United States Assistant Secretary of State explained

Assistant Secretary of State (A/S) is a title used for many executive positions in the United States Department of State, ranking below the under secretaries.^[1] A set of six assistant secretaries reporting to the under secretary for political affairs manage diplomatic missions within their designated geographic regions, plus one assistant secretary dealing with international organizations and one equivalent as the coordinator/ambassador at large for counterterrorism. Assistant secretaries usually manage individual bureaus of the Department of State. When the manager of a bureau or another agency holds a title other than assistant secretary, such as "director", it can be said to be of "assistant secretary equivalent rank". Assistant secretaries typically have a set of deputies, referred to as deputy assistant secretaries (DAS).

History

From 1853 until 1913, the assistant secretary of state was the second-ranking official within the U.S. Department of State. Prior to 1853, the chief clerk was the second-ranking officer, and after 1913, the counselor was the second-ranking position, though the assistant secretary continued to be a position until 1924. From 1867, the Assistant Secretary of State was assisted by a second assistant secretary of state, and from 1875, by a third assistant secretary of state. Specific duties of the incumbents varied over the years and included such responsibilities as supervising the Diplomatic and Consular Bureaus, general supervision of correspondence, consular appointments, administration of the Department, and supervision of economic matters and various geographic divisions.

Overview

Today, the title of the second-ranking position is the Deputy Secretary of State, with the next tier of State Department officials bearing the rank of Under Secretary of State.

The following is a list of current offices bearing the title of "Assistant Secretary of State":

• Reporting directly to the Secretary of State:
  • Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence and Research
  • Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative Affairs
• Reporting to the Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs:
  • Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs
  • Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs
  • Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs
  • Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs
  • Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs
  • Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs
  • Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs
• Reporting to the Under Secretary of State for Management:
  • Assistant Secretary of State for Administration
  • Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs
  • Assistant Secretary of State for Diplomatic Security
• Reporting to the Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment:
  • Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs
  • Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs
  • Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Resources
• Reporting to the Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs:
  • Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs
  • Assistant Secretary of State for Global Public Affairs
• Reporting to the Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security:
  • Assistant Secretary of State for International Security and Nonproliferation
  • Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs
  • Assistant Secretary of State for Arms Control, Deterrence, and Stability
• Reporting to the Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights:
  • Assistant Secretary of State for Conflict and Stabilization Operations
  • Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
  • Assistant Secretary of State for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs
  • Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and Migration

The following roles also possess a rank equivalent to Assistant Secretary:^{[2] [3] [4]}

• Chief of Protocol of the United States, with the rank of Ambassador
• Coordinator for Counterterrorism, with the rank and status of Ambassador-at-Large
• Special Assistant to the Secretary and Executive Secretary of the Department
• Inspector General of the Department of State
• Legal Adviser
• Director General of the Foreign Service and Director of Global Talent
• Director, Policy Planning Staff
• Ambassador at Large for Global Women's Issues
• Ambassador at Large for Global Criminal Justice
• Director, Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, with the rank of Ambassador at Large
• Ambassador at Large for Global Health Security and Diplomacy
• Director of the Foreign Service Institute
• Science and Technology Advisor to the Secretary of State
• Chief Information Officer of the Department
• Director, Office of Foreign Missions, with rank of Ambassador
• Director of Budget and Planning
• Comptroller of the Department
• Chief Economist of the Department
• Director Foreign Assistance
• Chief Medical Officer and Designated Agency Safety and Health Official
• Director, Office of Civil Rights
• Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer
• Director, Office of Management Strategy and Solutions
• Director of Overseas Buildings Operations

