Topline
President Trump is seen growing increasingly angry about “tough questions” from CBS News correspondent Lesley Stahl before walking out in footage of the 60 Minutes interview he published without the network’s permission on Thursday.
US President Donald Trump, flanked by White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany (L), speaks ... [+]
Key Facts
Trump deserted the Tuesday interview after less than 40 minutes and refused to film a planned walk-and-talk with Vice President Mike Pence, later slamming it as “fake,” “biased” and “electoral intrusion” in a string of angry tweets.
The footage, which Trump subsequently promised to publish “for the sake of accuracy in reporting,” shows the president exacerbated from the outset, responding to a comment from Stahl before the interview officially begins—“Are you ready for some tough questions?”—by asking for “fairness” and saying, “you don’t ask Biden tough questions ... it’s terrible, you know that.”
Trump continues to complain about the framing of questions touching on the coronavirus pandemic, the economy and unrest in the United States, with the interview taking a turn for the worst when Stahl brings up campaign rallies the president has been holding with thousands “jammed together,” many not wearing masks.
“These are the biggest rallies we’ve ever had,” says Trump, which Stahl rebukes as untrue, prompting the president to respond: “You’re so negative, you’re so negative ... You’ve just come in here with that negative attitude.”
“Next question,” the president says after Stahl continues trying to press him on why he isn’t a bigger advocate for masks after the “super-spreader” Rose Garden nomination ceremony for Amy Coney Barrett, insisting the line of questioning is also unfair due to the work his administration has done in encouraging mask usage.
The two then proceed to argue for several minutes about Trump’s complaints that the media is soft on Democratic nominee Joe Biden, with Trump claiming reporters are asking the former vice president about “ice cream” when he’s “in the midst of a scandal,” referring to a recently published—and unverified—New York Post story with allegations about Biden’s son Hunter.
Trump digs into Stahl one last time for “vicious” questions about his role in encouraging chants to lock up Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) at a campaign rally before abruptly ending the interview.
Chief Critic
“Your first statement was, are you ready for tough questions? That’s no way to talk, no way to talk,” said Trump, before turning to someone else in the room and saying: “I think we have enough. Let’s go.”
Key Background
With less than two weeks before the election and an unfavorable forecast in the polls, Trump has upped attacks on the media. Earlier this week, he unleashed criticism on New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman, called CNN “dumb bastards” for spending too much time on Covid-19 coverage and told a different reporter they were “a criminal” for not writing about the Hunter Biden allegations. Trump has long complained about the way he is portrayed in the media, responding to questions from Stahl about his “tweets and name-calling” by saying: “If I didn’t have social media, I’d have no way of getting out my voice ... The media is corrupt.”
Crucial Quote
60 Minutes released a statement Thursday afternoon responding to the leaking of the footage, which CBS previously said was in violation of an agreement the White House made prior to filming. “The White House’s unprecedented decision to disregard their agreement with CBS News and release their footage will not deter 60 Minutes from providing its full, fair and contextualized reporting which presidents have participated in for decades,” read a statement posted to the show’s Twitter account, which also defended the program as “widely respected” for “fairness” and defended Stahl as “one of the premier correspondents in America.”
What To Watch For
Both Trump’s interview and an interview with Biden will air this Sunday.
