Gabbard unaware of FBI probe into Joe Kent before resignation, official says

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard was not aware that former National Counterterrorism Center Director Joe Kent was under FBI investigation for allegedly leaking classified information prior to his resignation, a senior intelligence official told Fox News Digital Thursday. 

Kent stepped down Tuesday after publicly breaking with President Donald Trump over the war in Iran, writing in his resignation letter that Tehran posed "no imminent threat" to the United States.

Two sources briefed on the matter told Fox News that the FBI investigation into Kent had been underway for weeks before his departure.

FBI leak investigations are often tightly held in the early stages to avoid tipping off the subject. But the fact that the probe into Kent had been underway for weeks before his resignation — and that the director of national intelligence was not aware of it — raises questions about why the nation’s top intelligence official was not informed.

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The lack of awareness also raises questions about how decisions regarding Kent’s access to sensitive information were managed in the weeks leading up to his resignation, as administration officials have said he had been cut out of planning meetings related to the current Iran mission, known as Operation Epic Fury, as well as the president’s daily briefings.

One senior administration official described Kent as a "known leaker" and said Gabbard had been asked to fire Kent and had not done so. 

Another official said the White House had complained to Gabbard about Kent, but had not asked her to fire him. 

An official at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) said the president never asked Gabbard to fire Kent, or she would have done so. 

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As director of the National Counterterrorism Center, Kent typically would oversee the integration and analysis of intelligence related to terrorist threats, a role that typically involves access to some of the government’s most sensitive information.

During a series of recent congressional hearings, Gabbard has been pressed on Kent's claims.

In a recent exchange with Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., Gabbard was asked whether she agreed with Kent’s resignation statement after Stefanik read portions of it aloud. "He said a lot of things in that letter," Gabbard responded, adding that the president "makes his own decisions based on the information that’s available to him."

When pressed on whether Kent’s comments concerned her, she gave a one-word answer: "Yes."

Fox News Digital reached out to Gabbard, Kent and the FBI for comment. 

Fox News' David Spunt contributed to this report.