List of Assistant Secretaries of State, 1853–1937

	Picture	Name	State of residency	Term of office	President(s) served under	Secretary of State(s) served under
1		Ambrose Dudley Mann	Virginia	March 23, 1853 – May 8, 1855	Franklin Pierce	William L. Marcy
2		William Hunter^[5]	Rhode Island	May 9, 1855 – October 31, 1855	Franklin Pierce	William L. Marcy
3		John Addison Thomas	New York	November 1, 1855 – April 3, 1857	Franklin Pierce James Buchanan	William L. Marcy Lewis Cass
4		John Appleton	Maine	April 4, 1857 – June 10, 1860	James Buchanan	Lewis Cass
5		William H. Trescot	South Carolina	June 8, 1860 – December 20, 1860	James Buchanan	Lewis Cass Jeremiah S. Black
6		Frederick W. Seward	New York	March 6, 1861 – March 4, 1869	Abraham Lincoln Andrew Johnson	William H. Seward
7		J.C. Bancroft Davis	New York	March 25, 1869 – November 13, 1871	Ulysses S. Grant	Hamilton Fish
8		Charles Hale	Massachusetts	February 19, 1872 – January 24, 1873	Ulysses S. Grant	Hamilton Fish
9		J.C. Bancroft Davis	New York	January 24, 1873 – January 30, 1874	Ulysses S. Grant	Hamilton Fish
10		John Lambert Cadwalader	New York	June 17, 1874 – March 20, 1877	Ulysses S. Grant Rutherford B. Hayes	Hamilton Fish William M. Evarts
11		Frederick W. Seward	New York	March 16, 1877 – October 31, 1879	Rutherford B. Hayes	William M. Evarts
12		John Hay	Ohio	November 1, 1879 – May 3, 1881	Rutherford B. Hayes James A. Garfield	William M. Evarts James G. Blaine
13		Robert R. Hitt	Illinois	May 4, 1881 – December 19, 1881	James A. Garfield Chester A. Arthur	James G. Blaine
14		J.C. Bancroft Davis	New York	December 19, 1881 – July 7, 1882	Chester A. Arthur	Frederick T. Frelinghuysen
15		John Davis	Washington, D.C.	July 7, 1882 – February 23, 1885	Chester A. Arthur	Frederick T. Frelinghuysen
16		James D. Porter	Tennessee	March 20, 1885 – September 17, 1887	Grover Cleveland	Thomas F. Bayard
17		George L. Rives	New York	November 19, 1887 – March 5, 1889	Grover Cleveland	Thomas F. Bayard
18		William F. Wharton^[6]	Massachusetts	April 2, 1889 – March 20, 1893	Benjamin Harrison Grover Cleveland	James G. Blaine John W. Foster Walter Q. Gresham
19		Josiah Quincy	Massachusetts	March 20, 1893 – September 22, 1893	Grover Cleveland	Walter Q. Gresham
20		Edwin F. Uhl	Michigan	November 1, 1893 – February 11, 1896	Grover Cleveland	Walter Q. Gresham Richard Olney
21		William Woodville Rockhill	Maryland	February 11, 1896 – May 10, 1897	Grover Cleveland William McKinley	Richard Olney John Sherman
22		William R. Day	Ohio	May 3, 1897 – April 27, 1898	William McKinley	John Sherman
23		John B. Moore	New York	April 27, 1898 – September 16, 1898	William McKinley	William R. Day
24		David Jayne Hill	New York	October 25, 1898 – January 28, 1903	William McKinley Theodore Roosevelt	John Hay
25		Francis B. Loomis	Ohio	January 7, 1903 – October 10, 1905	Theodore Roosevelt	John Hay Elihu Root
26		Robert Bacon	New York	September 5, 1905 – January 27, 1909	Theodore Roosevelt	Elihu Root
27		John Callan O'Laughlin	Washington, D.C.	January 27, 1909 – March 5, 1909	Theodore Roosevelt	Robert Bacon
28		Huntington Wilson	Illinois	March 5, 1909 – March 19, 1913	William Howard Taft Woodrow Wilson	Philander C. Knox William Jennings Bryan
29		John E. Osborne	Wyoming	April 21, 1913 – December 14, 1916	Thomas Woodrow Wilson	William Jennings Bryan Robert Lansing
30		William Phillips	Massachusetts	January 24, 1917 – March 25, 1920	Thomas Woodrow Wilson	Robert Lansing Bainbridge Colby
31		Fred Morris Dearing	Missouri	March 11, 1921 – February 28, 1922	Warren G. Harding	Charles Evans Hughes
32		Leland B. Harrison	Illinois	March 31, 1922 – June 30, 1924	Warren G. Harding Calvin Coolidge	Charles Evans Hughes
32		Wilbur J. Carr	Ohio	July 1, 1924 – July 28, 1937	Calvin Coolidge Herbert Hoover Franklin Roosevelt	Charles Evans Hughes Frank B. Kellogg Henry L. Stimson Cordell Hull

