President Donald Trump has lashed out at conservative figures in a Truth Social rant on Thursday, slamming a host of former allies in the right-wing media and name-checking Joe Kent, the Trump administration counterterrorism chief who resigned in March and criticized the Iran war.
“He was really a SLEAZEBAG, and some would say, on top of it all, A LEAKER!” Trump wrote. “I don’t know whether or not that was true, but next time, NO MORE MR. NICE GUY! Kent is a LOSER, just like Tucker [Carlson], Candace [Owens], Megyn [Kelly] and the rest of them are LOSERS.”
Trump also attacked the right-wing broadcasters last week in a similar rant, writing, “They think it is wonderful for Iran, the Number One State Sponsor of Terror, to have a Nuclear Weapon — Because they have one thing in common, Low IQs.”
In his Thursday post, President Trump claimed he gave Kent the job leading the National Counterterrorism Center in sympathy, after the former special forces operative was defeated in multiple congressional campaigns and lost his wife to an ISIS attack in Syria.
Trump wrote on Truth Social that he met Kent at the dignified transfer ceremony at a military base in Delaware in which her remains were returned to the U.S.
“While I didn’t know him other than our brief Dover encounter, but feeling sorry for him after the two Election losses, I told my people, ‘Hire him for the White House. Give him a job, make him feel good, he lost his wife and two Elections,’” Trump wrote. “They did so and, while I rarely saw him, I certainly didn’t expect disloyalty, but that’s what I got.”
The Independent has contacted Kent for comment.
The former official has vocally criticized the war since resigning.
“President Trump is sending more military power to the Middle East as Iran rejects our initial peace offers—setting the escalation trap,” he wrote on X on Wednesday, adding, “We must learn from our past and recognize when it is time to cut our losses and walk away. In the end, working to restore order will strengthen America far more than any military action ever could.”
Trump wasn’t the only administration official fuming about Iran on Thursday.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth berated reporters at the Pentagon for what he saw as unfairly negative coverage of the war.
“I just can't help but notice the endless stream of garbage, the relentlessly negative coverage you cannot resist pedaling, despite the historic and important success of this effort and the success of our troops,” he said. “Sometimes it's hard to figure out what side some of you are actually on — it's incredibly unpatriotic.”
Throughout Thursday afternoon, Trump railed online against his critics, bashing a Washington federal judge for halting his ballroom project at the White House and accusing New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani of “destroying” the city with his tax policies. The men had previously struck up a surprisingly friendly rapport.
Trump nominates Dr Erica Schwartz as CDC director
Iran-US war latest: Ten-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon begins
‘Trump tax’ from Iran war blamed for soaring UK energy bills
Rachel Reeves says she will resist calls to raise taxes to increase defence spending
Trump rants against ‘highly political judge’ who orders new pause on ballroom project
Erika Kirk’s planned visit to Arizona high school irks some students and parents
