1. National Security Decision Making Structure

2. Department of War (Army)
Pre-1947 Structure
President
Department of State
Department of War (Army)
Department of the Navy

3. National Security Act of 1947
Department of Defense
US Air Force
Joint Chiefs of Staff
Central Intelligence Agency
National Security Council

4. State Department (1789 – no change)
State Dept home page
Organization
Embassies
Careers
Nations (includes
background notes)

6. Department of Defense (1947)
The Pentagon

9. Civilian Control of the Military
Chain of Command
President
SecDef
Combatant Commander

10. DoD Structure DoD Organization The Department of Defense
The Office of the Secretary of Defense
Joint Chiefs of Staff
JCS Structure
United States Army
United States Navy
Navy Structure
United States Marine Corps
United States Air Force
Unified Command Plan
Defense Intelligence Agency
National Security Agency (NSA)
Defense Science Board publications

11. Joint Chiefs of Staff Joint Staff (Purple Suited)
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs
Chief of Staff of the Army
Chief of Naval Operations
Chief of Staff of the Air Force
Commandant of the Marine Corps
Joint Staff
(Purple Suited)

12. Goldwater-Nichols Act (1986)
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs
Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs
Chief of Staff of the Army
Chief of Naval Operations
Chief of Staff of the Air Force
Commandant of the Marine Corps
Joint Staff

13. Central Intelligence Agency (1947)

14. Intelligence Failures 1998-2003
Intelligence Reform and Terrorist Prevention Act of 2004

15. Intelligence Community

16. Intelligence Community Links
Director of National Intelligence (2005)
ODNI Structure
DNI National Intelligence Strategy (2005)
National Intelligence Council
National Reconnaissance Office (NRO)
President’s Intelligence Advisory Board (PIAB).
Central Intelligence Agency (1947)
World Factbook
CIA list of World Leaders and Cabinet Members of Foreign Governments
CIA-sponsored page of links on intelligence issues
Freedom of Information Act details for CIA documents

17. Department of Homeland Security 2003
Secretary of Homeland Security
Structure

18. Congressional Oversight
House Armed Services Committee
House Committee on Foreign Affairs
House Select Committee on Homeland Security
House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
Senate Committee on Armed Services
Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs
Senate Select Committee on Intelligence
Congressional Budget Office (CBO)
Government Accountability Office (GAO)
CRS Reports through the Federation of American Scientists

19. Coordination among agencies/departments
Decision Making
Coordination among agencies/departments
Interagency Process

20. National Security Council, 1947 (Current; there have been modifications)
Members of NSC
President
Vice President
Secretary of State
Secretary of Defense
Secretary of Energy (added 2007)
Any others the President wishes to add
Advisors to NSC
Chair JCS
DNI

21. Directives on Organization and Process of the National Security Council
LBJ: NSAM 341
Nixon: NSDM 1, NSDM 2, NSDM 3
Ford: NSDM 265
Carter: PD 1, PD 2, PD 3
Reagan: NSDD 1, NSDD 2
GHW Bush: NSD 1, NSD 2
Clinton: PPD/NSC 1, PDD/NSC 2
GW Bush: NSPD 1
Obama: PPD 1
Trump: NSPM 2

22. Evolution of NSC Staff
NSC Staff as President’s personal foreign policy staff
Professionals
National Security Adviser as the President’s number one adviser
Began with JFK

23. Obama NSC Staff Structure
Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs
Assistant to the President and Deputy for National Security Affairs
Assistant to the President, Executive Secretary of the National Security Council and Chief of Staff
Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communication
Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communication for Strategic Planning
Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for International Economic Affairs
Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for Transnational Issues
Deputy Assistant to the President, Deputy White House Counsel, and Legal Advisor to the National Security Council
Special Assistant to the President and White House Coordinator for the Middle East, North Africa, and the Gulf Region
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Non-Proliferation and Nuclear Issues
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Gulf States
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Western Hemisphere Affairs
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for South Asia
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Asia
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Counterterrorism
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Defense Policy and Strategy
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for International Economics
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Weapons of Mass Destruction Terrorism and Threat Reduction
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Multilateral Affairs and Human Rights
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Development and Democracy
Special Assistant to the President and Cybersecurity Coordinator
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Intelligence Programs
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Energy and Climate Change
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Israel, Egypt, and the Levant
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for North Africa and Yemen
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for African Affairs
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Europe
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Russia and Central Asia

24. Presidential Management of National Security Decisions
Premises
Advisers compete
Organizations compete
$, power, turf
Presidents want to manage the process
Coordination and control
Trust
speed

