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Duties of the Secretary of State |
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As President George W. Bush watches, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg ceremoniously swears in Dr. Condoleezza Rice Friday, Jan. 28, 2005, as Secretary of State. Secretary Rice officially was sworn in Wednesday after her 85-13 Senate confirmation.
President Bush shakes hands with Dr. Condoleezza Rice after introducing her those in attendance for her ceremonial swearing-in at the U.S. Department of State Friday, Jan. 28, 2005.
Condoleeza Rice was sworn in Friday morning, January 28, 2005, as the nation's 66th Secretary of State, with President George W. Bush and her family looking on. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg administered the oath -- a public repetition of words Rice spoke in private Wednesday night at the White House so she could quickly get to work.
January 28, 2005
President Thanks Secretary of State Rice at Swearing-In Ceremony
U.S. Department of State
9:58 A.M. EST
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all for coming. Laura and I are honored to be here. Over the past four years, America has benefited from the wise counsel of Dr. Condoleezza Rice and our family has been enriched by our friendship with this remarkable person. We love her -- I don't know if you're supposed to say that about the Secretary of State. (Laughter.)
Condi's appointment and confirmation of Secretary of State marks a remarkable transition in what is already a career of outstanding service and accomplishment.
Today also marks an opportunity to honor another career defined by service and accomplishment. Throughout a lifetime spent in public service, Colin Powell has asked nothing in return. For over four decades, millions at home and abroad have benefited from his bravery, his dignity and his integrity. He's left our nation a better place than it was when he began his career in public service as a second lieutenant in the United States Army. His magnificent wife, Alma, I am certain is pleased that a grateful nation is giving back her husband -- (laughter) -- and all of us admire and appreciate the service of Colin Powell. (Applause.)
I appreciate the fact that Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg administered the oath. It was neighborly of her to do that. (Laughter.) I want to thank Congresswoman Jane Harman from California for joining us, as well as Juanita Millender-McDonald from California. We're honored you both are here. Thanks for taking time to honor your fellow Californian, Condi Rice. (Applause.)
I see sitting between you two is a fine American in Andrew Young. Welcome, Andy. Thank you for coming. I shouldn't start going around the room, heralding all the -- (laughter) -- accomplished souls who are here. I do want to thank members of the diplomatic corps for coming. I appreciate Your Excellencies taking time to honor Condi. I want to thank the distinguished guests and members -- folks who work at the State Department for joining us, as well. It's a good thing to come and honor your new boss. (Laughter.) Good diplomacy. (Laughter.)
Colin Powell leaves big shoes to fill at the State Department, but Condi Rice is the right person to fill them. As National Security Advisor, she has led during a time when events not of our choosing have forced America to the leading edge of history. Condi has an abiding belief in the power of democracy to secure justice and liberty, and the inclusion of men and women of all races and religions in the courses that free nations chart for themselves.
A few days from now, these convictions will be confirmed by the Iraqi people, when they cast their ballots in Iraq's first free elections in generations. Sunday's election is the first step in a process that will allow Iraqis to write and pass a constitution that enshrines self-government and the rule of law. This history is changing the world, because the advent of democracy in Iraq will serve as a powerful example to reformers throughout the entire Middle East. On Sunday, the Iraqi people will be joining millions in others parts of the world who now decide their future through free votes.
In Afghanistan, the people have voted in the first free presidential elections in that nation's 5,000-year history. The people of Ukraine have made clear their own desire for democracy. The Palestinians have just elected a new President who has repudiated violence. Freedom is on the march, and the world is better for it. (Applause.) Widespread hatred and radicalism cannot survive the advent of freedom and self-government. Our nation will be more secure, the world will be more peaceful, as freedom advances. Condi Rice understands that.
And the terrorists understand that, as well. And that is why they are now attacking Iraqi civilians in an effort to sabotage elections. We applaud the courage of ordinary Iraqis for their refusal to surrender their future to these killers.
No nation can build a safer and better world alone. The men and women of the State Department are doing a fine job of working with other nations to build on the momentum of freedom. I know our nation will be really well served when the good folks at the State Department join with Condi Rice to face the many challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. In the coming months and years, we must stop the proliferation of dangerous weapons and materials. We must safeguard and expand the freedom of international marketplace and free trade. We must advance justice and fundamental human rights. We must fight HIV/AIDS and other diseases and reduce poverty.
