Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) is the highest-ranking and most senior military officer in the United States Armed Forces[2] and is the principal military advisor to the president, the National Security Council,[3] the Homeland Security Council,[3] and the secretary of defense.[3][4] While the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff outranks all other commissioned officers, the chairman is prohibited by law from having operational command authority over the armed forces; however, the chairman does assist the president and the secretary of defense in exercising their command functions.[2]
| Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff | |
|---|---|
 Seal of the Joint Chiefs of Staff | |
 Flag of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff | |
| Joint Chiefs of Staff United States Department of Defense | |
| Type | Highest-ranking military officer |
| Abbreviation | CJCS |
| Member of | Joint Chiefs of Staff National Security Council |
| Reports to | President of the United States Secretary of Defense |
| Seat | The Pentagon, Arlington County, Virginia |
| Nominator | Secretary of Defense |
| Appointer | The President with Senate advice and consent |
| Term length | 4 years |
| Constituting instrument | 10 U.S.C. § 153 |
| Precursor | Chief of Staff to the Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy |
| Formation | August 19, 1949 |
| First holder | General of the Army Omar Bradley |
| Deputy | Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Director of the Joint Staff (Joint Staff) Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chairman (Enlisted Matters) |
| Website | www |
The chairman convenes the meetings and coordinates the efforts of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), an advisory body within the Department of Defense comprising the chairman, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the chief of staff of the Army, the chief of naval operations, the chief of staff of the Air Force, the commandant of the Marine Corps, and the chief of the National Guard Bureau.[3] The post of a statutory and permanent Joint Chiefs of Staff chair was created by the 1949 amendments to the National Security Act of 1947. The 1986 Goldwater–Nichols Act elevated the chairman from the first among equals to becoming the "principal military advisor" to the president and the secretary of defense.
The Joint Staff, managed by the director of the Joint Staff and consisting of military personnel from all the services, assists the chairman in fulfilling his duties to the president and secretary of defense, and functions as a conduit and collector of information between the chairman and the combatant commanders. The National Military Command Center (NMCC) is part of the Joint Staff operations directorate (J-3).
Although the office of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is considered very important and highly prestigious, neither the chairman, the vice chairman, nor the Joint Chiefs of Staff as a body has any command authority over combatant forces. The Goldwater–Nichols Act places the chain of command from the president to the secretary of defense directly to the commanders of the Unified Combatant Commands.[5] However the services chiefs do have authority over personnel assignments and oversight over resources and personnel allocated to the combatant commands within their respective services (derived from the service secretaries).
The chairman may also transmit communications to the combatant commanders from the president and secretary of defense[6] as well as allocate additional funding to the combatant commanders if necessary.[7] The chairman also performs all other functions prescribed under 10 U.S.C. § 153 or allocates those duties and responsibilities to other officers in the joint staff under his or her name.
Organization and assistants
The principal deputy to the chairman is the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (VCJCS), another four-star general or admiral, who among many duties chairs the Joint Requirements Oversight Council (JROC).
The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is assisted by the Joint Staff, led by the director of the Joint Staff, a three-star general or admiral. The Joint Staff is an organization composed of approximately equal numbers of officers contributed by the Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force, who have been assigned to assist the chairman with the unified strategic direction, operation, and integration of the combatant land, naval, and air forces. The National Military Command Center (NMCC) is part of the Joint Staff operations directorate (J-3).
The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is also advised on enlisted personnel matters by the senior enlisted advisor to the chairman, who serves as a communication conduit between the chairman and the senior enlisted advisors (command sergeants major, command master chief petty officers, and command chief master sergeants) of the combatant commands.
Historical
Fleet Admiral William D. Leahy, USN, served as the chief of staff to the commander in chief from 20 July 1942 to 21 March 1949. He presided over meetings of what was called the Joint Chiefs of Staff,[8] and Leahy's office was the precursor to the post of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, created in 1949.
