United States Secretary of Defense was created in 1947.
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The first Secretary of Defense of the United States was James
Forrestal. He was previously Secretary of the Navy before the
creation of a consolidated Department of Defense.
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The Secretary of Defense reports to the President of the United States.
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The current US Secretary of Defense is Robert Gates.
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Robert Gates is currently the secretary of defense of the United
States. He will step down from his position on June 30, 2011, and
will be replaced by Leon E. Panetta.