What does the Joint Chiefs of Staff do?

The Joint Chiefs of Staff is the senior military advisory body to the President, the Secretary of Defense, the National Security Council, and the Department of Defense, made up of the highest-ranking officers from each branch of the U.S. armed forces. The Joint Chiefs of Staff has six members. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is the highest-ranking military officer in the United States and serves as the principal military advisor to the President and the Secretary of Defense. The Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is the second-highest-ranking military officer. The other four members are the Chief of Staff of the Army, the Chief of Naval Operations, the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, and the Commandant of the Marine Corps. The Chief of the National Guard Bureau and the Chief of Space Operations are also members.

Joint Chiefs members are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate, typically for two-year terms that may be extended. The Joint Chiefs of Staff was formally established by the National Security Act of 1947, though the practice of senior military officers meeting together to coordinate strategy and advise civilian leaders dates back further. During World War II, the heads of the U.S. military services worked together as a group to coordinate American strategy, particularly in cooperation with British counterparts.

The Joint Chiefs do not have command authority over military operations. Operational command runs from the President to the Secretary of Defense to the combatant commanders, who lead U.S. military forces in specific geographic areas (such as U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, U.S. European Command, U.S. Central Command) or for specific functions (such as U.S. Special Operations Command, U.S. Cyber Command, U.S. Space Command). The Joint Chiefs serve as advisors and coordinators rather than as commanders.

The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs is typically the most visible military figure in the United States, briefing the President, testifying before Congress, and representing U.S. military views to foreign counterparts. Recent Chairmen have included Mark Milley (2019 to 2023), Charles Q. Brown Jr. (2023 to 2025), and Dan Caine (2025 to present). The Goldwater-Nichols Act of 1986 reorganized the Defense Department and strengthened the role of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs while increasing the importance of joint operations across the military services.

The Joint Chiefs meet regularly in the Pentagon's Tank, a secure conference room. Their advice is one input to the President's national security decisions but is not binding on the President as Commander in Chief.