Joint Operational Fires And Effects Course (JOFEC) Practice Test

NSC membership is defined in law, separating who must be at the table from who can attend by invitation. The statutory members are the President, the Vice President, and the secretaries of State, Defense, the Treasury, and Energy. That makes the statement listing those roles as statutory members true—the group specified are indeed the mandatory participants. The National Security Advisor, while central to NSC coordination and who often attends meetings, is not a statutory member. This role is an appointed position that leads the NSC staff and helps organize NSC discussions, but it isn’t created by statute as an official member of the council. Similarly, the V ice President and the Secretary of Defense are included in the statutory roster, so claims that either is not a member would be incorrect.