President Donald Trump had kind words for Skydance’s takeover of Paramount and Bari Weiss’ appointment to CBS News during his first interview with “60 Minutes” in five years.
CBS News on Sunday released a transcript of the full 90-minute session with CBS News senior correspondent and “60 Minutes” contributor Norah O’Donnell. The conversation touched on a multitude of topics, from international politics to ICE raids in the United States, to the economy and health care policing, to the federal government shutdown. The interview was recorded on October 31 at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida. Highlights of the interview aired Sunday on “60 Minutes.”
It’s also the first time Trump has returned to CBS News for an interview since the network’s parent company reached a $16 million settlement in a lawsuit Trump filed against the venerable news magazine. Former CBS owner Paramount Communications wrote the check under pressure as it sought to close the $8 billion Skydance Media deal. Trump’s baseless claims that “60 Minutes” tampered with then-candidate Kamala Harris’ answers in a way that harmed Trump would have been easily defeated on legal merits in court, legal experts agree, but Paramount’s previous ownership regime buckled under extraordinary pressure from President Trump and FCC Chairman Brendan Carr.
“’60 Minutes’ paid me a lot of money. And you don’t have to bring that up, because I don’t want to embarrass you, and I’m sure you’re not — you have a great — I think you have a great, a new leader, frankly, who is the young lady who runs your whole company is a great — from what I know,” Trump said, referring to last month’s nomination of Weiss as CBS editor-in-chief News.
“I don’t know her, but I heard she’s a great person. But ’60 Minutes’ had to pay me – a lot of money because they took out her answer that was so bad, she changed the election, two nights before the election. And they put in a new answer. And they paid me a lot of money for it. You can’t have fake news. You have to have legitimate news. And I think that’s happening. I see… I see good things happen in the “I really do. And I think one of the best things that’s happening is this show and this new owner, CBS and this new owner, I think it’s the greatest thing that’s happened in a long time to a free, open, good press,” Trump said.
O’Donnell also asked Trump about conflicts between his role as commander in chief and his family’s investments and marketing of Trump-branded cryptocurrencies.
“I want crypto to be great for America. That’s the only thing. I don’t want someone else to have crypto and China to be number one in the world in crypto,” Trump said. “Because in crypto, it’s kind of an industry where basically you’re going to have number one and you’re not going to have number two. And right now, we’re number one by far. I want to keep it that way. The same way we’re number one with AI, we’re number one with crypto. And I want to keep it that way.”
Asked bluntly about the Trump family’s crypto activity, Trump was dismissive. “I can’t say, because – I can’t say – I’m not worried. I don’t – I’d rather not have you ask the question. But I let you ask it. You just came up to me and said, ‘Can I ask another question?’ And I said, yeah. That’s the question….
Much of the interview was devoted to O’Donnell’s questions about the president’s views on geopolitical flashpoints and the challenges the United States faces from Russia, China, Israel, Venezuela and other unpredictable situations.
When it came to discussing economic issues at home, Trump displayed his usual bravado and sidestepped O’Donnell’s efforts to press him on specific details.
“We’re doing great. By the way, the stock market just hit perfect timing for your show, it just hit an all-time high. It’s hit an all-time high 48 times in my nine months. But just yesterday the stock market hit an all-time high. We’re doing great, and everyone knows it,” Trump said.
He blamed his White House predecessors, Joe Biden and Barack Obama, for myriad problems, including the continued high price of groceries.
“It was a dead country, and now we have the hottest country in the world. We have the strongest stock market, we have everyone wanting to get in there. A year ago we were a dead country. Right now we have the hottest country in the world. Think about that. And I did it in nine months. And it’s only going to get better,” Trump said.
O’Donnell pressed Trump on the issue of the Justice Department’s recent indictments of Trump’s political enemies, including New York State Attorney General Leticia James and former FBI chief James Comey.
“I think I was very gentle. You look at a man who’s been indicted multiple times, and I had to break the record,” Trump told O’Donnell.
On the subject of brutal ICE raids in Los Angeles, Chicago and other major cities that shocked the nation, including some prominent Trump supporters, the president did not back down.
“I think they didn’t go far enough because we were held back by the judges, by the liberal judges appointed by Biden and by Obama,” Trump said. O’Donnell asked explicitly whether he approved of violent actions carried out by heavily masked law enforcement officials in workplaces, schools and courthouses. Trump left no questions as to his position. “Because we need to get people out,” he said.
Regarding the status of the government shutdown, now in its 33rd day, Trump said Republicans “keep voting” despite House Speaker Mike Johnson keeping the House in recess for most of the shutdown so far.
“What we do is keep voting. I mean, the Republicans vote almost unanimously to end it, and the Democrats keep voting against it. You know, they’ve never had this. It’s happened about 18 times before,” Trump said. “Democrats have always voted for an extension, always saying, ‘Give us an extension, we’ll figure it out.’ They lost their way. They went crazy crazy. And all they have to do, Norah, is say, “Let’s vote.” “
On the Gaza ceasefire that Trump helped bring about last month, he disputed O’Donnell’s suggestion that the situation was “fragile.” He threatened to use force against Hamas terrorists if necessary.
“Hamas could be eliminated immediately if they don’t behave. They know that. If they don’t behave, they will be eliminated immediately,” Trump said.
