Källor: Vance ville stoppa antiterrorchefens brev

Joseph Clay Kent (born April 11, 1980) is an American politician, former United States Army warrant officer, and former Central Intelligence Agency paramilitary officer who served as the director of the National Counterterrorism Center from 2025 to 2026. A member of the Republican Party, Kent was its nominee in the United States House of Representatives election for Washington's third congressional district in 2022 and 2024. Kent enlisted in the 75th Ranger Regiment and applied for the Special Forces before the September 11 attacks. He served eleven combat tours, primarily in Iraq, and retired in 2018, becoming a paramilitary officer with the CIA. In January 2019, Kent's wife, Shannon, was killed in a suicide bombing in Manbij, Syria. He became involved in political advocacy after Shannon's death. In 2022, Kent was the Republican nominee for Washington's third congressional district. Running as a supporter of Donald Trump, he defeated the incumbent Jaime Herrera Beutler in the Republican primary but lost to Democratic nominee Marie Gluesenkamp Perez in the general election. Kent ran again in 2024 and lost to Gluesenkamp Perez in a rematch. In February 2025, Trump nominated Kent for director of the National Counterterrorism Center. That month, he began serving as the chief of staff to Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence. Kent was confirmed by the Senate in July. In March 2026, Kent resigned as the director of the National Counterterrorism Center, citing disagreement over U.S. involvement in the Iran war and the influence of Israel and the Israeli lobby in domestic politics.