The Trump administration faced a massive crisis.
That’s when Vice President J.D. Vance knew he had to step up.
And J.D. Vance fired back after this bombshell revolt led to unthinkable chaos.
Director of the National Counterterrorism Center Joe Kent resigned over the war in Iran.
In his resignation letter, Kent argued Iran posed no imminent threat and that Israel manipulated the U.S. into war with misinformation and bad intelligence.
After much reflection, I have decided to resign from my position as Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, effective today.
I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran. Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this… pic.twitter.com/prtu86DpEr
— Joe Kent (@joekent16jan19) March 17, 2026
Kent is an army veteran who deployed 11 times to Iraq and in the war on terror.
Kent is also a Gold Star husband who lost his wife in an attack in Syria.
President Trump said he liked Kent, who voted for Trump in all 3 elections and ran for Congress twice as a Trump-endorsed America First candidate, but that it was good Kent resigned.
Vice President Vance addressed Kent’s resignation during a rally in Michigan.
Vance said that President Trump loves to solicit everyone’s opinion and loves hearing contrary views.
“I like Joe Kent, you heard the President of the United States say yesterday that he likes Joe Kent too,” Vance said. “But it’s one thing to disagree with an opinion. I know the president very well; he welcomes differences of opinion. He likes it when people express their views about what should happen; he listens to everybody. That’s one of the great things I like about him, whether you’re the gardener at Mar-a-Lago or whether you’re the Secretary of State, the president cares about what you think about an issue. He recognizes that everybody has smarts and everybody has wisdom.”
Vance said he liked Kent but reminded the audience that the American people elect a President to serve as Commander in Chief.
That means when they make a decision, even if it’s one you disagree with, you get on board to ensure the policy succeeds, and that it was a good thing that Kent resigned.
“That said, whatever your view is, when the president of the United States makes a decision, it’s your job to make that decision as effective and successful as possible. And so the president said this yesterday, if you are on the team and you can’t help implement the decisions of his administration, he has the right to make those decisions, then it’s a good thing for you to resign, and I think that’s exactly right,” Vance concluded.
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