Appointment and rank
The chairman is nominated by the president for appointment and must be confirmed via majority vote by the Senate.[2] The chairman and vice chairman may not be members of the same armed force service branch.[9] However, the president may waive that restriction for a limited period of time in order to provide for the orderly transition of officers appointed to serve in those positions.[9] The chairman serves a single four-year term of office[2][10] at the pleasure of the president,[2] with reappointment to additional terms only possible during times of war or national emergency.[2] Historically, the chairman has served two two-year terms, until the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 amended the chairman's term of office to a single four-year term.[10] By statute, the chairman is appointed as a four-star general or admiral while holding office[2] and assumes office on October 1st of odd-numbered years.[2]
Although the first chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Omar Bradley, was eventually awarded a fifth star, the CJCS does not receive one by right, and Bradley's award was so that his subordinate, General of the Army Douglas MacArthur, would not outrank him.[11][12]
In the 1990s, there were proposals in Department of Defense academic circles to bestow on the office of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff a five-star rank.[13][14][15]
According to the 2020 Monthly Rates of Basic Pay (Commissioned Officer) - effective January 1, 2020), basic pay is limited to the rate of basic pay for level II of the Executive Schedule in effect during calendar year 2020, which is $16,441.80 per month for officers at pay grades O-7 through O-10. This includes officers serving as Chairman or Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Chief of Staff of the Army, Chief of Naval Operations, Chief of Staff of the Air Force, Commandant of the Marine Corps, Commandant of the Coast Guard, Chief of the National Guard Bureau, or commander of a unified or specified combatant command.[16]
List of chairmen
Chief of Staff to the Commander in Chief (historical predecessor office)
| No. | Chief of Staff to the Commander in Chief | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Service branch | Secretaries | President | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fleet Admiral William D. Leahy (1875–1959) | July 20, 1942 | March 21, 1949 | 6 years, 244 days |  U.S. Navy | Henry L. Stimson Robert P. Patterson Kenneth C. Royall (of War) Frank Knox (of Navy) James V. Forrestal (1st DOD) | Franklin D. Roosevelt Harry S. Truman |
Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
| No. | Portrait | Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Service branch | Secretaries | President |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | General of the Army Omar Bradley (1893–1981) | August 19, 1949 | August 15, 1953 | 3 years, 361 days |  U.S. Army | Louis A. Johnson George C. Marshall Robert A. Lovett | Harry S. Truman Dwight D. Eisenhower | |
| 2 | Admiral Arthur W. Radford (1896–1973) | August 15, 1953 | August 15, 1957 | 4 years, 0 days | U.S. Navy | Charles Erwin Wilson | Dwight D. Eisenhower | |
| 3 | General Nathan F. Twining (1897–1982) | August 15, 1957 | September 30, 1960 | 3 years, 46 days |  U.S. Air Force | Charles Erwin Wilson Neil H. McElroy Thomas S. Gates | Dwight D. Eisenhower | |
| 4 | General Lyman Lemnitzer (1899–1988) | October 1, 1960 | September 30, 1962 | 2 years, 0 days | U.S. Army | Thomas S. Gates Robert McNamara | Dwight D. Eisenhower John F. Kennedy | |
| 5 | General Maxwell D. Taylor (1901–1987) | October 1, 1962 | July 1, 1964 | 1 year, 275 days | U.S. Army | Robert McNamara | John F. Kennedy Lyndon B. Johnson | |
| 6 | General Earle Wheeler (1908–1975) | July 3, 1964 | July 2, 1970 | 5 years, 364 days | U.S. Army | Robert McNamara Clark Clifford Melvin Laird | Lyndon B. Johnson Richard Nixon | |
| 7 | Admiral Thomas H. Moorer (1912–2004) | July 2, 1970 | July 1, 1974 | 3 years, 364 days | U.S. Navy | Melvin Laird Elliot Richardson James R. Schlesinger | Richard Nixon | |
| 8 | General George S. Brown (1918–1978) | July 1, 1974 | June 20, 1978 | 3 years, 354 days | U.S. Air Force | James R. Schlesinger Donald Rumsfeld Harold Brown | Richard Nixon Gerald Ford Jimmy Carter | |
| 9 | General David C. Jones (1921–2013) | June 21, 1978 | June 18, 1982 | 3 years, 362 days | U.S. Air Force | Harold Brown Caspar Weinberger | Jimmy Carter Ronald Reagan | |
| 10 | General John William Vessey Jr. (1922–2016) | June 18, 1982 | September 30, 1985 | 3 years, 104 days | U.S. Army | Caspar Weinberger | Ronald Reagan | |
| 11 | Admiral William J. Crowe (1925–2007) | October 1, 1985 | September 30, 1989 | 3 years, 364 days | U.S. Navy | Caspar Weinberger Frank Carlucci Dick Cheney | Ronald Reagan George H.W. Bush | |
| 12 | General Colin Powell (born 1937) | October 1, 1989 | September 30, 1993 | 3 years, 364 days | U.S. Army | Dick Cheney Les Aspin | George H.W. Bush Bill Clinton | |
| − | Admiral David E. Jeremiah (1934–2013) Acting | October 1, 1993 | October 24, 1993 | 23 days | U.S. Navy | Les Aspin | Bill Clinton | |
| 13 | General John Shalikashvili (1936–2011) | October 25, 1993 | September 30, 1997 | 3 years, 341 days | U.S. Army | Les Aspin William J. Perry William S. Cohen | Bill Clinton | |
