内阁(cabinet)

由君主的主要大臣们组成或由行政首长的顾问们组成的机构。在立法权赋予议会的地方，内阁变得很重要，但其形式在各国有显着的不同。在英国，内阁是由在议会拥有席位的各部大臣组成的一个委员会，由首相领导。尽管以前君主有权挑选阁员，但现在仅限於在形式上邀请议会中的多数党领袖担任首相和组成政府。传统上在其他许多欧洲国家，特别是在义大利和法国，通常有几个政党互相竞争，没有一个政党能够在议会中保持稳定的多数，因而常常是联合组阁。在美国，内阁是总统的顾问团，不需法律核准。成员由总统挑选并经参议院同意。宪法制定内阁成员继承总统职位的优先顺序。内阁包括国务卿和财政部、国防部、内政部、农业部、商业部、劳工部、健康与人类服务部、住宅和都市发展部、运输部、教育部、能源部退除役官兵事务部等部长，以及总检察长。

English version：

cabinet

Body of senior ministers or, in the U.S., advisers to a chief executive, whose members also serve as the heads of government departments. The cabinet has become an integral part of parliamentary government in many countries, though its form varies. It developed from the British Privy Council, when King Charles II and Queen Anne regularly consulted the council's leading members to reach decisions before meeting with the unwieldy full council. The modern British cabinet consists of departmental ministers, drawn from the members of Parliament and appointed by the prime minister. In the U.S., the cabinet serves as an advisory group to the president without the sanction of law. Members' appointments are subject to Senate approval, and the U.S. Constitution sets cabinet members' order of succession to the presidency. The cabinet includes the secretaries of State, Treasury, Defense, Interior, Agriculture, Commerce, Labor, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, Education, Energy, and Veterans Affairs and the attorney general.

参考文章

• 内阁的由来中国史