Civics question 42 of 128
Who is Commander in Chief of the U.S. military?
Official answer
- The President (of the United States)
Source: official USCIS question list for the 2025 version of the civics test. This site is independent and not affiliated with USCIS.
Background
The President of the United States is Commander in Chief of the U.S. military. Article II gives the president command of the army and navy and of state militias when they are called into federal service, so every officer in the chain of command answers ultimately to a civilian. That was a deliberate break from European practice, where armies belonged to monarchs. Congress holds the counterweights: only Congress can declare war, raise and support armies, and pay for them, and appropriations for the army are limited to two years at a time. A civilian cabinet secretary runs the military department day to day, and the highest-ranking uniformed officers advise rather than command. The last formal declaration of war came in 1942, though military action has been ordered many times since.
This background section is written by US Citizenship Test Practice to explain the civics fact. It is not part of the USCIS question list, and the official answer above is the one to give at the interview.
Where this question sits
It is part of System of Government, inside the American Government section of the test.