Trump Calls For Investigation Into Harris’ Interview With ‘60 Minutes,’ Claiming It Was Grossly Edited
Former President Donald Trump has alleged that Vice President Kamala Harris’ interview with CBS News’ “60 Minutes” was grossly “sliced and diced” to make her look “more Presidential” and coherent when answering questions.
In a Truth Social post early Wednesday, the Republican presidential nominee said Harris’ answers were “virtually incoherent” and edited “as many as four times in a single sentence or thought.”
Without explanation, he went on to say that the alleged editing could be a “major campaign finance violation.”
“The public is owed a MAJOR AND IMMEDIATE APOLOGY! This is an open and shut case, and must be investigated, starting today!” he wrote.
HuffPost reached out to a Trump spokesperson for clarification on his allegations, including what evidence he has, but did not receive a response. Representatives for CBS also did not respond to requests for comment.
On social media, users have pointed to a video clip of the interview posted online by CBS that appears to show Harris answering a question differently than how she was shown answering the same question in other footage shared by the network.
In all of the videos, journalist Bill Whitaker asks Harris a question about Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu: “Does the U.S. have no sway over Prime Minister Netanyahu?”
Monday, on a 60 Minutes election special, Bill Whitaker asks Vice President Kamala Harris if the U.S. lacks influence over American ally Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. https://t.co/TG3WOCA23Apic.twitter.com/IH6MXMjuCP
— 60 Minutes (@60Minutes) October 6, 2024
In one version of the exchange, she responds at length, while in other footageshared by CBS, she answers the same question but in a shorter and more direct way. (For clarity, HuffPost has included transcripts of her answers from both video versions below.)
It’s not clear why the videos are different, including whether the footage was edited for length or clarity.
A Harris campaign official, reached by Variety about the controversy, said: “We do not control CBS’s production decisions and refer questions to CBS.”
Trump infamously backed out of participating in his own interview with “60 Minutes,” a tradition for presidential candidates dating back to 1968.
The program said that he canceled last week because he didn’t want to be fact-checked and wanted an apology for how his interview with the program went in 2020. Trump spokesman Steven Cheung, in contrast, has insisted that “there was nothing scheduled or agreed upon.”
Trump has also declined to participate in a second debate with Harris, though CNN has offered both candidates an opportunity for later this month.
Here’s what Harris says in the shorter version of her “60 Minutes” remarks:
Bill Whitaker: “Does the U.S. have no sway over Prime Minister Netanyahu?”
Kamala Harris: “The work that we do diplomatically with the leadership of Israel is an ongoing pursuit around making clear our principles.”
Whitaker: “But it seems that Prime Minister Netanyahu is not listening.”
Harris: “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.”
And here’s what Harris says in the longer version of her remarks:
Whitaker: “Does the U.S. have no sway over Prime Minister Netanyahu?”
Harris: “The aid that we have given Israel allowed Israel to defend itself against 200 ballistic missiles that were just meant to attack the Israelis and the people of Israel. And when we think about the threat that Hamas, Hezbollah presents, Iran, I think that it is without any question our imperative to do what we can to allow Israel to defend itself against those kinds of attacks.
“Now the work that we do diplomatically with the leadership of Israel is an ongoing pursuit around making clear our principles, which include the need for humanitarian aid, the need for this war to end, the need for a deal to be done which would release the hostages and create a cease-fire. And we’re not going to stop in terms of putting that pressure on Israel and in the region, including Arab leaders.”
Whitaker: “But it seems that Prime Minister Netanyahu is not listening.”
Harris: “Well, Bill, 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.”
This story has been updated to include details about footage of Kamala Harris’ “60 Minutes” interview.
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