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At this level, it’s past clear that President Donald Trump is just not solely filling his administration by prioritizing the loyal over the certified (some may even name it white nationalist DEI) however he’s certain and decided to place his loyalists within the actual workplace they don’t belong in.
It’s why Trump nominated Robert Kennedy Jr., a COVID conspiracy theorist who spreads medical misinformation and advocates for medical racism, for Well being and Human Providers (HHS) Secretary. It’s why Pete Hegseth is now main the Division of Nationwide Protection regardless of Hegseth having no clear expertise within the area, being unable to reply fundamental questions on U.S. international coverage, and believing that his prime precedence as defence secretary ought to be to de-woke-ify the army.
So, it ought to shock completely nobody that the person Trump has tapped to supervise U.S. intelligence on terrorism threats is a MAGA loyalist who as soon as referred to Jan. 6 terrorists as “political prisoners.”
Meet Joe Kent.
Trump has chosen Kent to function director of the Nationwide Counterterrorism Heart (NCTC), which “oversees U.S. authorities intelligence on terrorist threats and retains a database of all recognized and suspected terrorists,” in line with NBC Information. Now, on paper, Kend seems to be certified, not like lots of the diversity-averse appointees that the DEI-hating president has chosen. He served in Military Particular Forces for 20 years, and after that, he labored for the CIA. However Kent doesn’t consider the individuals who attacked cops on the U.S. Capitol, stormed the constructing and threatened legislators, all to upend democracy by overthrowing the federal government are terrorists. He additionally reportedly has an affinity for white nationalist teams, however don’t fear, people, as a result of he rejects “racism and bigotry.”
From NBC:
Joe Kent ran unsuccessfully for Congress twice in Washington state, in 2022 and 2024. Marketing campaign finance paperwork present that Kent in 2022 made funds for “marketing campaign consulting” to Graham Jorgensen, who was recognized as a Proud Boy in a 2018 legislation enforcement report.
The Proud Boys are considered as “an extremist group with ties to white nationalism” by the FBI, and authorities say they performed a major function within the Jan. 6 storming of the Capitol. The group has denied any connection to racist components and says it’s a fraternal group against political correctness.
A Kent marketing campaign strategist instructed The Related Press in 2022 that the Military veteran rejected “racism and bigotry.”
Kent spoke at a “Justice for J6” rally in 2021 in Washington, D.C., saying individuals convicted for his or her function within the Jan. 6 assault have been “political prisoners” who have been being denied their civil rights.
“Our fellow residents, when their constitutional rights are taken, if we don’t communicate out in opposition to that we’re responsible of standing by and watching these rights erode,” Kent stated. “Make no mistake: What governments do abroad they may do right here, they usually’ve already began.”
So, simply to recap: The president who impressed a terrorist assault on the U.S. Capitol has chosen a person who has vehemently defended these terrorists to guide the division on counterterrorism. That home terror-loving counterterrorism skilled can be a member of the Proud Boys, the right-wing extremist group the ADL named as a white supremacist group, which Trump famously instructed to “stand again and stand by.”
Rattling, I hate it right here.
Right here’s the rub, although. Months earlier than Joe Kent known as the Jan. 6 terrorists “political prisoners,” he appeared to, on the very least, acknowledge them as rioters and criminals.
“The second individuals begin throwing bricks via home windows, we simply must name that out,” Kent was quoted as saying by Oregon Public Broadcasting. “I really feel the very same approach in regards to the guys who acted violently on Jan. 6. You recognize, like, what they did was completely atrocious and they need to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the legislation.”
However, hey, if you wish to advance your political profession within the MAGA world, you need to do greater than present your hypocrisy, white nationalism and love for Trump; you need to abandon any minuscule quantity of integrity and ethical standing you may need had.
“Joe will assist us preserve America protected by eradicating all terrorism, from the jihadists across the World, to the cartels in our yard,” Trump wrote in an announcement.
OK, however what about our entrance yard? Will the white nationalist group member who praises home terrorists he even acknowledges as home terrorists going to “preserve America protected” from white supremacist terrorists whereas he’s “eradicating all terrorism” from the complete world?