President Donald Trump’s heated exchange over corruption allegations was notably absent from both the televised and extended online versions of his “60 Minutes” interview that aired on Sunday, November 2, 2025, despite claims from the White House that viewers were seeing the full, unedited conversation.
CBS broadcast a 28-minute version of the interview on television Sunday evening, then released a 73-minute extended cut online. The White House’s RapidResponse 47 account shared the longer version on social media, claiming it was the “FULL” Trump interview that came “without the network’s edits and cuts.” However, a review of the official transcript on the “60 Minutes” Overtime site revealed significant portions of the conversation never made it to viewers’ screens.
The most notable omission involved questions from correspondent Norah O’Donnell about the president’s pardon of crypto billionaire Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, who pleaded guilty on November 21, 2023, to failing to maintain an anti-money-laundering program, was sentenced to four months, and completed his sentence, before being pardoned by Trump in October 2025. The Wall Street Journal reported that Zhao’s company, Binance, facilitated a $2 billion transaction involving the Trump family-affiliated World Liberty Financial’s stablecoin, a deal that included investment from an Abu Dhabi-backed fund.
In the aired version, Trump claimed he had no idea who Zhao was, immediately contradicting himself by adding that he heard it was a Biden witch hunt. When O’Donnell pressed further about concerns regarding the appearance of corruption, the transcript showed Trump became visibly annoyed. “I can’t say, because—I can’t say—I’m not concerned. I don’t—I’d rather not have you ask the question. But I let you ask it,” Trump responded, according to the transcript. The exchange continued with Trump interrupting O’Donnell multiple times before pivoting to promote cryptocurrency, without directly addressing the concerns about corruption.
CBS also honored Trump’s request to cut a section where the president boasted about the payout their parent company paid him earlier this year. “And actually, “60 Minutes” paid me a lotta money. And you don’t have to put this on, because I don’t wanna embarrass you,” Trump said during the interview conducted at Mar-a-Lago on Friday. That comment never appeared in either video version.
The president was referring to his $16 million lawsuit victory over Paramount, which owns CBS, over what he believed was the deceptive editing of a Kamala Harris interview. Trump had launched a $20 billion lawsuit claiming Harris’ interview had been edited to tip the scales in favor of the Democratic Party ahead of the election. The case was settled in July, ahead of Paramount’s need for FCC approval for its $8 billion merger with media company Skydance.
During the interview, Trump praised CBS’s new editor-in-chief, appearing to reference Bari Weiss, stating that she was leading the enterprise and calling her a great person, based on what he had heard. He continued promoting his cryptocurrency stance without directly answering O’Donnell’s questions about potential conflicts of interest.
The president’s appearance on the program generated additional attention on social media, where viewers expressed concerns about his physical appearance. Democratic commentators and some viewers noted that the 79-year-old appeared tired and was sweating heavily during the broadcast. Left-wing political influencer Harry Sisson posted on social media that Trump looked absolutely awful, describing him as incoherent and rambling.
Trump supporters defended the president, with one declaring he was working harder than anyone in politics. Another dismissed the comments as media spin, arguing that Trump handled tough questions with confidence and real facts, particularly on jobs, the economy, and border security.
As part of the Paramount settlement, the network agreed that in the future, “60 Minutes” will release transcripts of interviews with eligible U.S. presidential candidates after such interviews have aired, subject to redactions as required for legal or national security concerns. An editor’s note on the YouTube upload of the extended interview indicated it was “condensed for clarity.”
The interview took place amid the ongoing government shutdown, which has now lasted for over 34 days. Trump appeared on social media Sunday evening before the broadcast, announcing he was getting ready to watch himself on “60 Minutes” and expressing hope that the network would treat him as well as they did Harris.
