Washington Examiner columnist Guy Benson dismissed “loud voices” potentially misrepresenting a split between President Donald Trump and his supporters on Tuesday.
Joe Kent resigned as the director of Trump’s National Counterterrorism Center on Tuesday, making him the first high-ranking Trump administration official to leave his post based on the war in Iran. Kent said in his resignation letter that he couldn’t “in good conscience support the ongoing war,” and that the war was started “due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby.”
Benson said “certain podcast elements” and online personalities are arguing there is a “huge splintering of MAGA world” on the Iran conflict. However, he said “poll after poll” indicates that the vast majority of Trump voters support Operation Epic Fury.
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“So a lot of very loud voices, he’s [Kent] one of them, now he’s out of the administration,” Benson said on Fox Business’s The Bottom Line Tuesday. “But most Republicans, most conservatives, certainly most Trump supporters are with the president on this operation.”
Benson added that Kent “deserves to be commended” for his years of service in combat, prior to his role in the Trump administration. He also said it’s “better” that Kent publicized his opinion instead of “undermining” Trump’s policies within the administration.
Various polling data show that at least 85% of “MAGA Republicans” support military action against Iran, compared to about 13% who oppose. Among Republicans who don’t identify as “MAGA Republicans, up to 63% support the war in Iran, against up to 39% who oppose, according to data gathered by YouGov.
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White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on X that Kent’s resignation letter had “many false claims,” one of which was that Iran “posed no imminent threat” to the U.S. Leavitt said this is a claim “Democrats and some in the liberal media” have repeatedly made, while Trump had “strong and compelling evidence” Iran would attack the U.S. first.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) also countered Kent’s assessment on Iran, saying he doesn’t know where Kent was getting his information.
