On February 22nd congress passed a $250million arms appropriations bill intended to make the United States ready for war so the answer is yes they were!
In the executive branch of the United States, the title of department is reserved for "<span>b. independent agencies," since these agencies often act with a great deal of independence from the President and his staff. </span>
NO he really dosent, he was a murder, cheater, liar and he never acuall discovered america, what he was doing was trying to find a route to Asia instead he got to North America