US President Donald Trump should start hearing the MAGA opposition to the war in Iran, the former director of Washington's National Counterterrorism Center, Joe Kent, said on Sunday, while insisting on Israel's role in pushing the president towards the war.
Kent, who was speaking in an interview with the Washington Post, and who recently left the Trump administration after arguing that "Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation," said that a possible ground operation into Iran would "be a disaster."
"It makes me nervous," Kent said during the interview, while he also referred to the possible invasion of Kharg Island as "essentially giving Iran a bunch of hostages on an island that they could barrage with drones and missiles.”
Additionally, Kent said that he is meeting with anti-Israel pundits like Tucker Carlson, Megyn Kelly, Saagar Enjeti, and Shawn Ryan, to "make a case to fellow conservatives about the war," and to defend his claims that "Israel forced the President into launching Operation Epic Fury."
Kent, who is also a retired special forces soldier, told the Washington Post that his decision to leave was due to a promise that he made to himself while serving in Iraq: "I said, ‘If I ever have a seat at the table, I’m not going to put up with this. I’ll do whatever I can to prevent it.”
FBI probe over alleged leaked classified info, criticism by MAGA
After announcing his exit from the Trump administration, Kent was subjected to criticism by officials over his stance against the war.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that Kent's resignation letter "had many false claims," while she also called Kent's statements about Israel and its influence on Trump's decisions "absurd."
US Senator Ted Cruz blasted Kent, along with several other members of his party, and right-wing political commentator Tucker Carlson, for their lack of support for US Operation Epic Fury in a Wednesday interview.
"If any official in the administration disagrees with the national security policies of the president, he or she should resign," Cruz said about Kent's resignation.
Additionally, Semafor reported on Wednesday that Kent is under an FBI investigation for allegedly leaking classified information.
The investigation pre-dates his departure as the head of the National Counterterrorism Center on Tuesday, Semafor added. The FBI declined to comment on the report when contacted by Reuters.
A source also corroborated the report to NBC News.
The Jerusalem Post Staff contributed to this report.