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Joe Kent vs. Mark Levin: A Heated Exchange Over Israel, Iran, and Charlie Kirk's Murder

Dmitri Bolt
Dmitri Bolt  |  March 24, 2026 5:30 PM

A week after resigning as director of the National Counterterrorism Center and publicly blasting the Trump administration over Operation Epic Fury, Joe Kent has been making the media rounds to defend his exit, leaning heavily on claims that Israel holds outsized influence over the president and that Iran posed no imminent threat to the United States. 

Less than a week after appearing with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, Kent sat down with Mark Levin for a more confrontational interview. Here’s how it went.

The pair debated whether Iran posed an imminent threat to the United States, with Kent arguing that it did not. Critics of that view, however, contend it reflects a shallow approach to foreign policy, questioning why a threat should be confronted only when it becomes “imminent,” rather than when an adversary is in a weaker position and more vulnerable to decisive action.

Levin and Kent also discussed speculation surrounding the assassination of conservative firebrand Charlie Kirk, with Kent and others suggesting possible foreign involvement in the killing. While Kent declined to name any specific country, figures like Candace Owens have been more explicit in pointing fingers, specifically at Israel.

The pair also discussed the FBI’s investigation into Kent, who was reportedly flagged within the administration as a potential leaker. He was barred from attending the president’s daily briefings and is suspected of passing information to several high-profile right-wing figures, including Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens.

Charlie Kirk’s executive producer and close friend, Andrew Kolvet, even suggested that Kent may have been the source who leaked some of Kirk’s text messages to Candace Owens, who has spent months using them to attack Turning Point USA and the Trump administration.

Here’s Levin’s summary of the interview:

In the wake of Kent’s resignation and the ensuing media firestorm, he has grown noticeably more restrained, even walking back claims that Trump was beholden to high-level Israeli officials.