President Donald Trump has once again taken aim at the mainstream media, this time directing his criticism at CBS’s “60 Minutes” for their past lies and bias. Originally expected to appear on the program’s upcoming election special, Trump has now set a firm condition for his participation.
Trump’s message to “60 Minutes” is simple: no interview unless they apologize for promoting the false narrative that Hunter Biden’s infamous laptop was “Russian disinformation.” The network has claimed that Trump’s campaign backed out of the interview, but Trump’s team quickly pushed back.
Campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung called out “60 Minutes” for misrepresenting the situation:
“Fake News. 60 Minutes begged for an interview, even after being caught lying about Hunter Biden’s laptop back in 2020. There were initial talks, but nothing was ever finalized,” Cheung told CNN. “They insisted on cutting out the interview to do fact-checking,” he added.
At a rally in Wisconsin, Trump blasted the network for spreading falsehoods that swayed the 2020 election:
“They lied about Hunter’s laptop, said it was Russian propaganda. We all know it wasn’t—it was the ‘laptop from hell,’ and it was Hunter’s,” Trump said to a cheering crowd. “I never got an apology, and I’m waiting for one. Until they come clean, they won’t get another interview from me.”
In response to a reporter asking about CBS’s claim that he pulled out of the interview, Trump clarified:
“Well, they approached me about an interview, but first I want an apology. Last time, they challenged me on the laptop from hell, claiming it was from Russia. I told them it was from Hunter, and I never received an apology. I’d love to do 60 Minutes, but until they apologize, it won’t happen.”
Trump also recounted a past exchange with “60 Minutes” correspondent Leslie Stahl and compared the current generation of journalists unfavorably to the late Mike Wallace, whom he described as “great.”
“I’ve asked them for an apology. Let’s see if they do it. I wouldn’t mind doing 60 Minutes—I’ve done it many times before.”
BREAKING: Trump just conducted a vicious TAKEDOWN of 60 Minutes, saying he'll only do their interview if they APOLOGIZE for lying about Hunter Biden's laptop
— George (@BehizyTweets) October 1, 2024
"They said the laptop from hell was from Russia. And I said it wasn't from Russia, it was from Hunter. And I never got an… pic.twitter.com/f1pD9bcXr5
