Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs

Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs
Incumbent H. R. McMaster since February 20, 2017
Executive Office of the President National Security Council staff
Reports to	The President
Appointer	The President
Constituting instrument	The post is defined by the current executive order defining the work of the National Security Council.
Formation	1953
First holder	Robert Cutler
Deputy	Deputy National Security Advisor
Website	The White House

The Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs (APNSA), commonly referred to as the National Security Advisor or at times informally termed the NSC advisor, is a senior aide in the Executive Office of the President, based at the West Wing of the White House, who serves as the chief in-house advisor to the President of the United States on national security issues.

The APNSA also participates in the meetings of the National Security Council and usually chairs the Principals Committee meetings with the Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense (i.e., the meetings not attended by the President). The APNSA is supported by the National Security Council staff that produces research and briefings for the APNSA to review and present, either to the National Security Council or directly to the President.

The Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs (APNSA) is appointed by the President without confirmation by the Senate. The influence and role of the National Security Advisor varies from administration to administration and depends not only on the qualities of the person appointed to the position but also on the style and management philosophy of the incumbent President. Ideally, the APNSA serves as an honest broker of policy options for the President in the field of national security, rather than as an advocate for his or her own policy agenda.

However, the APNSA is a staff position in the Executive Office of the President and does not have line or budget authority over either the Department of State or the Department of Defense, unlike the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Defense, who are Senate-confirmed officials with statutory authority over their departments; but the APNSA is able to offer daily advice (due to the proximity) to the President independently of the vested interests of the large bureaucracies and clientele of those departments.