Former President Donald Trump has accused '60 Minutes' of dishonestly editing the Oct. 7 interview with Vice President Kamala Harris, a claim that CBS's news program denied on Sunday. In response, the Trump campaign asserted that the show 'just admitted to doing exactly what' Trump alleged.
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| Donald Trump and Kamala Harris Win McNamee/Getty Images; Scott Olson/Getty Images |
'60 Minutes' addressed Trump's accusation, which claimed that the interview was edited to present Vice President Harris in a more favorable light, while the Trump campaign issued its own counter-statement.
In its statement on Sunday, '60 Minutes' addressed the claims made by the former president:
Donald Trump has accused '60 Minutes' of manipulating the editing of our Oct. 7 interview with Vice President Kamala Harris. This claim is false. We provided an excerpt of the interview to Face the Nation that featured a more extended version of her response than what aired on '60 Minutes.'
It was the same question and the same response, but a different segment of the answer. Our editing practices aim to be precise, accurate, and straightforward, whether it’s for a politician, athlete, or celebrity. The portion that appeared on '60 Minutes' was more concise to allow coverage of other topics in the comprehensive 21-minute segment.
It’s important to note that Trump withdrew from his scheduled '60 Minutes' interview, while Vice President Harris participated fully.
Our longstanding invitation to former President Trump remains open. We are more than willing to have him join '60 Minutes' to discuss key issues and address the concerns he has raised about the Harris interview.
The Trump campaign responded with its own statement: '60 Minutes just admitted to doing exactly what President Trump claimed,' said Karoline Leavitt, the national press secretary for Trump’s campaign. 'They edited a different response — from another part of her answer — to make Kamala Harris sound less confused than she was. Their statement isn’t a denial; it’s an admission that they did exactly what they were accused of. This incident shows once again how biased '60 Minutes' is, and why President Trump was right to refuse their invitation to engage in their so-called journalism. They should release the transcript!'
Trump has described the Harris interview on '60 Minutes' as a 'giant fake news scam,' suggesting that CBS was attempting to support her. His accusations gained traction when it was noted that Harris gave a different response in a teaser clip aired on Face the Nation compared to the one shown on '60 Minutes.' The question centered around the Biden administration’s influence over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
During the interview, Bill Whitaker of '60 Minutes' remarked to Harris, 'It seems that Prime Minister Netanyahu is not listening.'
In the Face the Nation teaser, Harris paused briefly before stating, 'The work that we have done has resulted in several movements in the region by Israel, prompted by our advocacy for what needs to happen there.'
However, on the '60 Minutes' broadcast, Harris responded promptly, 'We will not stop advocating for what is essential to clarify the U.S. stance on ending this conflict.'
On Truth Social, Trump posted, 'Her REAL ANSWER WAS CRAZY OR DUMB, so they replaced it with another one to protect her or at least make her look better.'
Trump has also called for CBS to lose its FCC license due to this interview. FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel dismissed this idea, saying that Trump’s threats against free speech are serious and should not be disregarded.
Meanwhile, '60 Minutes' correspondent Scott Pelley commented that the Trump campaign gave 'shifting reasons' for the former president’s withdrawal from the interview.
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