The chairman<!-- "chairman" is uncapitalized as per MOS:JOBTITLES. Specifically, it is uncapitalized because it is preceded by the modifier "the" (see MOS:JOBTITLES bullet 3 and table column 2 example 1) --> of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) is the presiding officer of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The chairman is the highest-ranking and most senior military officer in the United States Armed Forces and the principal military advisor to the president, the National Security Council, the Homeland Security Council, Although 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 assists the president and the secretary of defense in exercising their command functions.

The chairman convenes the meetings and coordinates the efforts of the Joint Chiefs, 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 commandant of the Marine Corps, the chief of naval operations, the chief of staff of the Air Force, the chief of space operations, and the chief of the National Guard Bureau. However, the service 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 as well as allocate additional funding to the combatant commanders if necessary. The chairman also performs all other functions prescribed under or allocates those duties and responsibilities to other officers in the joint staff.

Organization and assistants

left|thumb|JCS chairman General [[George Scratchley Brown with Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld during testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee on January 15, 1976.]]

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, Air Force, and Space Force who have been assigned to assist the chairman with the unified strategic direction, operation, and integration of the combatant land, naval, air, and space 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.

Traditionally, the chairman serves as the final speaker of the National Memorial Day Concert held on the day before Memorial Day.

Establishment of the CJCS position

The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) was established by the Joint Chiefs of Staff Act of 1942, which was signed into law on July 1, 1942. This act formalized the advisory body consisting of the senior military leaders of the Army, Navy, and later the Air Force, to assist the president and the secretary of war (later the secretary of defense) with coordinating military strategy during World War II.

Before the establishment of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS), military leadership was more decentralized, with the service chiefs coordinating independently. The JCS existed as a body of senior military leaders, but no single officer held the position of chairman. Instead, leadership was shared, and the group advised the president and the secretary of defense on military matters.

Fleet Admiral William D. Leahy served as Chief of Staff to the Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy from July 20, 1942, to March 21, 1949. In this role, he presided over meetings of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, helping to unify military strategy during World War II. Leahy's office is considered a precursor to the position of CJCS, as it began to centralize military leadership and coordination.

The position of CJCS was formally established by an August 10, 1949 amendment to the National Security Act of 1947 (), which restructured the U.S. military after World War II. The first individual to hold the title of Chairman was General Omar Bradley, who was appointed in 1949.

Appointment and rank

thumb|General [[Omar Bradley is sworn in as the 1st chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff by Secretary of Defense Louis A. Johnson on August 16, 1949.]]

thumb|Admiral [[Michael Mullen is sworn in as the 17th chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff by his predecessor, General Peter Pace on October 1, 2007.]]

The chairman is nominated by the president for appointment from any of the regular components of the armed forces, and must be confirmed via majority vote by the Senate. 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. at the pleasure of the president, In the 1990s, there were proposals in Department of Defense academic circles to bestow on the chairman a five-star rank.

Previously, during the presidencies of Harry S. Truman and Dwight D. Eisenhower, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff position was rotated in accordance with the incumbent chairman's armed force service branch. As such, the incoming chairman would be from a different service branch. For example, in 1957, following the retirement of Admiral Arthur Radford as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, President Eisenhower nominated Air Force general Nathan Twining as Radford's successor. When General Twining retired, Eisenhower nominated Army general Lyman Lemnitzer to succeed Twining as chairman.

In October 1962, President Kennedy appointed Army General Maxwell Taylor to succeed General Lemnitzer as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. This decision &mdash; replacing an Army general with another Army general &mdash; broke the longstanding tradition of rotating the position between the Air Force, Navy, Marines, and Army. Tradition would have dictated that Kennedy appoint either Air Force chief of staff General Curtis LeMay, Chief of Naval Operations Admiral George Anderson Jr., or Commandant of the Marine Corps General David Shoup to the position. Following Maxwell's appointment, the tradition of rotating the chairmanship was discontinued. 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, chief of space operations, commandant of the Coast Guard, chief of the National Guard Bureau, or the commanders of the unified combatant commands.

List of chairmen

Chief of Staff to the Commander in Chief (historical predecessor office)

Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

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Timeline

See also

  • Chief of Defence
  • Chief of the Defence Force
  • Chief of the Defence Staff
  • Chief of the General Staff
  • National Command Authority (United States)
  • National Military Strategy (United States)
  • Single Integrated Operational Plan
  • Unified Command Plan

References

Citations

General sources