{"id":2581061,"date":"2026-03-17T19:12:56","date_gmt":"2026-03-17T23:12:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-responds-to-national-counterterrorism-center-directors-shock-resignation-its-a-good-thing-hes-out\/"},"modified":"2026-03-17T19:14:46","modified_gmt":"2026-03-17T23:14:46","slug":"trump-responds-to-national-counterterrorism-center-directors-shock-resignation-its-a-good-thing-hes-out","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-responds-to-national-counterterrorism-center-directors-shock-resignation-its-a-good-thing-hes-out\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump Responds to National Counterterrorism Center Director&#8217;s Shock Resignation: &#8216;It&#8217;s a Good Thing He&#8217;s Out&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ftrump-responds-to-national-counterterrorism-center-directors-shock-resignation-its-a-good-thing-hes-out%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2581061&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The piece reports on President donald Trump\u2019s response to Joe Kent\u2019s resignation as director of the National Counterterrorism Center, which centered on the Iran conflict. Kent&#8217;s resignation letter argued that Iran did not pose an imminent threat and that he could not support the war, a view Trump publicly mocked while defending the administration\u2019s decision to take action. The Oval Office exchange highlighted the tension between Kent\u2019s stance and the Trump administration\u2019s justification for strikes, with Trump describing Kent as polite but weak on security. Kent, a veteran of the Iraq War, alleged that Israel and a \u201cmisinformation campaign\u201d within the American media helped push the United States toward conflict, and he claimed the war was manufactured by Israel. He stated that Iran posed no immediate threat, while the administration contended Iran sought to advance ballistic missile and nuclear capabilities; Trump\u2019s later statements and <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >related congressional correspondence<\/a> were cited as illustrating ongoing debates over U.S. policy toward Iran and Israel. The article also provides background on Kent, including the death of his wife in 2019, and places his views within broader discussions about America First and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/white-house-releases-list-of-president-trumps-accomplishments-and-it-is-historic\/\" title=\"White House Releases List of President ...s Accomplishments \u2013  And It Is Historic!\">national security strategy<\/a>.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>President Donald Trump responded to a question Tuesday about former Director of the National Counterterrorism Center Joe Kent&rsquo;s resignation over the Iran conflict.<\/p>\n<p>Kent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/trumps-national-counterterrorism-center-director-resigns-protest\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">said<\/a>&nbsp;in his resignation letter that he could not support the war in Iran because the nation posed no &ldquo;imminent threat&rdquo; to the U.S.<\/p>\n<p>While taking questions in the Oval Office, Trump scoffed at Kent&rsquo;s statement and defended his administration&rsquo;s decision to begin the ongoing conflict.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Director of the National Counterterrorism Joe Kent &mdash; he just resigned today. He said he can&rsquo;t support your conflict with Iran. What&rsquo;s your reaction to that?&rdquo; Daily Caller White House correspondent Reagan Reese asked.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Well, I always thought he was a nice guy, but I always thought he was weak on security, very weak on security,&rdquo; Trump responded.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadAnyclip() { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst container=document.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!container) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=\"https:\/\/player.anyclip.com\/anyclip-widget\/lre-widget\/prod\/v1\/src\/lre.js\"; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"pubname\", \"westernjournalcom\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"widgetname\", \"001w000001jULVcAAO_M12924\");  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ append inside the container so player shows in correct spot \t\t\t\t\t\tcontainer.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadAnyclip(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #anyclipvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#anyclipvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t know him well, but I thought he seemed like a pretty nice guy.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;But when I read his statement, I realized, it&rsquo;s a good thing that he&rsquo;s out, because he said that Iran was not a threat. Iran was a threat.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Every country realized what a threat Iran was,&rdquo; Trump continued. &ldquo;The question was whether or not they wanted to do something.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-embed\"> <iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"JUST IN: Trump Publicly Responds To Joe Kent's Resignation Over The Iran War\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/9xfHAv2ezbQ?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p>Kent never denied that Iran was a threat to the U.S. or any other country, and clarified in his statement that Iran posed no &ldquo;imminent&rdquo; threat.