ABSTRACT
The national security advisor is a nonstatutory, cabinet-level position, initially created by President Eisenhower, to help coordinate advice on and implementation of foreign policy. While the role of the national security advisor has grown and shifted over time, the position, formally known as the Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, is generally seen as fulfilling one of two primary functions, that of honest broker among various departments and agencies or that of policy advocate providing advice to the president and ensuring buy in and implementation across the bureaucracy. In practice, most national security advisors assume responsibilities commensurate with both roles. Most literature contends that the honest broker role is the best way for a national security advisor to serve the foreign policy prerogatives of the president. Yet the complex, crosscutting nature of modern foreign policy challenges suggests that it may be necessary for the national security advisor to advocate a certain policy to overcome the bureaucratic inertia that often results when multiple cabinets and departments have equities at stake. Additionally, the president may call on the national security advisor to assume other roles and responsibilities as he or she sees fit. Each national security advisor balances these roles differently, and this fluctuation in function is the result of numerous factors including the personality of the national security advisor, the needs of the president, and the interactions among various departments and agencies, most notably defense and state.
