The Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, commonly referred to as the National Security Advisor (abbreviated NSA, or sometimes APNSA or ANSA to avoid confusion with the abbreviation of the National Security Agency), serves as the chief adviser to the President of the United States on national security issues. This person serves on the National Security Council within the Executive Office of the President. The National Security Advisor's office is located in the West Wing of the White House. He or she is supported by a staff that produces research, briefings, and intelligence for the NSA to review and present to the National Security Council and the President of the United States.
The National Security Advisor is appointed by the President without confirmation by the United States Senate. As such, they are not connected to the bureaucracies of the Departments of State and Defense, and are therefore able to offer independent advice. The power and role of the National Security Advisor varies from administration to administration.
In times of crisis, the National Security Advisor operates from the White House Situation Room, updating the President on the latest events of a crisis.
The current office holder is Thomas E. Donilon.
|#||Picture||Name||Term of Office||President(s) served under|
|1||Robert Cutler||March 23, 1953||April 2, 1955||Dwight D. Eisenhower|
|2||Dillon Anderson||April 2, 1955||September 1, 1956|
|3||William H. Jackson||September 1, 1956||January 7, 1957|
|4||Robert Cutler||January 7, 1957||June 24, 1958|
|5||Gordon Gray||June 24, 1958||January 13, 1961|
|6||McGeorge Bundy||January 20, 1961||February 28, 1966||John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson|
|7||Walt W. Rostow||April 1, 1966||January 20, 1969||Lyndon B. Johnson|
|8||Henry Kissinger||January 20, 1969||November 3, 1975||Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford|
|9||Lt Gen Brent Scowcroft||November 3, 1975||January 20, 1977||Gerald Ford|
|10||Zbigniew Brzezinski||January 20, 1977||January 21, 1981||Jimmy Carter|
|11||Richard V. Allen||January 21, 1981||January 4, 1982||Ronald Reagan|
|12||William P. Clark||January 4, 1982||October 17, 1983|
|13||LtCol Robert C. McFarlane||October 17, 1983||December 4, 1985|
|14||VADM John M. Poindexter||December 4, 1985||November 25, 1986|
|15||Frank C. Carlucci||December 2, 1986||November 23, 1987|
|16||LTG Colin L. Powell||November 23, 1987||January 20, 1989|
|17||Lt Gen Brent Scowcroft||January 20, 1989||January 20, 1993||George H. W. Bush|
|18||W. Anthony Lake||January 20, 1993||March 14, 1997||Bill Clinton|
|19||Samuel R. Berger||March 14, 1997||January 20, 2001|
|20||Condoleezza Rice||January 22, 2001||January 25, 2005||George W. Bush|
|21||Stephen Hadley||January 26, 2005||January 20, 2009|
|22||Gen James L. Jones (Ret.)||January 20, 2009||October 2010||Barack Obama|
|23||Tom Donilon ||October 2010||Incumbent|