White House Press Secretary Tells CBS That Trump Will Sue If Interview Is Edited

Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, told CBS News that President Trump would "sue" the network if it did not air an interview unedited, moments after he taped a 13-minute interview in Michigan with "CBS Evening News" anchor Tony Dokoupil, according to a recording obtained by The New York Times.

In the exchange Ms. Leavitt relayed Mr. Trump’s instruction: "Make sure you guys don’t cut the tape, make sure the interview is out in full," and added, "If it’s not out in full, we’ll sue your ass off." Some CBS staff treated the remark as jest; Mr. Dokoupil replied, "Yeah, we’re doing it, yeah," and later said, "He always says that!" Ms.

Leavitt did not laugh. CBS News said it had independently decided to air the interview "unedited and in its entirety" and that the segment ran in full that evening. The Times noted that Mr. Trump sued CBS in 2024 over a "60 Minutes" interview and that Paramount paid $16 million to settle a case many legal experts said had little merit; ABC also paid $16 million in 2024 to settle a separate suit by Mr.

Trump.

Key Topics

Politics, Donald Trump, Karoline Leavitt, Tony Dokoupil, Michigan, Legal Settlement