<\/p>\n<p>The administration has maintained that Iran intended to advance its ballistic missile program and its nuclear capabilities. Trump, along with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other officials, has yet to clarify how Iran posed an imminent threat to the U.S.<\/p>\n<p>Trump&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/03\/03\/world\/middleeast\/trump-congress-letter-iran-strikes.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-mrf-link=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/03\/03\/world\/middleeast\/trump-congress-letter-iran-strikes.html\">letter<\/a> to Congress intending to justify the strikes did not specify an imminent threat, but instead mentioned that the strikes were designed to &ldquo;neutralize Iran&rsquo;s malign activities&rdquo; and &ldquo;advance vital United States national interests.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Kent also claimed that the administration&rsquo;s America First platform has been diminished by a &ldquo;misinformation campaign&rdquo; waged by high-ranking Israeli officials and influential members of the American media.<\/p>\n<p>He said the conflict began due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This echo chamber was used to deceive you into believing Iran posed an imminent threat to the United States, and that should you strike now, there was a clear path to a swift victory,&rdquo; Kent wrote.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This was a lie and is the same tactic the Israelis used to draw us into the disastrous Iraq war that cost our nation the lives of thousands of our best men and women.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Top administration officials <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/AndiNapier\/status\/2028609657363743104?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">told<\/a> congressional members in February that Israel would have acted with or without the U.S. since Iran posed an existential threat to their nation.<\/p>\n<p>Kent is a veteran of the Iraq war and is retired from the U.S. Army Special Forces.<\/p>\n<p>He lost his wife, Navy cryptologist Shannon Kent, in a suicide bomb attack in Manbji, Syria, in 2019.<\/p>\n<p>He alleged in the resignation letter that his wife died in a &ldquo;war manufactured by Israel.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div class=\"disclaimer\">\n<p><em>All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/union-membership-plummets-to-record-low\/\" title=\"Union Membership Plummets to Record Low\">legitimate news publisher<\/a> that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter&rsquo;s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/mailto:licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org\">licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>President Donald Trump answered a question on Tuesday about Joe Kent\u2019s resignation from the National Counterterrorism Center amid the Iran conflict. In his resignation, Kent said he could not support the war in Iran because the country did not pose an imminent threat to the United States. While taking questions in the Oval Office, Trump mocked Kent\u2019s claim and defended the administration\u2019s decision to begin the conflict.<\/p>\n<p>During a Q&amp;A with Daily Caller White House correspondent Reagan Reese, Trump was asked for his reaction to Kent\u2019s statements. Trump responded that Kent was a decent person but weak on security. He later noted that he didn\u2019t know Kent well, but said the resignation showed it was good he left, because Iran was not a threat. Trump argued that Iran posed a threat, and the question was whether the United States should act; the administration\u2019s messaging did not claim an imminent threat but said the strikes aimed to neutralize Iran\u2019s malign activities and protect U.S. interests.<\/p>\n<p>Kent also contended that the administration\u2019s America First agenda had been undermined by a misinformation effort led by high-ranking Israeli officials and influential members of the American media. He asserted that the conflict began due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby, describing the narrative as an echo chamber used to persuade the public that Iran posed an imminent threat and that striking now would lead to swift victory. He likened this to tactics used to draw the U.S. into the Iraq war. Kent is a veteran of the Iraq War and a retiree from the U.S. Army Special Forces; he lost his wife, Shannon Kent, in a 2019 suicide bombing in Manbij, Syria, and he claimed in his resignation letter that she died in a \u201cwar manufactured by Israel.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2581062,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Trump-comments-on-Joe-Kent.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[49758,6522,3634],"class_list":["post-2581061","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-nctc","tag-resignation","tag-trump"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Trump-comments-on-Joe-Kent.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2581061","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2581061"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2581061\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2581065,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2581061\/revisions\/2581065"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2581062"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2581061"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2581061"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2581061"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}