Joe Kent, director of the National Counterterrorism Center, has resigned, citing moral objections to the United States’ military campaign in Iran.
Kent announced his decision Tuesday, saying he “cannot in good conscience” back the Trump administration’s war. He argued that Iran did not pose an imminent threat to justify military action.
“Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby,” Kent said in a statement posted on social media.
Kent was confirmed to the post last July on a 52-44 vote. As head of the National Counterterrorism Center, he oversaw the agency responsible for analysing and detecting terrorist threats.
His resignation signals growing unease within Trump’s own political base over the Iran war, and raises fresh questions about the legal and moral justification for the use of force, extending beyond critics to senior figures within the administration itself.
The development comes amid heightened domestic security concerns following attacks in the past week at a Michigan synagogue and a Virginia university.
Trump has offered shifting justifications for the strikes and rejected claims that Israel pressured the US into action. Earlier this month, House Speaker Mike Johnson suggested the White House believed Israel was prepared to act independently, leaving Trump with a “very difficult decision.”
Neither a spokesperson for Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard nor the White House offered immediate comment on Kent’s resignation.
Democrats had strongly opposed Kent’s confirmation, citing his past ties to far-right figures and conspiracy theories. Even so, Senator Mark Warner of Virginia, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said Kent was right on the Iran question.
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“I strongly disagree with many of the positions he has espoused over the years, particularly those that risk politicizing our intelligence community,” Warner said. “But on this point, he is right: There was no credible evidence of an imminent threat from Iran that would justify rushing the United States into another war of choice in the Middle East.”
Gabbard, CIA Director John Ratcliffe and FBI Director Kash Patel are scheduled to testify before lawmakers later this week at an annual hearing expected to focus heavily on the Iran war, and particularly on revelations that outdated intelligence likely led to a US missile strike on an elementary school in Iran that killed more than 165 people.
Gabbard, a veteran and former Hawaii congresswoman, has previously spoken out against military strikes on Iran. Six years ago, she warned that “an all out war with Iran would make the wars that we’ve seen in Iraq and Afghanistan look like a picnic. It will be far more costly in lives, American lives, and American taxpayer dollars — and all towards accomplishing what goal? What objective?”
Her office did not respond when asked whether she supported the strikes. She has also not posted about Iran on social media since the campaign began last month.
Before joining the Trump administration, Kent ran two unsuccessful congressional campaigns in Washington state. He served in the military with 11 deployments as a Green Beret, and later worked at the CIA.
His 2022 congressional campaign drew scrutiny for payments to Graham Jorgensen, a member of the far-right Proud Boys, for consulting work. Kent also worked closely with Joey Gibson, founder of the Christian nationalist group Patriot Prayer, and drew support from various far-right figures.
At his Senate confirmation hearing, Kent declined to distance himself from claims that federal agents instigated the January 6, 2021 Capitol attack, and refused to reject false claims that Trump won the 2020 election over Joe Biden.
(AP)