When should a secretary of defense or senior general quit?
BY HARLAN ULLMAN, OPINION CONTRIBUTOR - 05/23/22 8:00 AM ET
Article II, Section 2, The U.S. Constitution: The President shall be 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…”
One of the foundations of the American political system is civilian control of the military extending from the president to the Department of Defense. The civilian secretary of defense and service secretaries are in charge. And the law directs that the chairman of the joint chiefs and the five military chiefs are principal advisers to their civilian bosses and are not in the chain of command.
Since 1789, this has worked. With the onset of nuclear and thermonuclear weapons, the commander in chief role of the president became more complicated. Suppose an enemy launched a nuclear strike against the United States. With only minutes to react, if the president gave the order to unleash America’s nuclear weapons, that would be a de facto declaration of war. But only Congress has that authority.
https://thehill.com/opinion/national-security/3496908-when-should-a-secretary-of-defense-or-senior-general-quit/
