The President and Formulation of US National Security Policy: A Case Study

In the formation of US policy relating to national security, two branches of government, the Executive and the Congress, are involved. Within each of these two branches there are several groups which can be identified. The Executive comprises the Administration and the Bureaucracy. The Administration includes the elected and politically appointed officials of the Executive branch: the President, Vice-President, Agency heads, Secretaries and Under-Secretaries. The Bureaucracy includes foreign and military services, and the civil servants in the bureaus and agencies. The Congress includes the Senate and the House of Representatives as a whole as well as Congressional Committees that deal with military and security affairs.