Second Assistant Secretary of State

The Consular and Diplomatic Appropriations Act for the year ending June 30, 1867 authorized the president to appoint a second assistant secretary of state. Duties of incumbents varied less over the years than did those of the other assistant secretary positions. Responsibilities included: supervision of correspondence with diplomatic officers; preparation of drafts of treaties, conventions, diplomatic notes, and instructions; detailed treatment of current diplomatic and political questions; approval of correspondence for the signature of the secretary or acting secretary; and consultation on matters of diplomatic procedure, international law and policy, and traditional practices of the Department. The Foreign Service Act of 1924 abolished numerical titles for assistant secretaries of state. Only two people held the position from 1866 to 1924.

	Picture	Name	State of Residency	Term of Office	President(s) served under	Secretary of State(s) served under
1		William Hunter	Rhode Island	July 27, 1866 - July 22, 1886	Andrew Johnson Ulysses S. Grant Rutherford B. Hayes James A. Garfield Chester A. Arthur Grover Cleveland	William H. Seward Elihu Benjamin Washburne Hamilton Fish William Maxwell Evarts James Gillespie Blaine Frederick Theodore Frelinghuysen Thomas F. Bayard, Sr.
2		Alvey A. Adee	District of Columbia	August 3, 1886 - June 30, 1924	Grover Cleveland Benjamin Harrison William McKinley Theodore Roosevelt William Howard Taft Thomas Woodrow Wilson Warren G. Harding Calvin Coolidge	Thomas F. Bayard, Sr. James Gillespie Blaine John Watson Foster Walter Quintin Gresham Richard Olney John Sherman William Rufus Day John Milton Hay Elihu Root Robert Bacon Philander Chase Knox William Jennings Bryan Robert Lansing Bainbridge Colby Charles Evans Hughes

Third Assistant Secretary of State

A federal appropriations act for the year ending Jun 30, 1875 (Jun 20, 1874; 18 Stat. 90), authorized the president to appoint a third assistant secretary of state. The secretary of state was authorized to prescribe the duties of the assistant secretaries and other Department of State employees, "and may make changes and transfers therein when, in his judgment, it becomes necessary." The third assistant secretary's duties varied over the years, including such diverse assignments as: supervision of several geographic divisions; oversight of the bureaus of accounts and appointments; international conferences and commissions; and ceremonials and protocol, including presentation to the president of chiefs of foreign diplomatic missions. The Foreign Service Act of 1924 (May 24, 1924; 43 Stat 146) abolished numerical titles for assistant secretaries of state.

