Joseph Kent Tells Senate Panel That Intelligence Community Is Reviewing Allegations of FBI Involvement as Questions Grow Over Transparency and Surveillance Tactics
WASHINGTON, April 10: In a significant revelation, Joseph Kent, Chief of Staff to Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, told the Senate Intelligence Committee on Wednesday that the U.S. intelligence community is currently investigating whether the FBI played any role in planning the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol.
“We’re looking into it right now,” Kent said during his confirmation hearing for the role of Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, without specifying which of the 18 U.S. intelligence agencies is conducting the inquiry. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) oversees intelligence operations at the FBI.
Kent’s comments reignited controversy around the events of January 6, where supporters of former President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol in an effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.
A December 2023 Justice Department watchdog report had already debunked far-right conspiracy theories that alleged FBI operatives instigated the riot. The report confirmed that 26 FBI informants were in Washington that day, but none were authorized to enter the Capitol or participate in violence.
During the hearing, Democratic Senator Mark Kelly questioned Kent over past social media posts in which Kent suggested that the FBI and other U.S. intelligence agencies might have helped orchestrate the Capitol attack. Kelly pressed Kent for evidence, citing concerns about misinformation and national security.
Kent, a former Green Beret and CIA officer known for his allegiance to Trump, repeated his belief that FBI informants were embedded in the crowd, claiming they were observed “removing barriers” and potentially guiding crowd movements. He stated the FBI’s Washington Field Office was likely involved and reiterated that the issue is being investigated.
Asked for clarification, a spokesperson from Tulsi Gabbard’s office referred to her earlier statement announcing a new internal intelligence task force aimed at rebuilding public trust. The task force reportedly focuses on “investigating weaponization, politicization, and exposing unauthorized intelligence leaks.”
Kent, who previously ran for Congress with Gabbard’s support, has called January 6 a “false flag” intelligence operation and described those arrested as “political prisoners.”
He was also questioned by senators about his involvement in a Signal group chat where Trump-era national security officials reportedly discussed March 15 airstrikes on Houthi militants in Yemen. While Kent claimed the shared content was unclassified, he declined to elaborate, citing pending litigation.
The Pentagon’s Inspector General has since opened a formal probe into the alleged use of Signal by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to coordinate the military strikes.