1. The Department of Defense National Command Authority
(DoD)
& the
National Command Authority

3. National Command Authority (Chain of Command)
The President is the Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. military iaw the U.S. Constitution.
The current command structure of the Department of Defense is defined by the Goldwater-Nichols Act of 1986 , signed into law by President Ronald Reagan on 1 October 1986.
The Act reworked the command structure of the United States military, introducing the most sweeping changes to the Department since it was established in the National Security Act of 1947.

4. National Command Authority (continued)
Under the act, the chain of command runs from the President of the United States, through the Secretary of Defense, to the combatant commanders (COCOM) who command all military forces within their area of responsibility.
President
CENTCOM
EUCOM
PACOM
AFRICOM
SOUTHCOM
NORTHCOM
Secretary of Defense
UNITS: Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, & Coast Guard

5. National Command Authority (continued)
The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) & the military service Chiefs of Staff (Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines) are responsible for readiness of the U.S. military and serve as the President's military advisers, but are NOT in the chain of command. The CJCS is by law the highest ranking military officer in the United States.
Each military service is responsible for organizing, training & equipping military units for the commanders of the various Unified Combatant Commands (combatant commanders; COCOM).
Secretary of Defense
Department of the ARMY
Department of the NAVY
Department of the AIR FORCE
Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff

6. National Command Authority (Chain of Command)

7. National Security Council (Presidents Advisors)
The National Security Council was created in 1947 by the National Security Act.
The White House National Security Council (NSC) is the principal forum used by the President for considering national security & foreign policy matters with his senior national security advisors & Cabinet officials and is part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States.
Since its inception under Harry S. Truman, the function of the Council has been to advise and assist the president on national security and foreign policies.
The Council also serves as the president's principal arm for coordinating these policies among various government agencies.
The U.S. Council has counterparts in the national security councils of many other nations.

8. National Security Council (Presidents Advisors)
TITLE
POSITION
WHO
Chairman
President
Donald Trump
Statutory Attendees
Vice President
Secretary of State
Secretary of Defense (Acting)
Secretary of Energy
Secretary of the Treasury
Mike Pence
Mike Pompeo
Patrick M. Shanahan
Rick Perry (former Gov of TX)
Steven Mnuchin
Military Advisor
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS)
General Joseph Dunford, USMC
Intelligence Advisor
Director of National Intelligence
Dan Coats
Drug Policy Advisor
Director of National Drug Control Policy
Jim Carroll (Acting)
Regular Attendees
National Security Advisor
Deputy National Security Advisor
Homeland Security Advisor
White House Chief of Staff
Attorney General
John R. Bolton
Mira Ricardel
RADM Doug Fears (USCG)
GEN(Ret) John F. Kelly (USMC)
Matthew Whitaker (Acting)
Additional Participants
Secretary of Homeland Security
White House Counsel
Director of the CIA
Asst. to the President for Economic Policy
Ambassador to the United Nations
Director of Office of Management & Budget
Deputy Counsel to the President for National Security Affairs
Kirstjen Nielsen
Pat Cipollone
Gina Haspel
Larry Kudlow
Nikki Haley (departing)
Mick Mulvaney

9. National Command Authority (Chain of Command)

10. Run by “Civilians”
with some military

11. Secretary of Defense Secretary of Defense Secretary of the
The Secretary of Defense by statute also exercises authority, direction & control over
the three (3) Service Secretaries (civilian) of the Military Departments
Secretary of Defense
Secretary of the Army
Secretary of the
Air Force
Secretary of the Navy
Patrick Shanahan NEW: Effective 3 Jan 2019
The Honorable Mark T. Esper since: November 20, 2017
Heather Wilson since: May 16, 2017
Richard Spencer since: August 3, 2017

12. National Command Authority (Chain of Command)

13. Military Service Chiefs (of Staff)
Secretary of Defense
Secretary of the NAVY
Commandant of the MARINE CORPS
Chief of NAVAL OPERATIONS
Secretary of the AIR FORCE
Chief of Staff of the AIR FORCE
Secretary of the ARMY
Chief of Staff of the ARMY
GEN Mark A. Milley Gen David L. Goldfein ADM John M. Richardson Gen Robert B. Neller

14. National Command Authority (Chain of Command)

15. Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS)
* The Military Service Chiefs
(Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines)
report to the Service Secretaries,
NOT the CJCS!
NEW
“J” Staff

16. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS)
General Paul J. Selva (USAF) since: July 31, 2015
Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
General Joseph Dunford (USMC)
Since: September 25, 2015
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

17. Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS)
ADM Zukunft ADM Richardson GEN Milley GEN Dunford Gen Neller Gen Goldfein Gen Lengyel
USCG USN USA CJCS USMC USAF CNGB
Seated from left to right: Admiral Paul F. Zukunft (Commandant of the Coast Guard), Admiral John M. Richardson (Chief of Naval Operations), General Mark A. Milley (Chief of Staff of the Army), General Joeseph F. Dunford, Jr. (Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff), General Robert B. Neller (Commandant of the Marine Corps), General David L. Goldfein (Chief of Staff of the Air Force), and General Joseph L. Lengyel (Chief of the National Guard Bureau).

18. Chief, National Guard Bureau (NGB) - JCS
Gen. Joseph L. Lengel (ANG)
Beginning in January 2012, the top National Guard Officer (Chief, National Guard Bureau) became a new member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
This was created by a provision in the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act, (NDAA) signed into law Dec. 31 by President Obama, which added the National Guard leader to the nation’s highest military advisory group.
The first Chief of NGB to serve as a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff was Air Force General Craig McKinley.
The addition of the top Guard officer to the Joint Chiefs of Staff has been hailed by Guard historians as the “most significant development” since the Militia Act of 1903 codified the modern day dual-status structure of the Guard, according to a statement from the Guard Bureau.

19. Chief, NGB – JCS Debate
During the hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee, the current 4-star generals making up the Joint Chiefs of Staff (x6) voiced opposition to the proposal, saying it would create needless confusion and reduce their authority.
“There is no compelling military need for this change,” Army GEN Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs, said at the time.
Defense Secretary Leon Panetta also opposed the measure, telling reporters in October that membership on the Joint Chiefs should “be reserved for those who have direct command and direct budgets that deal with the military.”
Traditionally, the Guard chief attended Joint Chiefs of Staff meetings but was not a voting member. However, “voting” is not a central role for the Joint Chiefs, which typically seeks to reach consensus and make unanimous recommendations.
NOTE: NGB is ONLY Army & Air Force National Guard.

20. National Command Authority (Chain of Command)
COMBAT

21. “JOINT” Unified Combatant Commands
GEN Joseph Votel, USA
GEN Terrence J. O'Shaughnessy, USAF
GEN Curtis Scaparrotti, USA
ADM Phillip Davidson, USN
ADM Craig Faller, USN
GEN Thomas Waldhauser, USMC
A Unified Combatant Command (UCC) is a US joint military command that is composed of forces from 2 or more services and has a broad and continuing mission.
These commands are established to provide effective command and control of U.S. military forces, regardless of branch of service, in peace and war.

22. US CENTCOM Area of Operations (AOR)