The President today announced the nomination of General Robert T. Herres, United States Air Force, to be Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. This is a new position, recommended by the President's Blue Ribbon Commission on Defense Management, and created by Congress in the Goldwater-Nichols Department of Defense Reorganization Act of 1986.
The Vice Chairman will serve as Acting Chairman of the JCS in the Chairman's absence. He will outrank all other officers of the Armed Forces except the Chairman but is not considered by law a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff unless serving as Acting Chairman. The Vice Chairman, who must be confirmed by the Senate, will serve a 2-year term and can be reappointed.
General Herres is currently commander in chief of the U.S. Space Command and commander in chief of the North American Air Defense Command. He has 32 years of active service. A replacement for General Herres will be announced by the Canadian and U.S. Governments in the near future.
Ronald Reagan, Nomination of Gen. Robert T. Herres To Be Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/257497