President Trump’s former counterterrorism chief claims that he was blocked from investigating the assassination of influencer Charlie Kirk.
Joe Kent publicly announced his resignation as the director of the National Counterterrorism Center on March 17, stating that he “cannot in good conscience” support the U.S.’s war with Iran.
Kirk was shot dead during a public appearance in Utah on September 10, 2025. A day after his resignation, Kent appeared on The Tucker Carlson Show, where he claimed that his investigation into the killing was blocked.
“But the investigation that I was a part of, the National Counterterrorism Center was a part of, we were stopped from continuing to investigate," he said
Kent told Carlson that “unanswered questions” remain after the shooting, including claims that Kirk was “under a lot of pressure from a lot of pro-Israel donors.”
According to Kent, the FBI wanted to “turn everything over to the Utah state authorities.”
In his letter announcing his exit from the Trump administration, he went on to allege that the Islamic Republic presented “no imminent threat to our nation.”
Kent also said that Kirk, a key MAGA figure, “advocated heavily” against a war with Iran.
During the interview, Kent also lifted the lid on his final conversation with Kirk. According to him, their last encounter was in the White House’s West Wing.
“And he said, ‘Joe, stop us from getting into a war with Iran’ very loudly,” Kent claimed. “And he walked off and he went, I believe, into the Oval.
“So when one of President Trump’s closest advisors, who is vocally advocating for us to not go to war with Iran and for us to rethink, at least, our relationship with the Israelis, and then he’s suddenly publicly assassinated and we’re not allowed to ask any questions about that,” he continued. “It’s a data point.”
Kent’s resignation sent shockwaves through Trump’s MAGA coalition, which has become divided on the war with Iran.
Trump’s team was informed of Kent’s intention to resign ahead of his public declaration, a source told The Washington Post.
However, White House aides did not anticipate that he would publish his resignation on government letterhead, a senior administration official told The Wall Street Journal.
According to the official, Trump’s advisers scrambled to craft a message that downplayed Kent’s importance in the administration.
An investigation into Kent has reportedly been opened by the FBI, four sources told Semafor on Wednesday. The probe pertains to allegations that the former counterterrorism chief mishandled classified information.
The sources claimed that the investigation began before he left the administration.
The Independent has contacted the FBI for comment.
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