Each task will require good relations with nations around the world, and each will require a Secretary who will lead by character and conviction and wisdom. To meet these times and tasks, America has its best in Dr. Condoleezza Rice, now Secretary Condoleezza Rice, our 66th Secretary of State. (Applause.)
SECRETARY RICE: Thank you, Mr. President, for those wonderful remarks. I want to thank also First Lady Laura Bush. The President and Mrs. Bush have been really a strong support system for me here and good friends, and I want to thank you for that.
I want to thank the members of my family and my friends who are here -- a number are here from Birmingham, Alabama, and they represent generations of Rices and Rays, who believed that a day like this might somehow be possible.
I'm honored by your confidence in me, Mr. President, and I'm deeply grateful for the opportunity you've given me to serve as this country's 66th Secretary of State.
Let me say, too, in echoing the President's comments, that I'm, indeed, fortunate to succeed a man of the character and quality of Colin Powell, who served with such distinction, who's done so much to strengthen the State Department, so much to carry forward America's message and goals and so much to help me, personally, in so many ways.
In the past four years, America has seen great trials and great opportunities. Under your leadership, Mr. President, our nation has risen to meet the challenges of our time, fighting tyranny and terror and securing the blessings of freedom and prosperity for a new generation.
Now it's time to build on those achievements to make the world safer and even more free. We must use American diplomacy to help create a balance of power that favors freedom. The time
for diplomacy is now. Standing for the cause of liberty is as old as our country itself. Indeed, it was our very first Secretary of State, Thomas Jefferson, who said, "The God who gave us live, gave us liberty at the same time." America's story is the story of men and women ceaselessly striving to ensure that we as a nation live up to the ideals set forth by our forefathers. Our founders realized that they, like all human beings, were flawed creatures, and that any government created by man would not be perfect. Even the great authors of our liberty sometimes fell short of their ideals -- even Thomas Jefferson, himself. Yet, our forebears established a democratic system of, by and for the people that contained within it the means for citizens and -- of conviction and of courage to correct its flaws.
The enduring principles enshrined in our Constitution made it possible for impatient patriots -- like Frederick Douglass, and Abraham Lincoln, and Martin Luther King -- to move us ever closer to our founding ideals. And so it is only natural that through the decades America would associate itself with those around the world who also strive to secure freedom for themselves and for their children.
September 11, 2001, made us see more clearly than ever how our values and our interests are linked and joined across the globe. That day of fire made us see that the best way to secure a world of peace and hope is to build a world of freedom. We do not simply seek the absence of terrorism. We seek a world where the aspirations for freedom of men and women triumph. Today, it is more fitting than ever that our nation should pursue a foreign policy that is grounded in democratic principles and aligns itself with the efforts of all those around the globe who share our love of liberty.
In all that lies ahead, the primary instrument of American diplomacy will be the Department of State, and the dedicated men and women of its foreign and civil services and our foreign service nationals. More than half a century ago, Dean Acheson and his officers stood present at the creation, in helping President Truman secure a world half free, while hoping that there would one day be a world fully free.
Mr. President, here with us today are some of the newest members of the State Department. The young officers here today are present at the transformation. And they will carry forward long into the future the work that we are undertaking to realize your vision of a world where all people live in freedom.
Under your leadership, Mr. President, we at the Department of State will conduct a foreign policy that sees the world clearly as it is. But, Mr. President, we will not accept that today's reality has to be tomorrow's. We will work in partnership with allies and reformers across the globe, putting the tools of diplomacy to work to unite, strengthen and widen the community of democracies.
We fully recognize that the hard work of freedom is the task of generations. Yet, it is also the urgent work that cannot be deferred. And, ultimately, the impatient souls all around the world who struggle and stumble and rise again to take up freedom's cause will succeed -- for the great mover of history is the power of the human spirit.
Mr. President, you have given us our mission, and we are ready to serve our great country and the cause of freedom for which it stands.
Thank you. (Applause.)
END 10:11 A.M. EST
Secretary of State Dr. Condoleezza Rice signs official papers Friday, Jan. 28, 2005, after receiving the oath of office during her ceremonial swearing in at the Department of State. Watching on are, from left, Laura Bush, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, President George W. Bush and an unidentified family member.
Duties of the Secretary of State
FACT SHEET
Bureau of Public Affairs
Washington, DC
January 22, 2001
Under the Constitution, the President of the United States determines U.S. foreign policy. The Secretary of State, appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate, is the Presidents chief foreign affairs adviser. The Secretary carries out the Presidents foreign policies through the State Department and the Foreign Service of the United States.
