The White House has rejected allegations made by outgoing counterterrorism official Joe Kent, who resigned on March 17 while accusing Donald Trump of launching an unjustified war against Iran. Kent claimed he could not in “good conscience” support the ongoing war with Iran.
White House slams Joe Kent’s resignation letter and claims
Joe Kent resigned from his position as Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, posting his resignation letter on X with accusations against the administration he served. Kent asserts that “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.”
Press secretary Karoline Leavitt targeted Kent’s claim about Iran lacking hostile intentions. “There are many false claims in this letter, but let me address one specifically: that ‘Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation,'” Leavitt stated. “This is the same false claim that Democrats and some in the liberal media have been repeating over and over.”
Leavitt emphasized that Trump’s decision to launch Operation Epic Fury against Iran was based on thorough intelligence analysis. “As President Trump has clearly and explicitly stated, he had strong and compelling evidence that Iran was going to attack the United States first,” she added. “This evidence was compiled from many sources and factors. President Trump would never make the decision to deploy military assets against a foreign adversary in a vacuum.”
Furthermore, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who oversaw Kent’s work, navigated carefully between supporting her former subordinate and backing the president on X. She emphasized that as commander-in-chief, Trump bears responsibility for determining what constitutes an imminent threat, noting her office provides “the best information available to inform his decisions.”
Kent, a special forces veteran and former CIA officer, invoked his military service and personal sacrifice in his resignation letter. Now, his exit represents an internal challenge to the administration’s Iran policy since Operation Epic Fury began.
