<Tr> <Th> William Bradford </Th> <Td> 1794--1795 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Charles Lee </Th> <Td> 1795--1797 </Td> </Tr> <P> The new Constitution empowered the president to appoint executive department heads with the consent of the Senate . Three departments had existed under the Articles of Confederation: the Department of War, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Finance Office . The Department of War was retained, while the latter two departments became the Department of State and the Department of the Treasury, respectively . The leaders of these three departments constituted the initial positions in Washington's cabinet . In September 1789, Congress established the position of Attorney General to serve as the chief legal adviser to the president . Though the Attorney General did not oversee a department (the United States Department of Justice would be established in 1870), the position nonetheless became a part of the cabinet . Edmund Randolph became the first Attorney General, while Henry Knox retained his position as head of the Department of War and Thomas Jefferson served as the first Secretary of State . For the key post of Secretary of the Treasury, which would oversee economic policy, Washington chose Alexander Hamilton, after his first choice, Robert Morris, declined . Morris had recommended Hamilton instead, writing "But, my dear general, you will be no loser by my declining the secrataryship of the Treasury, for I can recommend a far cleverer fellow than I am for your minister of finance in the person of your aide - de-camp, Colonel Hamilton ." Washington's initial cabinet consisted of one individual from New England (Knox), one individual from the mid-Atlantic (Hamilton), and two Southerners (Jefferson and Randolph). </P> <P> Jefferson left the Cabinet at the end of 1793 . He was replaced by Randolph, while William Bradford took over as Attorney General . Knox left the cabinet in 1794, and was replaced by Timothy Pickering . Hamilton left the cabinet in 1795, as did Randolph . With their departure, Oliver Wolcott became Secretary of the Treasury, and Pickering succeeded Randolph as Secretary of State . James McHenry replaced Pickering as Secretary of War, while Charles Lee became Attorney General after the departure of Bradford . </P>

How did the first president to choose federal officials