Login
Login

United States Deputy Secretary of Defense

{{Short description|Second highest-ranking DoD official}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}

{{Infobox official post

| post = United States Deputy Secretary

| body = Defense

| flag = Flag of the United States Deputy Secretary of Defense.svg

| flagsize = 130

| flagcaption = Flag of the deputy secretary

| insignia = Seal of the United States Department of Defense.svg

| insigniasize = 120

| insigniacaption = Seal of the department

| image = Feinberg DoD Portrait 2025.png

| incumbent = Steve Feinberg

| incumbentsince = March 17, 2025

| acting = No

| department = Department of Defense
Office of the Secretary

| style = Mister/Madam Deputy Secretary (informal)
The Honorable (formal)

| status = Chief operating officer

| reports_to = Secretary

| seat = The Pentagon, Arlington County, Virginia

| appointer = The president

| appointer_qualified = with Senate advice and consent

| termlength = No fixed term

| constituting_instrument = {{UnitedStatesCode|10|132}}

| first = Stephen Early
May 2, 1949

| formation = 1949

| succession = 1st in SecDef succession

| salary = Executive Schedule, level II{{UnitedStatesCode|5|5313}}.

| website = {{url|https://www.defense.gov/About/Deputy-Secretary-of-Defense/|www.defense.gov}}

}}

The deputy secretary of defense (acronym: DepSecDef) is a statutory office ({{UnitedStatesCode|10|132}}) and the second-highest-ranking official in the Department of Defense of the United States of America.

The deputy secretary is the principal civilian deputy to the secretary of defense, and is appointed by the president, with the advice and consent of the Senate. The deputy secretary, by statute, is designated as the DoD chief management officer and must be a civilian, at least seven years removed from service as a commissioned officer on active-duty at the date of appointment.{{UnitedStatesCode|10|132}}.

History

{{USPL|81|36}}, April 2, 1949, originally established this position as the under secretary of defense, however {{USPL|81|216}} August 10, 1949, a.k.a. the 1949 Amendments to the National Security Act of 1947, changed the title to deputy secretary of defense. Former assistant to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Stephen Early, became the first officer holder when he was sworn in on May 2, 1949.Department of Defense Key Officials 1947–2015: p. 15.

{{USPL|92|596}}, October 27, 1972, established a second deputy secretary of defense position, with both deputies performing duties as prescribed by the secretary of defense. The second deputy position was not filled until December 1975. Robert Ellsworth, serving from December 23, 1975, until January 10, 1977, was the only one to ever hold that office. {{USPL|95|140}}, October 21, 1977, established two under secretaries of defense and abolished the second deputy position.

Responsibilities

By delegation, the deputy secretary of defense has full power and authority to act for the secretary of defense and to exercise the powers of the secretary of defense on any and all matters for which the secretary is authorized to act pursuant to statute or executive order. The deputy secretary is first in the line of succession to the secretary of defense.

The typical role of the deputy secretary of defense is to oversee the day-to-day business and lead the internal management processes of the $500-billion-plus Department of Defense budget, that is as its chief operating officer; while the secretary of defense as the chief executive officer focuses on the big issues of the day, ongoing military operations, high-profile congressional hearings, attending meetings of the National Security Council, and directly advising the president on defense issues.

Prior to February 1, 2018, the deputy secretary of defense also served as the department's chief management officer, to whom the deputy chief management officer reported, but those responsibilities were split into a new chief management officer of the Department of Defense position (disestablished on 1 January 2021).{{Cite web|url=https://www.acq.osd.mil/fo/docs/Section-901-FY-2017-NDAA-Report.pdf|title=Report to Congress: Restructuring the Department of Defense Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Organization and Chief Management Officer Organization|date=August 1, 2017|access-date=February 22, 2018}}

The deputy secretary, among the office's many responsibilities, chairs the Senior Level Review Group (SLRG), before 2005 known as Defense Resources Board (DRB), which provides department-wide budgetary allocation recommendations to the secretary and the president. Traditionally, the deputy secretary has been the civilian official guiding the process of the Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR).

The deputy secretary of defense chairs the Special Access Program Oversight Committee (SAPOC), which has oversight responsibilities and provides recommendations with respect to changes in status of the department's Special Access Programs, for either the deputy secretary defense or the secretary of defense to make.

As James Mattis was selecting officials as Donald Trump's first secretary of defense, Michèle Flournoy talked with Trump-affiliated officials about joining as deputy secretary. She did not in the end do so.

List of deputy secretaries of defense

class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"

!rowspan="2"| No.

