Encyclopedia > Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
The position of Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff was created by the Goldwater-Nichols Act of 1986. The Vice Chairman is a four-star-general or admiral and by law the second highest ranking member of the U.S. Armed Forces (after the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff). In the absence of the Chairman, the Vice Chairman presides over the meetings of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He may also perform such duties as the Chairman may prescribe. The Goldwater-Nichols Department of Defense Reorganization Act of 1986 (PL 99-433) was a reorganization plan which focused the chain of command in military operations undertaken by the United States Department of Defense. ... 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... General is a high military rank, used by nearly every country in the world. ... Admiral is a senior naval rank of the United States Navy which is also commonly known as a Four Star Admiral. It is the equivalent of a General in the United States Army and outranked by a Fleet Admiral. ... The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is by law the highest ranking military officer of the United States military, and the principal military advisor to the President of the United States. ... Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States of America symbol The Joint Chiefs of Staff, photographed in the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gold Room in the Pentagon on Jan. ...
The Chairman of the JointChiefs of Staff is by law the highest ranking military officer of the United States military, and the principal military advisor to the President of the United States.
He leads the meetings and coordinates the efforts of the JointChiefs of Staff (JCS), comprising the Chairman, the ViceChairman of the JointChiefs of Staff, the Chiefs of Staff of the United States Army and United States Air Force, the Chief of Naval Operations, and the Commandant of the United States Marine Corps.
Fleet Admiral William D. Leahy, USN, served as Chief of Staff to the Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy (July 20, 1942-March 21, 1949).
The position of ViceChairman of the JointChiefs of Staff was created by the Goldwater-Nichols Act of 1986.
The ViceChairman is a four-star-general or admiral and by law the second highest ranking member of the U.S. Armed Forces (after the Chairman of the JointChiefs of Staff).
In the absence of the Chairman, the ViceChairman presides over the meetings of the JointChiefs of Staff.