	Picture	Name	State of Residency	Term of Office	President(s) served under	Secretary of State(s) served under
1		John Allen Campbell	Wyoming	February 24, 1875 - November 30, 1877	Ulysses S. Grant Rutherford B. Hayes	Hamilton Fish William M. Evarts
2		Charles Payson	Massachusetts, New York	June 22, 1878 - June 30, 1881	Rutherford B. Hayes James A. Garfield	William M. Evarts James G. Blaine
3		Walker Blaine	Maine	July 1, 1881 - June 30, 1882	James A. Garfield Chester A. Arthur	James G. Blaine Frederick T. Frelinghuysen
4		Alvey A. Adee	District of Columbia	July 18, 1882 - August 5, 1886	Chester A. Arthur Grover Cleveland	Frederick T. Frelinghuysen Thomas F. Bayard, Sr.
5		John Bassett Moore	Delaware, New York	August 6, 1886 - September 30, 1891	Grover Cleveland Benjamin Harrison	Thomas F. Bayard, Sr. James G. Blaine
6		William Morton Grinnell	New York	February 15, 1892 - April 16, 1893	Benjamin Harrison Grover Cleveland	James G. Blaine John W. Foster
7		Edward Henry Strobel	New York	April 17, 1893 - April 16, 1894	Grover Cleveland	Walter Q. Gresham
8		William Woodville Rockhill	District of Columbia, Maryland	April 17, 1894 - February 13, 1896	Grover Cleveland	Walter Q. Gresham Richard Olney
9		William Woodward Baldwin	New York	February 29, 1896 - April 1, 1897	Grover Cleveland, William McKinley	Richard Olney John Sherman
10		Thomas Wilbur Cridler	West Virginia	April 8, 1897 - November 15, 1901	William McKinley	John Sherman William R. Day John Hay
11		Herbert Henry Davis Peirce	Massachusetts	November 16, 1901 - June 22, 1906	Theodore Roosevelt	John Hay Elihu Root
12		Huntington Wilson	Illinois	July 2, 1906 - December 30, 1908	Theodore Roosevelt	Elihu Root
13		William Phillips	Massachusetts	January 11, 1909 - October 13, 1909	Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft	Elihu Root Robert Bacon Philander C. Knox
14		Chandler Hale	Maine	October 14, 1909 - April 21, 1913	William Howard Taft, Woodrow Wilson	Philander C. Knox William Jennings Bryan
15		Dudley Field Malone	New York	April 22, 1913 - November 22, 1913	Woodrow Wilson	William Jennings Bryan
16		William Phillips	Massachusetts	March 17, 1914 - January 24, 1917	Woodrow Wilson	William Jennings Bryan Robert Lansing
17		Breckinridge Long	Massachusetts	January 29, 1917 - June 8, 1920	Woodrow Wilson	Robert Lansing Bainbridge Colby
18		Van Santvoord Merle-Smith	New York	June 24, 1920 - March 4, 1921	Woodrow Wilson	Bainbridge Colby
19		Robert Woods Bliss	New York	March 16, 1921 - May 3, 1923	Warren G. Harding	Charles Evans Hughes
20		J. Butler Wright	Wyoming	June 11, 1923 - June 30, 1924	Warren G. Harding Calvin Coolidge	Charles Evans Hughes

Defunct offices including the designation of Assistant Secretary of State

• Assistant Secretary of State for Occupied Areas

See also

• , which includes some holders of post-1924 positions named Assistant Secretary of State

External links

• The Department of State's organization page.
• The Department of State's list of current or former positions and titles.
• The Department of State's list of Assistant Secretaries of State during the time it was the second-ranking position.
• The Department of State's list of Second Assistant Secretaries of State during the time it was the third-ranking position.
• Assistant Secretaries of State

Notes and References

1. Web site: Assistant Secretaries and Other Senior Officials. U.S. Department of State. January 26, 2017. January 26, 2017.
2. Web site: Assistant Secretaries and Equivalent Rank. January 20, 2009. April 4, 2016. U.S. Department of State.
3. Web site: Department Organization Chart. March 2014. April 4, 2016. U.S. Department of State.
4. Web site: Career vs. Other Appointments: Assistant Secretary Equivalents. American Foreign Service Association. November 16, 2017. December 13, 2017.
5. Served as Acting Secretary of State, but not during term as Assistant Secretary of State.
6. Served as Acting Secretary of State