Created in 1789 by the Congress as the successor to the Department of Foreign Affairs, the Department of State is the senior executive Department of the U.S. Government. The Secretary of States duties relating to foreign affairs have not changed significantly since then, but they have become far more complex as international commitments multiplied. These dutiesthe activities and responsibilities of the State Departmentinclude the following: - Serves as the Presidents principal adviser on U.S. foreign policy;
- Conducts negotiations relating to U.S. foreign affairs;
- Grants and issues passports to American citizens and exequaturs to foreign consuls in the United States;
- Advises the President on the appointment of U.S. ambassadors, ministers, consuls, and other diplomatic representatives;
- Advises the President regarding the acceptance, recall, and dismissal of the representatives of foreign governments;
- Personally participates in or directs U.S. representatives to international conferences, organizations, and agencies;
- Negotiates, interprets, and terminates treaties and agreements;
- Ensures the protection of the U.S. Government to American citizens, property, and interests in foreign countries;
- Supervises the administration of U.S. immigration laws abroad;
- Provides information to American citizens regarding the political, economic, social, cultural, and humanitarian conditions in foreign countries;
- Informs the Congress and American citizens on the conduct of U.S. foreign relations;
- Promotes beneficial economic intercourse between the United States and other countries;
- Administers the Department of State;
- Supervises the Foreign Service of the United States.
In addition, the Secretary of State retains domestic responsibilities that Congress entrusted to the State Department in 1789. These include the custody of the Great Seal of the United States, the preparation of certain presidential proclamations, the publication of treaties and international acts as well as the official record of the foreign relations of the United States, and the custody of certain original treaties and international agreements. The Secretary also serves as the channel of communication between the Federal Government and the States on the extradition of fugitives to or from foreign countries.
Former Secretaries of State
2001-2005: Colin L. Powell
1997-2001: Madeleine Korbel Albright
1993-1997: Warren Minor Christopher
1992-1993: Lawrence Sidney Eagleburger
1989-1992: James Addison Baker III
1982-1989: George Pratt Shultz
1981-1982: Alexander Meigs Haig, Jr.
1980-1981: Edmund Sixtus Muskie
1977-1980: Cyrus Roberts Vance
1973-1977: Henry Alfred Kissinger
1969-1973: William Pierce Rogers
1961-1969: Dean David Rusk
1959-1961: Christian Archibald Herter
1953-1959: John Foster Dulles
1949-1953: Dean Gooderham Acheson
1947-1949: George Catlett Marshall
1945-1947: James Francis Byrnes
1944-1945: Edward Rielly Stettinius, Jr.
1933-1944: Cordell Hull
1929-1933: Henry Lewis Stimson
1925-1929: Frank Billings Kellogg
1921-1925: Charles Evans Hughes
1920-1921: Bainbridge Colby
1915-1920: Robert Lansing
1913-1915: William Jennings Bryan
1909-1913: Philander Chase Knox
1909: Robert Bacon
1905-1909: Elihu Root
1898-1905: John Hay
1898: William Rufus Day
1897-1898: John Sherman
1895-1897: Richard Olney
1893-1895: Walter Quintin Gresham
1892-1893: John Watson Foster
1889-1892: James Gillespie Blaine
1885-1889: Thomas Francis Bayard
1881-1885: Frederick Theodore Frelinghuysen
1881: James Gillespie Blaine
1877-1881: William Maxwell Evarts
1869-1877: Hamilton Fish
1869: Elihu Benjamin Washburne
1861-1869: William H. Seward
1860-1861: Jeremiah Sullivan Black
1857-1860: Lewis Cass
1853-1857: William Learned Marcy
1852-1853: Edward Everett
1850-1852: Daniel Webster
1849-1850: John Middleton Clayton
1845-1849: James Buchanan
1843-1845: John Caldwell Calhoun
1843-1844: Abel Parker Upshur
1841-1843: Daniel Webster
1834-1841: John Forsyth
1833-1834: Louis Mclane
1831-1833: Edward Livingston
1826-1831: Martin Van Buren
1825-1829: Henry Clay
1817-1825: John Quincy Adams
1815-1817: James Monroe
1811-1814: James Monroe
1809-1811: Robert Smith
1801-1809: James Madison
1800-1801: John Marshall
1795-1800: Timothy Pickering
1794-1795: Edmund Randolph
1789-1793: Thomas Jefferson
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The U. S. Constitution
