Former President Donald Trump filed a $10 billion lawsuit against CBS on Thursday over the network’s interview with Vice President Kamala Harris which the GOP nominee claimed was “deceptively” edited to help his Democratic foe.
Trump’s legal team accused the news organization of misleading voters after it aired two different answers from Harris about the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas during a “60 Minutes” sit-down, according to the federal legal action filed in the Northern District of Texas.
CBS initially aired Harris’ “word salad” answer on Oct. 6 while previewing the interview with reporter Bill Whitaker on the network’s Sunday morning show “Face the Nation,” according to the lawsuit.
“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,” she said in the preview clip.
But the next day when the full interview aired on the longstanding news program, Harris’ answer was more concise about the White House’s influence on Israel during the war in Gaza.
“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,” she said when “60 Minutes” televised her interview.
“This action concerns CBS’s partisan and unlawful acts of election and voter interference through malicious, deceptive, and substantial news distortion,” which was meant to “confuse, deceive, and mislead the public,” Trump’s lawyers argued in legal papers.
CBS’ alleged doctoring was also an attempt “to tip the scales in favor of the Democratic Party” with Election Day looming, the lawsuit alleged.
The suit comes after Trump threatened to take CBS to court last week and called on the news network to release the full, unedited transcript of Harris’ “60 Minutes” interview.
“CBS and 60 Minutes producers intentionally misled the public by broadcasting and posting a carefully, deceptively edited Interview and transcript while opting to release other portions online,” the new lawsuit asserts.
“Such manipulative editing aimed to confuse the electorate regarding Kamala’s lack of abilities, intelligence, and appeal.”
A CBS spokesperson said in a statement Thursday night Trump’s repeated assertions that the interview was doctored are false, calling the lawsuit meritless.
“60 MINUTES fairly presented the Interview to inform the viewing audience, and not to mislead it,” the spokesperson told The Post. “The lawsuit Trump has brought today against CBS is completely without merit and we will vigorously defend against it.”
CBS News previously acknowledged that it trimmed Harris’ answer about the war, but insisted it was only so the network could fit in more of the Q&A during the wide-ranging interview.
CBS reps also denied the answer was edited to make the Democrat look better.
“When we edit any interview, whether a politician, an athlete, or movie star, we strive to be clear, accurate and on point,” CBS stated on Oct. 20 about the interview with journalist Bill Whittaker.
Trump has declined to be interviewed by “60 Minutes.”
The suit calls for a jury trial and $10 billion in damages, claiming CBS’s action violates the Lone Star State’s prohibition of deceptive acts in the conduct of business.
Trump suggested earlier this month the edited answers “may be the Biggest Scandal in Broadcast History!”
