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The US Constitution establishes the president as the Commander-in-Chief of the US military, with a chain of command running from the president to the secretary of defense and then to combatant commanders. In 2002, the title was declared to be exclusively for the president. Combatant commanders report directly to the secretary of defense and are responsible for operations in specific regions or aspects of military operations.
The commander-in-chief of the US military at any given time is the president of the United States. This is stipulated in the US Constitution, although other high-ranking military officers in the past have also used the title “commander-in-chief” to refer to their position as commander of major operations. In 2002, however, it was declared that only the president of the United States would use that title. The president is established as commander-in-chief to create a central command structure in the event of military action, with a chain of command running from the president to the secretary of defense and then to combatant commanders.
In the United States, the Commander-in-Chief of the US Armed Forces is appointed by the Constitution. Article II of the United States Constitution establishes the basic structure of the executive branch of the United States government and outlines some of the basic powers and responsibilities that the head of that branch has. Section 2 of Article II establishes presidential powers, and the first clause of that section states that the President of the United States “shall be the Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States.”
This enumeration of powers established the president as commander-in-chief of the United States, and this has been confirmed since the drafting of the Constitution. The exact nature of the president’s role as commander-in-chief may depend on the president and his approach to that power. Some presidents, such as Abraham Lincoln and Lyndon Johnson, strictly controlled military actions during times of war, while other presidents relied on military leaders to manage operations.
The title “Commander-in-Chief” has always been used by the President of the United States, but other military commanders within the US military have also frequently used the title. It was historically considered an appropriate title for any high-ranking commander who had other military officers within his command. In 2002, however, then-Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld announced that the term would be used exclusively by the president. Other high-ranking military officers would no longer be referred to as commanders-in-chief (CINC), but senior commanders of various combat commands would be referred to as combat commanders.
A combatant commander is a senior military officer for a combatant command, with each command being part of the Unified Combatant Command which constitutes the highest echelons of the US military. These various commands are typically tasked with operations in a particular geographic region or with a certain aspect of military operations such as special operations or transportation. The various combat commanders report directly to the secretary of defense, who is the head of the Department of Defense and is appointed by and reports directly to the president.
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