!rowspan="2"| Image

!rowspan="2"| Name

!colspan="3"| Term of office

!rowspan="2"| Serving under
Secretaries of Defense

!rowspan="2"| Appointed by
President

Began

! Ended

! Time in office

1

| 100px

| Stephen Early

| {{highlight|May 2, 1949|#e6e6aa}}
August 10, 1949

| {{highlight|August 9, 1949|#e6e6aa}}{{efn|As "Under Secretary of Defense"}}
September 30, 1950{{efn|As "Deputy Secretary of Defense"}}

| {{ayd|1949|5|2|1950|9|30}}

| Louis A. Johnson
George C. Marshall

|rowspan="3"|Harry S. Truman

2

| 100px

| Robert A. Lovett

| October 4, 1950

| September 16, 1951

| {{ayd|1950|10|4|1951|8|16}}

| George C. Marshall

3

| 100px

| William Chapman Foster

| September 24, 1951

| January 20, 1953

| {{ayd|1951|9|24|1953|1|20}}

| Robert A. Lovett

4

| 100px

| Roger M. Kyes

| February 2, 1953

| May 1, 1954

| {{ayd|1953|2|2|1954|5|1}}

|rowspan="3"|Charles Erwin Wilson

|rowspan="6"|Dwight D. Eisenhower

5

| 100px

| Robert B. Anderson

| May 3, 1954

| August 4, 1955

| {{ayd|1954|5|3|1955|8|4}}

6

| 100px

| Reuben B. Robertson Jr.

| August 5, 1955

| April 25, 1957

| {{ayd|1955|8|5|1957|4|25}}

7

| 100px

| Donald A. Quarles

| May 1, 1957

| May 8, 1959

| {{ayd|1957|5|1|1959|5|8}}

| Charles Erwin Wilson
Neil H. McElroy

8

| 100px

| Thomas S. Gates Jr.

| June 8, 1959

| December 1, 1959

| {{ayd|1959|6|8|1959|12|1}}

| Neil H. McElroy

9

| 100px

| James H. Douglas Jr.

| December 11, 1959

| January 24, 1961

| {{ayd|1959|12|11|1961|1|24}}

| Thomas S. Gates Jr.
Robert McNamara

10

| 100px

| Roswell Gilpatric

| January 24, 1961

| January 20, 1964

| {{ayd|1961|1|24|1964|1|20}}

|rowspan="2"|Robert McNamara

| John F. Kennedy

11

| 100px

| Cyrus Vance

| January 28, 1964

| June 30, 1967

| {{ayd|1964|1|28|1967|6|30}}

|rowspan="2"|Lyndon B. Johnson

12

| 100px

| Paul Nitze

| July 1, 1967

| January 20, 1969

| {{ayd|1967|7|1|1969|1|20}}

| Robert McNamara
Clark Clifford

13

| 100px

| David Packard

| January 24, 1969

| December 13, 1971

| {{ayd|1969|1|24|1971|12|13}}

|rowspan="2"|Melvin Laird

|rowspan="3"|Richard Nixon

14

| 100px

| Kenneth Rush

| February 23, 1972

| January 29, 1973

| {{ayd|1972|2|23|1973|1|29}}

15

| 133x133px

| Bill Clements

| January 30, 1973

| January 20, 1977

| {{ayd|1973|1|30|1977|1|20}}

| Elliot Richardson
James R. Schlesinger
Donald Rumsfeld

16

| 100px

| Robert Ellsworth

| December 23, 1975Department of Defense Key Officials 1947–2015: p. 16.

| January 10, 1977

| {{ayd|1975|12|23|1977|1|10}}

| Donald Rumsfeld

| Gerald Ford

17

| 100px

| Charles Duncan Jr.

| January 31, 1977

| July 26, 1979

| {{ayd|1977|1|31|1979|7|26}}

|rowspan="2"|Harold Brown

|rowspan="2"|Jimmy Carter

18

| 100px

| W. Graham Claytor Jr.

| August 24, 1979

| January 16, 1981

| {{ayd|1979|8|24|1981|1|16}}

19

| 100px

| Frank Carlucci

| February 4, 1981

| December 31, 1982

| {{ayd|1981|2|4|1982|12|31}}

|rowspan="2"|Caspar Weinberger

|rowspan="3"|Ronald Reagan

20

| 100px

| W. Paul Thayer

| January 12, 1983

| January 4, 1984

| {{ayd|1983|1|12|1984|1|4}}

21

| 100px

| William Howard Taft IV

| February 3, 1984

| April 22, 1989

| {{ayd|1984|2|3|1989|4|22}}

| Caspar Weinberger
Frank Carlucci
Dick Cheney

22

| 100px

| Donald J. Atwood Jr.

| April 24, 1989

| January 20, 1993

| {{ayd|1989|4|24|1993|1|20}}

| Dick Cheney

| George H. W. Bush

23

| 100px

| William Perry

| March 5, 1993

| February 3, 1994

| {{ayd|1993|3|5|1994|2|3}}

| Les Aspin

|rowspan="5"|Bill Clinton

24

| 100px

| John M. Deutch

| March 11, 1994

| May 10, 1995

| {{ayd|1994|3|11|1995|5|10}}

| William Perry

25

| 100px

| John P. White

| June 22, 1995

| July 15, 1997

| {{ayd|1995|6|22|1997|7|15}}

| William Perry
William Cohen

26

| 100px

| John Hamre

| July 29, 1997

| March 31, 2000

| {{ayd|1997|7|29|2000|3|31}}

| William Cohen

27

| 100px

| Rudy de Leon

| March 31, 2000Department of Defense Key Officials 1947–2015: p. 17.

