Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
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The chairman 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<ref name="CJCS">Template:USC Chairman: appointment; grade and rank</ref> and the principal military advisor to the president, the National Security Council,<ref name="fuctions of JCS">Template:USC - Joint Chiefs of Staff: composition; functions</ref> the Homeland Security Council,<ref name="fuctions of JCS" /> and the secretary of defense.<ref name="fuctions of JCS"/><ref name="goldwater-nichols act">Template:Cite web Goldwater–Nichols Act of 1986</ref> 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 assists the president and the secretary of defense in exercising their command functions.<ref>Template:USC - Chairman: functions</ref>
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.<ref name="fuctions of JCS" /> 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, the chairman, the vice chairman and the Joint Chiefs of Staff as a body do not have any command authority over combatant forces. The Goldwater–Nichols Act places the operational chain of command from the president to the secretary of defense directly to the commanders of the unified combatant commands.<ref>Template:USC - Combatant commands: assigned forces; chain of command</ref> 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<ref>Template:USC - Role of Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff</ref> as well as allocate additional funding to the combatant commanders if necessary.<ref>Template:USC - Combatant commands: funding through the Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff</ref> The chairman also performs all other functions prescribed under Template:UnitedStatesCode or allocates those duties and responsibilities to other officers in the joint staff.
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, 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.<ref name=JCS>Template:Cite web</ref>
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,<ref name="life1942100595">Template:Cite news</ref> 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<ref name=1949-Amend>Template:Cite web (63 Stat. 578)</ref> to the National Security Act of 1947 (Template:Usc),<ref name=Cornell50-44>Template:Cite web</ref> 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
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.<ref name="CJCS"/> The chairman and vice chairman may not be members of the same armed force service branch.<ref name="VJCS">Template:USC - Vice Chairman</ref> 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.<ref name="VJCS" /> The chairman serves a single four-year term of office<ref name="CJCS" /><ref name="NDAA2017">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.</ref> at the pleasure of the president,<ref name="CJCS" /> with reappointment to additional terms only possible during times of war or national emergency.<ref name="CJCS" />
Historically, the chairman 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.<ref name="NDAA2017" /> By statute, the chairman is appointed as a four-star general or admiral while holding office<ref name="CJCS" /> and assumes office on 1 October of odd-numbered years.<ref name="CJCS" />
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.<ref name=AP>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=Brassey>Template:Cite book</ref> In the 1990s, there were proposals in Department of Defense academic circles to bestow on the chairman a five-star rank.<ref name=IFA>Template:Cite conference</ref><ref name=Jones>Template:Cite report</ref><ref name=Owsley>Template:Cite report</ref>
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.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite book</ref>
In October 1962, President Kennedy appointed Army General Maxwell Taylor to succeed General Lemnitzer as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. This decision — replacing an Army general with another Army general — 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.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name=":1">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name=":0" />
Pay
Effective January 1, 2025, according to the Monthly Rates of Basic Pay for commissioned officers, basic pay is limited to the rate of basic pay for level II of the Executive Schedule in effect during calendar year 2025, which is $18,808.20 per month for officers at pay grades O-7 through O-10.<ref name=":2">Template:Cite web</ref> 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.<ref name=":2" /> In addition, according to Template:USC, the CJCS receives an additional $4,000 a year to cover expenses related to performing official duties.<ref name=37USC414>Template:Cite web</ref>
List of chairmen
Chief of Staff to the Commander in Chief (historical predecessor office)
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Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
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Timeline
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See also
- Chief of Defence
- National Command Authority (United States)
- National Military Strategy (United States)
- Single Integrated Operational Plan
- Unified Command Plan