the retired general Colin Powell.
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