| March 1, 2001

| {{ayd|2000|3|31|2001|3|1}}

| William Cohen
Donald Rumsfeld

28

| 100px

| Paul Wolfowitz

| March 2, 2001

| May 13, 2005

| {{ayd|2001|3|2|2005|5|13}}

| Donald Rumsfeld

|rowspan="2"|George W. Bush

29

| 100px

| Gordon R. England

| {{highlight|May 13, 2005|#e6e6aa}}
January 4, 2006

| {{highlight|January 3, 2006|#e6e6aa}}{{efn|Served as Acting Deputy Secretary of Defense}}
February 11, 2009

| {{ayd|2005|5|13|2006|1|4}}
{{age in days|2006|1|4|2009|2|11}}

| Donald Rumsfeld
Robert Gates

30

| 100px

| William J. Lynn III

| February 12, 2009

| October 5, 2011

| {{ayd|2009|2|12|2011|10|5}}

| Robert Gates
Leon Panetta

|rowspan="4"|Barack Obama

31

| 100px

| Ash Carter

| October 6, 2011

| December 4, 2013

| {{ayd|2011|10|6|2013|12|3}}

| Leon Panetta
Chuck Hagel

bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | —

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | 100px

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | Christine Fox
Acting

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | December 5, 2013Department of Defense Key Officials 1947–2015: p. 18.

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | May 1, 2014

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | {{age in days|2013|12|3|2014|5|1}}

| Chuck Hagel

32

| 100px

| Robert O. Work

| May 1, 2014

| July 14, 2017

| {{ayd|2014|5|1|2017|7|14}}

| Chuck Hagel
Ash Carter
Jim Mattis

33

| 100px

| Patrick M. Shanahan

| July 19, 2017

| June 23, 2019{{cite web|url=https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/1880477/acting-secretary-of-defense-will-resign-as-deputy-secretary-of-defense/|title=Acting Secretary of Defense will Resign as Deputy Secretary of Defense|date=June 18, 2019|access-date=June 24, 2019|publisher=United States Department of Defense}}

| {{ayd|2017|7|19|2019|6|23}}

| Jim Mattis
Himself (acting)

|rowspan="4"| Donald Trump

bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | —

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | 100px

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | David Norquist
Acting

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | January 1, 2019

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | July 23, 2019

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | {{ayd|2019|1|1|2019|7|23}}

| Patrick M. Shanahan (acting)
Mark Esper (acting)
Richard V. Spencer (acting)

bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | —

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | 100px

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | Richard V. Spencer
Acting

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | July 23, 2019

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | July 31, 2019

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | {{ayd|2019|7|23|2019|7|31}}

| Mark Esper

34

| 100px

| David Norquist

| July 31, 2019

| February 8, 2021

| {{ayd|2019|7|31|2021|2|8}}

|Mark Esper
Lloyd Austin

35

| 100px

| Kathleen Hicks

| February 8, 2021

| January 20, 2025

| {{ayd|2021|2|8|2025|1|20}}

| Lloyd Austin

| Joe Biden

bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | —

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | 100px

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | Robert G. Salesses[https://history.defense.gov/Portals/70/Documents/key_officials/KeyOfficials-2025-02-05.pdf?ver=u8HG3PRZlHKgsEybATUYAw%3d%3d defense.gov]
Acting

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | January 28, 2025

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | March 17, 2025

| bgcolor="#e6e6aa" | {{ayd|2025|01|28|2025|3|17}}

|rowspan="2"| Pete Hegseth

|rowspan="2"| Donald Trump

36

| 100px

| Stephen Feinberg

| March 17, 2025

| Incumbent

|{{ayd|2025|3|17

}

|}

See also

Notes

{{Notelist}}

References

= Citations =

{{Reflist|2}}

= Sources =

  • {{Cite book

| title = Department of Defense Directive 5100.1: Functions of the Department of Defense and Its Major Components

| publisher = U.S. Department of Defense

| series = Department of Defense Directive

| location = Washington, D.C.

| url = http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/pdf/510001p.pdf

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110322204730/http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/pdf/510001p.pdf

| url-status = dead

| archive-date = March 22, 2011

| date = December 21, 2010

| ref = 5100.1 }}

  • {{Cite book

| title = Department of Defense Key Officials 1947–2015

| publisher = Office of the Secretary of Defense, Historical Office

| location = Washington, D.C.

| url = https://history.defense.gov/Portals/70/Documents/key_officials/KEYOFFICIALSjune22-2015.pdf

| date = 2015

| ref = DODKO }}

  • deputy secretary of defense position profile at [https://web.archive.org/web/20090427174732/http://www.excellenceintransition.org/prune/prunedetail.cfm?ItemNumber=10552 Prunes Online]

External links

  • [https://www.defense.gov/ defense.gov]

{{Navboxes

|list =

{{USDepSecDef}}

{{Current US Department of Defense Secretaries}}

{{US Department of Defense Secretaries}}

{{US military navbox}}

{{US Cabinet deputy leaders}}

}}

Defense