25. How President’s Manage Decision Making
Standard Model
Nixon centralization
Standard Model with Management Problems
Standard Model with Strong Management

26. 1. Standard NSC Committee Structure (Based on Ike Model and Bush 41)
Staff
NSC Principals Committee
NSC Deputies Committee
NSC
Interagency
Policy Comm.
(Asst. Sec)
NSC
Interagency
Policy Comm.
(Asst. Sec)
NSC
Interagency
Policy Comm
(Asst. Sec)
NSC
Interagency
Policy Comm
(Asst. Sec)

27. Typical NSC Membership
President
Vice President
Secretaries of State, Defense, Energy, Attorney General, Treasury
Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs
Deputy Assistant to the Pres. for National Security Affairs
Advisors to NSC
Chair JCS
DNI

28. Principals Committee
Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs (Chair)
Secretaries of State, Defense, Energy, Attorney General, Treasury
Deputy Assistant to the Pres. for National Security Affairs
Advisors to NSC
Chair JCS
DNI

29. Deputies Committee
Deputy Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs (Chair)
Deputy Secretaries or Principal Undersecretaries of State, Defense, Energy, Attorney General, Treasury
Advisors to NSC
Vice Chair JCS
Deputy DNI

30. Assistant Secretary-Level IA Groups Bush 41/43: PCC; Clinton: IWG; Obama: IPC
Middle East IPC (an example)
Chair: Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for the Middle East (NSC Staff)
Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs
Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs (NEA)
Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (DRL)
Assistant Sec of Defense for International Security Affairs
Joint Staff Representative (J-5)
Director of CIA Office for Near Eastern and South Asian Analysis
Under Secretary of Treasury for International Affairs
Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Global Development, Stabilization and Humanitarian Assistance (NSC Staff)

31. IA Process Formal Paper Flow Presidential Review Memos and Directives
NSC
NSC PC
NSC DC
Departments and Agencies
Departments and Agencies
NSC
IPC

32. 2. Nixon-Kissinger Decision Making: Centralization
Standard NSC Process
RN-HAK Process (by 1971)
President
Nixon
National Security
Adviser Henry Kissinger,
chairing most
NSC Committees;
NSC staffers chair
Asst Sec level
IA Committees
NSC
NSC Staff
NSC Committees
Deputy/Undersec level
and Asst Sec Level
NSC Staff
Depts. and Agencies
Depts. and Agencies

33. 3. Standard Model with Management Problems
Carter-Reagan-Bush 43: Rivalry Dominates For cabinet Government-style NSC process to work, the President must make it work!

34. 4. Standard Model -- Strong Management GHW Bush Formal and Informal System
NSC
Gang of Eight (Bush, Quayle, Baker, Cheney, Scowcroft, Gates, Powell, Sununu) Breakfast Group (Baker, Cheney, Scowcroft) (Role of DC as the “insulation”)
NSC Staff
NSC PC
NSC DC
NSC
PCC
NSC
PCC
NSC PCC

35. Evolution Model Standard formal interagency process
President or senior adviser
perceives that changes are
needed in the process
Admin begins debate *narrowing of participation
about adjustments in the *increase in informal and
decision making process ad-hoc decision making
*bypassing of the formal IA
process

36. Why does the process evolve?
Pressure to speed up the pace of decision
(economy principle)
political pressure
(principle of political time)
learning about advisers and/or the strengths and weaknesses of the process
(learning principle) 

37. Three Structures Evolve
Formal Interagency Informal Confidence Structure Structure Structure President President President NSC Informal Group First-among-equals that includes the adviser President Cabinet and Sub-cabinet Informal Group Important advisers IA Committees that does not include the president

38. Three Structures in GW Bush
Formal Interagency Informal Confidence Structure Structure Structure President President President NSC Bush, Cheney, Cheney, Rice (1st) Powell, Rumsfeld, Rice (2nd) Rice, Card, Hughes, (Rove, Hughes) Rove, Hadley NSC PC, NSC DC Cheney, Powell, Rumsfeld/Gates NSC PCCs Rumsfeld, Rice lunch Hadley

39. Three Structures in Obama
Formal Interagency Informal Confidence Structure Structure Structure President President President NSC Obama, Biden, Donilon, McDonough, Clinton, Gates, Rhodes Jones, Donilon, Rice (2nd) McDonough, Rhodes NSC PC, NSC DC Clinton, Gates, Biden, Clinton/Kerry, NSC IPCs Jones lunch Gates/Panetta/Hagel