Executive Office of the President (EOP)
Executive Profile (BLUF)
The Executive Office of the President is the umbrella structure of advisory and support bodies that directly serve the President of the United States, functioning as the nerve center of US executive branch decision-making. The EOP encompasses the National Security Council (NSC — the principal body for coordinating foreign policy and national security across agencies), the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the National Economic Council (NEC), the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), and the Council of Economic Advisers, among others. In the intelligence and national security context, the NSC Principals Committee — chaired by the National Security Advisor — is the key interagency decision forum that processes intelligence assessments from the Director of National Intelligence and directs policy action across the United States Intelligence Community and Department of Defense.
Key Relationships
- National Security Council — principal interagency policy coordination body for foreign policy and national security
- Director of National Intelligence — provides the President’s Daily Brief and intelligence assessments
- Department of Defense — primary national security department; Secretary of Defense sits on NSC Principals
- Central Intelligence Agency — CIA Director briefs the President directly; attends NSC
- Department of State — Secretary of State on NSC Principals; foreign policy implementation
- White House — physical manifestation of presidential power; West Wing houses NSC staff
- Office of Management and Budget — controls agency budgets; key lever for intelligence community resource allocation