White House says Joe Kent was not involved in Iran operation talks (Image credit: AP)
White House press secretary Carolyn Leavitt on Wednesday sought to contain the fallout from Joe Kent’s resignation over the Iran war. He said the former National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) head was not involved in any discussions related to the US operation in Iran and stressed that President Donald Trump has “complete confidence” in Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.
Leavitt removes Kent from Iran war decision-making
Leavitt told Fox News that Kent, the first senior Trump administration official to resign over the Iran conflict, “was not involved in any discussions on the Iran operation.”The comments appeared aimed at downplaying Kent’s public rupture with the administration, especially as his resignation raised questions about the intelligence basis for the war and whether there was internal dissent within the national security establishment.Leavitt used the interview to strongly endorse Tulsi Gabbard, saying that Trump has “complete confidence” in the director of national intelligence despite the political storm generated by Kent’s exit.
White House rejects Kent’s ‘no imminent threat’ claim
Kent resigned on Tuesday, saying he could not “in good conscience” support an ongoing war in Iran.In his resignation statement, Kent argued that “Iran poses no imminent threat to our country” and claimed that the war was launched because of “pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby”, a charge the White House has repeatedly and strongly rejected.Levitt responded to Kent’s letter on Tuesday and called parts of it misleading.According to Fox News, Levitt said, “There are many false claims in this letter, but I want to mention one in particular: ‘Iran poses no imminent threat to our country.’“This is the same false claim that Democrats and some in the liberal media are repeating over and over again,” he said.Leavitt further said that Trump had “strong and compelling evidence” that Iran was preparing to attack the United States first.
‘Trump will never act in a vacuum’
Leavitt said the intelligence behind the president’s decision came from multiple sources.“This evidence was compiled from multiple sources and factors,” he said, according to Fox News, adding, “President Trump would never make a decision to deploy military assets against a foreign adversary in a vacuum.”He also defended the broader rationale for the attacks, describing Iran as “the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism” and saying that the regime “proudly kills Americans” and openly threatened the US unless it launched a military campaign.According to Fox News, Levitt said Iran is aggressively expanding its short-range ballistic missile capabilities and intends to use those missiles as a shield while pursuing its “ultimate goal” of acquiring nuclear weapons.“The regime’s goal was to use those ballistic missiles as a shield to achieve its ultimate goal – nuclear weapons,” he said.He said Trump concluded that a joint attack with Israel would “significantly reduce the risk to American life”, which he described as an imminent threat to US national security interests.
Trump had already targeted Kent
Leavitt’s latest comments come a day after Trump publicly attacked Kent following his resignation.Shortly after Kent’s resignation, Trump said he had always viewed Kent as “weak on security” and described his departure as “a good thing.”“I always thought he was weak on security, very weak on security,” Trump said.He also said that after reading Kent’s statement, I realized that it is a good thing that he is out. Trump argued that if anyone in his administration believes Iran is not a threat, “we don’t want those people”.
Kent’s departure has increased the pressure on intelligence chiefs
Kent’s resignation has intensified scrutiny of the administration, just as top intelligence officials prepare to face Congress.Kent’s criticism is expected to figure prominently as lawmakers question intelligence leaders about assessments ahead of a US-Israeli war against Iran.A Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on Wednesday was scheduled to include testimony from Gabbard, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, FBI Director Kash Patel and senior officials at the National Security Agency and the Defense Intelligence Agency.Kent’s resignation letter, particularly his claim that Iran “does not pose an imminent threat to the United States,” is likely to become a focal point for Democrats to pressure the administration over whether the intelligence justified military action.According to the New York Times, Representative Jim Himes, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said, “I have seen absolutely no evidence that there was an imminent threat of attack by Iran.”