A Confusing Mess, The DoD in the post T2K period

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Primary source material from the 18th Edition of the Naval Institute Guide to the Ships and Aircraft of the U.S. Fleet by Norman Polmar as well as the Congressional Records.


Defense Organization

The USA has a unified defense establishment that is responsible for the conduct of military operations, in support of the National Security Strategy. The basic structure was organized in 1947 and has several major modifications during and subsequently to the Cold War and into the current war against terrorism.

Under the provisions of the U.S. Constitution, the president is the Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Armed Forces. The president’s primary advisers in this daunting role, are the Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. In addition (by federal law), the president is also assisted by the National Security Council which provides advise on a wide range of intelligence and national security matters. The permanent chair is the President and includes the Vice President, the Secretaries of Defense, State and Treasury, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. The individual who coordinates NSC activities and directs its staff is the president’s National Security Advisor.

Traditionally, the National Command Authorities are the ‘terms’ for the President and the Secretary of Defense, as well as their deputized alternates and successors. The NCA has the constitutional authority to direct the armed forces and to order the release of nuclear weapons. NO ONE ELSE in the U.S. chain of command has the responsibility and the authority to order the launch of these weapons.

The principal components of the defense establishment are:
1) The Department of Defense
2) The Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Joint Staff
3) The military departments and their subordinate services
4) The unified combatant commands

Four of the U.S. military services are within the Department of Defense. The fifth, the U.S. Coast Guard, is currently part of the Department of Homeland Security and has responsibilities to both departments.