White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt thought she was shutting down critics of Donald Trump’s war with Iran when she insisted the president had “strong and compelling evidence” the country posed an imminent threat to the United States. Instead, critics say she accidentally remind ed everyone of something awkward. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks at the White House Press Briefing Room in Washington, D.C., United States on January 7, 2026 (Photo by Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty Images) Just days earlier, while trying to debunk an ABC News report about the war, Leavitt had argued the opposite, claiming Iran had not actually posed a direct threat to the United States. Then the administration’s own counterterrorism chief resigned and said the same thing. ‘He Has Lost His Mind!’: Trump Walks Right Into a Reporter’s Trap, Never Realizes His Desperation Is Being Used Against Him — and What Comes Out Next Turns the Room Against Him Leavitt nevertheless doubled down, arguing Trump’s decision to launch the operation alongside Israel was based on intelligence from multiple sources and was necessary to stop what she described as the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism from expanding its missile capabilities and pursuing nuclear weapons. She also rejected Kent’s claim that the president had been pressured into the conflict, insisting Trump alone determines what constitutes a national security threat and that his decision was consistent with his long-standing position that Iran can never be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon. The explanation came as Leavitt was already taking heat online after trying to promote the administration’s narrative about the war. Leavitt, who has become one of the administration’s most aggressive defenders, has spent weeks attacking reporters and accusing “left-wing” journalists of spreading misinformation about the conflict. There are many false claims in this letter but let me address one specifically: that "Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation." This is the same false claim that Democrats and some in the liberal media have been repeating over and over. As President Trump has clearly and… https://t.co/AC8M5L8lye— Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) March 17, 2026 Her latest attempt to shape the narrative came Tuesday when she promoted a supportive opinion piece about the war. “Must Read @WSJ op-ed on the overwhelmingly negative coverage on Operation Epic Fury in Iran, which continues to be a highly successful military campaign against a terrorist regime,” Leavitt wrote. “We are combating the Fake News daily at the White House, and it’s safe to say the American left-wing media is sadly rooting for President Trump, and therefore the United States Military, to fail.” But the spin unraveled almost immediately. Just minutes before Leavitt posted the message, the very official responsible for overseeing America’s counterterrorism operations detonated a political bomb of his own. Kent announced he was stepping down from his position in protest of the war. “I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran,” Kent wrote in a post alongside his resignation letter. “Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby.” The timing was brutal. Within minutes, critics flooded Leavitt’s comment section with screenshots of Kent’s letter, pointing out that the administration’s own counterterrorism chief had just blown up the central justification she was pushing. “Every time something is labelled ‘highly successful’ while criticism is dismissed as ‘fake news,’ it’s usually because reality isn’t cooperating with the script,” one X user wrote. Some critics went even further, suggesting Leavitt should follow Kent out the door. “Instead of standing up at that podium and lying and supporting a traitor you should resign just like this honorable man did,” one commenter wrote. “Can’t you tell when you’re doomed? It’s over, you might as well resign now,” another person added. Kent is no fringe voice lobbing complaints from the sidelines. A former Green Beret and longtime intelligence operative, Kent spent years working in conflict zones and advising U.S. military operations on counterterrorism strategy. His reputation inside the national security world made his resignation especially jarring. He later became a polarizing political figure aligned with Trump-era “America First” foreign policy, often arguing that the United States should avoid costly overseas wars driven by foreign interests. In his resignation letter, Kent argued that Trump had been misled about the threat posed by Iran. “Early in this administration, high-ranking Israeli officials and influential members of the American media deployed a misinformation campaign that wholly undermined your America First platform and sowed pro-war sentiments to encourage a war with Iran,” Kent wrote. “This echo chamber was used to deceive you into believing that Iran posed an imminent threat to the United States, and that should you strike now, there was a clear path to a swift victory.” Kent’s departure left critics stunned. The very official tasked with overseeing the nation’s counterterrorism apparatus was now publicly accusing the administration of launching a war based on exaggerated threats and outside pressure, a claim that immediately undercut the message Leavitt was trying to push. Leavitt’s response garnered over 22,000 replies on X. Public reaction quickly split along familiar political lines. Trump supporters praised the strikes as a classic example of his long-promoted “peace through strength” doctrine and pointed to his decades-long warnings that Iran should never be allowed to develop nuclear weapons. Critics, however, seized on the growing contradictions in the administration’s messaging, accusing officials of exaggerating the threat, while others online agreed the decision reflected pressure from Israel rather than a clear and immediate danger to the United States “So either you lied a few days ago or you’re lying now. Which is it?” one person asked. “This is really awkward, Karoline,” another person wrote. ‘This Is Really Awkward’: Karoline Leavitt Defends Trump in Long-Winded Rant Until Comments She Made Days Ago Came Back to Haunt Her and Leaves Her Speechless ...read more read less