Arming military recruiters: Inside the Pentagon’s agonizing policy review

Nearly a year after the terror attack that left five service members dead in Chattanooga, Tennessee, the Pentagon remains unsure whether allowing recruiters and other vulnerable military personnel to carry guns is a viable and effective way to improve security at recruiting stations and other remote work sites.

The military faces mounting pressure to arm more troops after the July 16 shootings by carried out by a Kuwaiti-born American whom investigators say was a “lone wolf” inspired by Islamic extremists’ propaganda. Mohammad Abdulazeez opened fire on a storefront recruiting center then drove to a nearby Navy reserve facility, where he killed four Marines and a sailor. The commanding officer of that facility fired his personal handgun at the assailant, which elicited praise from many troops, lawmakers and gun-rights advocates but briefly raised questions as to whether he’d face disciplinary action for violating regulations.

In response to the Chattanooga shootings, Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced last October his plan to arm “appropriately qualified individuals at select off-installation facilities” that require greater protection. Yet to date top military officials won’t say how many — if any — additional troops have been authorized to carry guns while on duty. And so far the Pentagon has offered no new policies clarifying how and when commanders can approve recruiters and other at-risk troops to do so. The issue takes on even greater complexity when discussion turns to concealed weapons.

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