Treasury Secretary

The head honcho. The cash cattleman. The policy player. The Treasury Secretary.

In the U.S., the Treasury Secretary is the head of the U.S. Department of the Treasury (so no, not "just" a secretary). The Treasury Secretary is a Prez cabinet member, and fifth in line for the U.S. presidency.

The Treasury is where monetary policy and fiscal policy meet...where the money is put into the U.S. bank account from tax revenue (thanks for collecting, IRS), and where the money is taken out to buy things. It’s a really, really big bank account. The actual job of the Treasury Secretary though is mostly fiscal; monetary policy is mainly the responsibility of the Federal Reserve (the U.S. central bank).

In addition to handling all that cash-money and occasionally brushing shoulders with the independent Fed, the Treasury Secretary acts as a presidential advisor on everything money: domestic and international squabbles, tax policy...you name it. It governs Treasury securities as well.

For those who haven’t seen Hamilton (yet), Alexander Hamilton was the first Treasury Secretary. Spoiler alert.