Former President Donald Trump filed a lawsuit against CBS News for $10 billion, accusing “60 Minutes” of “deceptively doctoring” its interview with Vice President Kamala Harris earlier this month.
The lawsuit, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas on Thursday, alleges that the “60 Minutes” edits “attempt to tip the scales in favor of the Democratic Party as the heated 2024 Presidential Election — which President Trump is leading — approaches its conclusion,” Fox News reported. After Harris’ interview on “60 Minutes,” the news show released a promotional video where Harris’ words appeared different from her statements in the interview that aired.
The “60 Minutes” edit occurred when Harris responded to correspondent Bill Whitaker’s question on Israel. In the promotional clip, Harris stated, “The work that we have done has resulted in a number of movements in that region by Israel that were very much prompted by or a result of many things, including our advocacy for what needs to happen in the region.” In the edited version of the interview that aired, Harris replied to the same question by stating, “We are not going to stop pursuing what is necessary for the United States to be clear about where we stand on the need for this war to end.”
Trump’s lawsuit blasts “60 Minutes” for allegedly glossing over Harris’ “word salad.”
“To paper over Kamala’s ‘word salad’ weakness, CBS used its national platform on 60 Minutes to cross the line from the exercise of judgment in reporting to deceitful, deceptive manipulation of news,” the lawsuit states.
“Millions of Americans, including residents of Texas and this District, were confused and misled by the two doctored Interview versions,” Trump’s lawyers add.
After Trump and Republicans slammed “60 Minutes” for its edits in the Harris interview, CBS News responded three weeks later, writing, “60 Minutes gave an excerpt of our interview to Face the Nation that used a longer section of her answer than that on 60 Minutes. Same question. Same answer. But a different portion of the response. When we edit any interview, whether a politician, an athlete, or movie star, we strive to be clear, accurate and on point. The portion of her answer on 60 Minutes was more succinct, which allows time for other subjects in a wide ranging 21-minute-long segment.”
Trump called on “60 Minutes” to release the transcripts of the interview, writing on Truth Social on October 7, “In normal times, what happened on 60 Minutes, (deceptively ‘doctoring’ her answers), would be THE END OF ANYONE’S CAMPAIGN! Kamala is slow, incoherent, and in no way qualified to be President of the United States. RELEASE THE TAPES FOR THE GOOD OF AMERICA. We can do it the nice way, or the hard way!”
Despite being pushed by GOP senators to release the full transcript of the Harris “60 Minutes” interview, CBS News never did. Trump then threatened to sue CBS in a letter sent by his lawyer on October 21.
“Instead of doing the right, transparent thing, CBS’s counsel retreated from the October 20 Statement and provided a hasty, weakly worded response letter stating that CBS would decline to provide an unedited transcript of the Interview,” the lawsuit states. “President Trump, in reply, sent a second letter (a) reiterating his demand for public release of the full, unedited transcript of the Interview and (b) serving as his pre-suit notice…”
Trump is demanding a trial jury and at least $10 billion in damages, according to Fox News.
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