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A senior advisor to the Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, has stepped down in opposition to the Trump administration’s military actions in Iran.
Joe Kent, who led the National Counterterrorism Center, announced his resignation on the social media platform X, effective Tuesday. His departure marks the first significant resignation from Trump’s administration over the conflict with Iran.
In his statement, Kent expressed his inability to support the war efforts in Iran ethically. He argued that Iran did not present an immediate danger to the United States and suggested that the conflict was instigated by pressure from Israel and its influential American allies.
Alongside his resignation, Kent included a letter to President Trump. He acknowledged his alignment with the President’s campaign values and foreign policy goals from 2016, 2020, and 2024, but voiced his disapproval of the military engagement in Iran.
“I urge you to reconsider our actions in Iran and the motivations behind them. It is crucial to take decisive steps now. You have the power to change our direction and prevent further decline and disorder. The decision is yours,” he implored.
The Hill has reached out to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) and the National Counterterrorism Center for further comment.
Kent, a former Green Beret and two-time GOP congressional hopeful, was confirmed as the president’s principal counterterrorism adviser by the Senate last summer in a 52-44 vote. He previously worked as chief of staff to Gabbard.
He served in the Army for two decades and completed nearly a dozen combat deployments, receiving six bronze stars. He later worked as a paramilitary officer for the CIA.
“I didn’t support Kent’s nomination. Yet I’m glad he is willing to acknowledge the truth – there was NO imminent threat to the United States, and this war was a terrible idea,” Sen. Mark Warner (Va.), the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said in response to Kent’s resignation.
“Even Trump’s greatest MAGA advocates can see this war is stupid, costly, and deadly. When will Trump?” Warner added.
Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), who has broken with the administration on various issues but has praised the U.S.-Israeli operation in Iran, sharply criticized the outgoing official.
“Good riddance. Iran has murdered more than a thousand Americans. Their EFP land mines were the deadliest in Iraq. Anti-Semitism is an evil I detest, and we surely don’t want it in our government,” the GOP lawmaker posted online.
The high-profile departure comes after the ODNI recently hired Dan Caldwell, a former aide to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who was accused of leaking classified information and was ousted from the Pentagon in April, along with two other aides, an administration official told The Hill.
Kent’s resignation also comes two days before Gabbard is set to testimony on Capitol Hill for the House Intelligence Committee’s annual worldwide threats assessment hearing. She is slated to appear alongside the heads of the CIA, FBI and other intelligence agencies.
Updated: 10:45 a.m.