postmaster general: Definition and Much More from Answers.com
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postmaster general
n., pl. postmasters general. (Abbr. PMG)
The executive head of a national postal service.
Politics: postmaster general
The head of the United States Postal Service. Until 1970, the postmaster general was head of the federal Post Office Department and a member of the president's cabinet. In 1970, the Postal Service was set up as an independent agency in place of the Post Office Department. The Postal Service is operated like a private corporation, although postal workers receive the benefits of federal employees.
WordNet: postmaster general
Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.
The noun has one meaning:
Meaning #1:
the official in charge of the national postal service
Wikipedia: United States Postmaster General
The United States Postmaster General is the executive head of the United States Postal Service. The office, in one form or another, is older than both the United States Constitution and the United States Declaration of Independence. Benjamin Franklin was appointed by the Continental Congress as the first Postmaster General, serving slightly longer than 15 months.
Until 1971, the Postmaster General was the head of the Post Office Department (or simply "Post Office" until the 1820s).[1] From 1829, he was a member of the President's Cabinet and the postmaster was last in the presidential line of succession. The Cabinet post of Postmaster General was often given to a new President's campaign manager or other key political supporter, and was considered something of a sinecure. The Postmaster General was in charge of the party in power's patronage, and was a powerful position which held much influence within the party. Former Postmaster General James Farley used the patronage position of the Postmaster General most effectively during Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal administration, in by which he saw that Roosevelt's first 100 days of legislation were passed by party loyalists within the United States Congress, and that they were rewarded with Federal Patronage for their states. Federal appointments, except for a small handful, were screened by Farley before the President could approve the appointments due to the patronage position of the Postmaster General.
In 1971, the Post Office Department was re-organized into the United States Postal Service, a special agency independent of the executive branch. Thus, the Postmaster General is no longer a member of the Cabinet and is no longer in line to be President. During the Civil War, the Confederate States of America also had a Confederate Post-Office Department, headed by a Postmaster General, John Henninger Reagan.
The current Postmaster General (who is also CEO of the U.S. Postal Service) is John E. Potter.
Postmasters General under the Continental Congress
| Name | Date appointed |
|---|---|
| Benjamin Franklin | July 26, 1775 |
| Richard Bache | November 7, 1776 |
| Ebenezer Hazard | January 28, 1782 |
Cabinet-level Postmasters General, 1789–1971
Postmasters-General, 1971–present
See also
Notes
- ^ http://www.usps.com/cpim/ftp/pubs/pub100/pub100.htm
- ^ Since July 1, 1971, the Postmaster General has been appointed by and serves under the Board of Governors of the United States Postal Service.
External links
| United States Postmasters General | |
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