Afrasianet - The resignation of the director of the U.S. National Counterterrorism Center, Joe Kent, has put the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump in direct confrontation with its right-wing base and members of the "Make America Great Again" (MAGA) movement.
In his resignation, Kent explicitly declared that Israel and its American lobbies had succeeded in "luring" America into the war on Iran, reiterating the prevailing concern about this war, its justifications, and its repercussions.
US press reports unanimously said that Kent's resignation surprised intelligence officials in the United States, as he is the highest-ranking official in the Trump administration to announce his resignation over the war.
Kent, who has strong ties to figures on the American right, wrote on his X platform: "I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran. Iran does not pose an imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war because of pressure from Israel and its powerful lobbying group."
Some experts confirmed Kent's resignation to Reuters, saying that "an imminent threat is a condition for the United States to wage war under current law."
In his resignation letter to President Trump, the security official said: "High-ranking Israeli officials and influential members of the U.S. media have launched a disinformation campaign that has completely undermined your program. America first, and cultivated pro-war sentiment to encourage a war on Iran. These are the same tactics that the Israelis used to get us into the disastrous Iraq war that cost the nation the lives of thousands of our best men and women."
"I cannot support sending the next generation to fight and die in a war that does not benefit the American people and does not justify the cost of American lives."
This was not the only criticism Kent directed at Israel and the Israel lobby in America, saying in the wake of the U.S. strike on Iran's nuclear facilities in June last year that "the president understands that the wars in the Middle East have been a trap for America to rob our dear citizens of their lives and drain the wealth and prosperity of our nation."
Kent served in the U.S. Army, participating in 11 deployments as a member of the Green Berets Special Forces, before being nominated by President Trump last year to be director of the National Counterterrorism Center, and his appointment was approved by the Senate.
Kent belongs to the inner circle of Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who has been silent since the war on Iran began, making no public statements and only appearing in public during the funeral of U.S. soldiers killed earlier this month during the war.
Cracks in MAGA
This resignation has brought to the fore once again deep rifts within the "right-wing" and "MAGA" grassroots of President Trump regarding the war in Iran.
Political commentator and media commentator Tucker Carlson was perhaps the most prominent figure in announcing her departure from the MAGA movement, calling the decision to attack Iran "disgusting and downright evil."
Carlson said on his podcast in early March, "This is Israel's war. This is not a U.S. war. This war is not being fought for the national security goals of making the United States safer or richer."
The rift within MAGA has widened with some of its former stars breaking up with Trump over the war in Iran as well as other issues, including journalist and political commentator Megyn Kelly, former Trump aide Steve Bannon and former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene.
In a previous post on her Facebook page, Green said, "Trump no longer even knows what a MAGA is and turned it into a mega (referring to the phrase "Make Israel Great Again)."
Criticism also came from within the Republican Party itself, with U.S. Rep. Thomas Massey criticizing Trump for the attack on Iran, calling it an act of war that was not authorized by Congress.
In a series of social media posts, he reiterated his opposition to the war, saying it was not an "America First" principle.
American Israel Public Affairs Committee
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) has emerged as a central focus in the political debate in Washington on the current war in Iran, amid questions about its role in pushing the US administration, the most prominent Israeli lobbyist in the United States.
The American magazine Jacobin published a report on the Democrats' quest to pass a resolution that would prevent Trump from taking any additional military action in Iran without congressional approval, noting that this attempt faces opposition from three lawmakers from their own party, backed by Israeli lobbyists.
The magazine said the lawmakers are funded by the Israeli lobby, a strong supporter of the war on Iran.
Last year, lawmakers in Congress tried unsuccessfully to move forward with a resolution on war powers after the U.S. attack on Iran's nuclear facilities in June 2025, in Israel's 12-day war.
At the time, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee launched an intense lobbying campaign to urge Democrats to support Israel, as this lobbying group, which in the 2024 election cycle spent tens of millions of dollars to get its favorite candidates into Congress, was a staunch advocate of U.S. intervention in Iran.
Under pressure from the Israel lobby and thanks to Republican objections, the war powers resolution last June never made it to the House floor for a vote. In the Senate, the resolution was rejected by a vote of 53 to 47.
Source: U.S. Press + Agencies
