National Command Authority

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The term National Command Authority (or NCA) is used by the United States military and government to refer to the ultimate lawful source of military orders. The term refers to the President of the United States and the Secretary of Defense (SECDEF).

The use of the term dates from the Cold War era in which the United States and Soviet Union had nuclear missiles on constant alert and a responsible official had to be available to authorize a retaliatory strike within a matter of minutes. Detailed Continuity of Government plans provided for monitoring the whereabouts of certain key government officials who would become the National Command Authority if the President were himself victim of an enemy attack. Only the NCA can order the use of nuclear weapons, including the Single Integrated Operational Plan (SIOP). Neither individual, by himself, can order that strategic nuclear weapons be used against any country or region. If the NCA determines that a nuclear strike is necessary, they must jointly inform the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who in turn will direct a general officer on duty in the National Military Command Center (NMCC) at the Pentagon to execute the SIOP.

The NCA also applies to how the president as Commander-in-Chief of the US Armed Forces and the SECDEF communicate with warfighting commanders known as Combatant Commanders or COCOMs to order US forces into action

Certain scholars claim that the President represents the Constitutional unitary executive power of the United States executive branch. If this is the case, if the Secretary of Defense refuses any order of the President, the President is free to dismiss him, in which case authority devolves to a subordinate (see Saturday Night Massacre, in the context of the Justice Department); and the President is free to continue to dismiss these Acting Secretaries until he reaches one that agrees with his opinions.

There is a procedure to maintain the National Command Authority during ceremonies of state, such as Presidential inaugurations or State of the Union addresses. In the case of the latter, a member of the Cabinet stays out of Washington, D.C. as a designated survivor in case the President and the other Constitutional successors are killed.