Whistleblower Trump advisor contradicts central claim behind Iran war
Iran was not planning a sneak attack or working on a nuclear weapon, Donald Trump's former counterterrorism chief has said.
Joe Kent resigned yesterday in protest of the US involvement in Iran.
Speaking today to broadcaster Tucker Carlson, Kent contradicted the central claims of the Trump administration for starting the war.
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Joe Kent, Director of the US National Counterterrorism Centre, speaks during a congressional debate at KATU studios October 7, 2024, in Portland, Oregon. AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File
"There was no intelligence that said, hey, on whatever day it was, March 1, the Iranians are going to launch this big sneak attack, they're going to do some kind of a 9/11, Pearl Harbour, etc. They're going to attack one of our bases. There was none of that intelligence," Kent said.
"They're very, very deliberate with the escalation ladder."
He also noted the Iranian regime had a 2004 fatwa barring them from developing a nuclear weapon.
"We had no intelligence to indicate that fatwa was being disobeyed," he said.
He also expressed his scepticism that killing Ayatollah Ali Khamenei would have led to a regime collapse.
"I don't think the ayatollah feared dying," Kent said.
"Not because he's some crazy lunatic, but because he knew if he was killed the regime would survive."
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Joe Kent, director of the National Counterterrorism Center, testifies during the House Homeland Security Committee hearing, on December 11, 2025. Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc./Getty Images
Kent said he believed Israel drew the United States into the conflict.
After his resignation yesterday, Trump said Kent was "very weak on security".
Trump appointed Kent to the role last year.
Kent was a controversial appointment by Trump, with Democrats concerned with his deeply conservative views.
He rose to prominence as a Republican candidate for the House of Representatives, though he lost both his races.
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Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard testifies during the Senate Committee on Intelligence hearings to examine worldwide threats on Capitol Hill Wednesday, March 18, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) AP
Testifying before Congress today, Trump's Director of National Intelligence and Kent's former boss Tulsi Gabbard said Iran's regime was "largely intact".
"The IC (intelligence community) assesses the regime in Iran appears to be intact, but largely degraded due to attacks on its leadership and military capabilities," Gabbard said.
"The IC assesses that if a hostile regime survives, it will likely seek to begin a years-long effort to rebuild its military, missiles and UAV (unmanned aerial vehicles) forces."
When pushed on whether she believed Iran posed an imminent threat, Gabbard deflected the question.
"The only person who can determine what is and is not an imminent threat is the president," she said.
The conflict is now entering its 20th day with no sign of abating.
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