Striking Terror with Tim White

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Aug 4

Tim White on No Clichés - the podcast from A Bold Leader

In your worst nightmares, you’ll likely never have to defend your office against an armed terrorist. My guest today, however, had to do exactly that.

It was the last full day of Ramadan when terrorist Muhammad Youssef Abdulazeez opened fire on a Chattanooga recruiting center, then drove seven miles to the Navy Operational Support Center, rammed his vehicle through the gate and approached the headquarters building wearing tactical gear and armed with an AK74 semi-automatic rifle. Inside, the Center’s Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Commander Tim White rose from his desk.

Observing the approaching terrorist through his office window, White oriented himself to the emerging threat, decided to defend his troops, reached into a drawer for his personal sidearm, and acted, firing on Abdulazeez from the window. The first to engage the terrorist, White’s gunfire alerted those inside the Center to the impending danger, giving most the opportunity to escape unharmed. Before Abdulazeez was ultimately stopped, however, he would kill five and wound two.

White was a hero to many, but his Navy career from that point forward was anything but guaranteed. Navy regulations prohibited personal firearms on installations; but White, recognizing an imminent threat to his team that the chain of command failed to address, reached outside the rule book to display bold leadership that saved lives.

Commander, US Navy and Family, departing!

I reached out to Tim for an interview months ago, but the Navy wouldn’t authorize it. Now retired at the rank of Commander (O-5), after 20 years of honorable commissioned service, Tim joins me on No Clichés to present the story in his own words.

Some Background

A career Navy aviator, Tim’s final role in uniform was serving as Commanding Officer of Navy Reserve Center El Paso. His impressive career included tours as a helicopter pilot, a flight instructor and two shore facility Commands.

I'm of the mind that a special kind of leader will be ready to act with courage and integrity when the rules don't apply, and be willing to accept the consequences - armed with the righteousness of his actions and, optimally, a successful outcome (if you buck the rules, you'd best be right).

While it's important for a leader to know and understand the policies that govern a team's work, the ultimately effective leader will also understand when something is happening outside the construct of those policies and have the courage, confidence and intuition to act accordingly - to lead boldly.

By commissioning him an officer in the US Navy, the President of the United States reposed "special trust and confidence in the patriotism, valor, fidelity and abilities" of Tim White, according to his written commission. In fact, all US military officer commissioning documents carry the same statement; but it's in the Navy that this kind of autonomy and vested confidence has its deepest roots. In the days of "wooden ships and iron men", the Navy sent vessels out to sea for years at a time. During these voyages the Captain exercised supreme authority; comprehensive responsibility and the stark burden of ultimate accountability. The legacy of this triad flavors Navy leadership to this day, and is a chief enabler of the Navy and Marine Corps capability to wage expeditionary warfare - taking the fight to the enemy aggressively, far from established bases and supplies.

So, does "special trust and confidence" apply in this case? The concept has taken some hits following contemporary (and sensationalized) stories of military officers being fired from high positions, so there's been a lot of public pressure put on this trust.

I believe Tim exercised decisive leadership under circumstances policy was not sufficient to cover and, in doing so, prevented the loss of additional lives. He knew the rules, but was prepared and willing to operate outside of them ('break" them) if necessary to obtain the greater objective of force protection. His response is a solid example of the very leadership that enables deployed officers to fight expeditionary warfare, and behavior representative of a bold leader.

That’s my take. Decide for yourself - listen in.

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