United States Secretary of Defense to die was Frank Carlucci (1987–1989), on 3 June 2018. United States Secretary of Defense The Secretary of Defense (SecDef) is the leader and chief executive officer of the United States Department of Defense, the executive department of the Armed Forces of the United States. The Secretary of Defense's position of command and authority over the United States' military is second only to that of the President and Congress, respectively. This position corresponds to what is generally known as a Defense Minister in many other countries. The Secretary of Defense is appointed by the President with the advice and consent
Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs Affairs)". ASD(PA) was established by Defense Directive 5105.13 of 10 August 1957. In 1993, the position was changed to "Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs," by Defense Directive 5122.5. This bureaucratic distinction was dropped after the National Defense Authorization Act for FY1995 (P.L. 103-337) increased the number of assistant secretaries from 10 to 11. The post was subsequently titled "Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs)", referred to as the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs, and abbreviated as ASD(PA). In October 2015 the position was retitled again, reverting to "Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for