who is the commander in chief of the armed forces of the united states
Commander-in-chief According to Article II, Section 2, Clause I of the Constitution, the President of the United States is “Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States.”[58] Since the National Security Act of 1947, this has been understood to mean all United States Armed Forces. U.S. ranks have their roots in British military traditions, with the President possessing ultimate authority, but no rank, maintaining a civilian status, other than the title of Commander in Chief.[59] The exact degree of authority that the Constitution grants to the President as Commander in Chief has been the subject of much debate throughout history, with Congress at various times granting the President wide authority and at others attempting to restrict that authority.[60]
Joint Chiefs of Staff The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is, by law, the highest-ranking military officer of the United States Armed Forces,[20] and the principal military adviser to the President of the United States. He leads the meetings and coordinates the efforts of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, comprising the chairman, the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Chief of Staff of the United States Army, the Commandant of the United States Marine Corps, the Chief of Naval Operations, the Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force, and the Chief of the National Guard Bureau. The Joint Chiefs of Staff have offices in The Pentagon. The chairman outranks all respective heads of each service branch,[21] but does not have command authority over them, their service branches or the Unified Combatant Commands.[21] All combatant commanders receive operational orders directly from the Secretary of Defense.[22]