| 14 | General Hugh Shelton (born 1942) | October 1, 1997 | September 30, 2001 | 3 years, 364 days | U.S. Army | William S. Cohen Donald Rumsfeld | Bill Clinton George W. Bush | |
| 15 | General Richard Myers (born 1942) | October 1, 2001 | September 30, 2005 | 4 years, 0 days | U.S. Air Force | Donald Rumsfeld | George W. Bush | |
| 16 | General Peter Pace (born 1945) | October 1, 2005 | September 30, 2007 | 1 year, 364 days |  U.S. Marine Corps | Donald Rumsfeld Robert M. Gates | George W. Bush | |
| 17 | Admiral Michael Mullen (born 1946) | October 1, 2007 | September 30, 2011 | 3 years, 364 days | U.S. Navy | Robert M. Gates Leon Panetta | George W. Bush Barack Obama | |
| 18 | General Martin Dempsey (born 1952) | October 1, 2011 | September 25, 2015 | 3 years, 359 days | U.S. Army | Leon Panetta Chuck Hagel Ash Carter | Barack Obama | |
| 19 | General Joseph Dunford (born 1955) | October 1, 2015 | September 30, 2019 | 3 years, 364 days | U.S. Marine Corps | Ash Carter James Mattis Mark Esper | Barack Obama Donald Trump | |
| 20 | General Mark A. Milley (born 1958) | October 1, 2019 | Incumbent | 318 days | U.S. Army | Mark Esper | Donald Trump |
Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff by branches of service
- Army: 10
- Navy: 5
- Air Force: 4
- Marine Corps: 2
- Space Force: none
See also
- Chief of Defence
- Chief of the Defence Force
- Chief of the Defence Staff
- Chief of the General Staff
- National Command Authority
- National Military Strategy (United States)
- Single Integrated Operational Plan
- Unified Command Plan
References
Citations
- General Joseph F. Dunford, Jr.- Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff
- 10 USC 152. Chairman: appointment; grade and rank
- 10 USC 151 - Joint Chiefs of Staff: composition; functions
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 14 May 2011. Retrieved 24 September 2009.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) Goldwater–Nichols Act of 1986
- 10 USC 162. Combatant commands: assigned forces; chain of command
- 10 USC 163. Role of Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff
- 10 USC 166a. Combatant commands: funding through the Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff
- "Washington Eats". Life. 5 October 1942. p. 95. Retrieved 20 November 2011.
- 10 USC 154. Vice Chairman
- Public Law 114–328 - The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 increased the term length Chairman and the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from two years to four years.
- Abrams, Jim (22 March 1991). "Higher rank not in the stars for nation's top generals". Associated Press.
Bradley received his fifth star in 1950 when he became chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff so he would not be outranked by MacArthur.
- Tillman, Barrett (2004). Brassey's D-Day encyclopedia: the Normandy invasion A-Z. Brassey's. p. 48. ISBN 978-1-57488-760-0. Retrieved 22 February 2011.
MacArthur, having been army chief of staff before World War II, was senior to everyone on the Joint Chiefs, and some observers felt that Bradley was given his fifth star in order to deal with the vainglorious field commander on an equal footing.
- Organizing for National Security: The Role of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Institute for Foreign Analysis. January 1986. p. 11. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
There was some discussion of the proposal to grant the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs five-star rank, as a symbol of his status as the most senior officer in the armed forces.
- Jones, Logan (February 2000). "Toward the Valued Idea of Jointness: The Need for Unity of Command in U.S. Armed Forces" (PDF). Naval War College: 2. ADA378445. Retrieved 21 February 2011. Lay summary.
Promoting the Chairman to the five-star rank and ceding to him operational and administrative control of all U.S. Armed Forces would enable him to provide a unifying vision...
Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - Owsley, Robert Clark (June 1997). "Goldwater-Nichols Almost Got It Right: A Fifth Star for the Chairman". Naval War College: 14. ADA328220. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 October 2017. Retrieved 21 February 2011. Lay summary.
...Chairman's title be changed to Commander of the Armed Forces and commensurate with the title and authority he be assigned the grade of five stars.
Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 30 November 2015. Retrieved 6 November 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
Sources
- Department of Defense Directive 5100.1: Functions of the Department of Defense and Its Major Components (PDF). Department of Defense Directive. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Defense. 21 December 2010.
- "Department of Defense Directive 5100.01 Functions of the Department of Defense and Its Major Components". Office of the Secretary Defense, Director of Administration and Management, Directorate for Organizational & Management Planning. Archived from the original on 7 May 2013. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
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