President Donald Trump’s heated response to questions about alleged corruption at the conclusion of his “60 Minutes” interview never made it to air, despite CBS releasing what the network called an extended version of the sit-down.
The interview, conducted at Mar-a-Lago on Friday, October 31, 2025, and aired Sunday, November 2, 2025, was presented in two formats: a 28-minute television broadcast and a 73-minute extended cut posted online. The White House shared the longer version on its RapidResponse 47 X account, claiming it was the “FULL” Trump interview released “without the network’s edits and cuts.” However, according to The Daily Beast, neither version contained the tense exchange between Trump and interviewer Norah O’Donnell regarding corruption allegations.
The confrontation centered on Trump’s pardon of billionaire Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, founder of crypto exchange Binance, who was released from jail in September after pleading guilty to money-laundering violations. The Wall Street Journal had reported that CZ struck a $2 billion deal with the Trump family’s cryptocurrency venture, World Liberty Financial, raising questions about potential pay-for-play arrangements.
According to the full transcript posted on the 60 Minutes Overtime website, O’Donnell asked Trump at the end of the interview if she could pose two more questions. Trump, 79, responded that agreeing might mean they would treat him more fairly, adding uncertainty about whether these would be questions he wanted to avoid.
When O’Donnell asked Trump about the appearance of corruption related to pardoning someone whose business had financial ties to his family, the president became visibly annoyed. Trump indicated he would rather not have her ask the question, but allowed it anyway. He acknowledged he could have walked away without answering, but claimed he was proud to address it.
In the aired portions, Trump initially claimed ignorance about who CZ was, stating he knew the individual received a four-month sentence and believed it was a Biden witch hunt. However, when pressed about corruption concerns, Trump pivoted to promoting cryptocurrency’s importance to America. “We’re No. 1 in crypto in the whole world,” Trump said, emphasizing that other countries wanted that position but America held it because he was president.
CBS also honored Trump’s request to cut a section where he boasted about the financial settlement Paramount Global paid him earlier this year. Trump had told O’Donnell that “60 Minutes” paid him “a lotta money” and suggested they not include that comment to avoid embarrassing the network. The statement did not appear in either video version.
The settlement stemmed from Trump’s $20 billion lawsuit against Paramount, which owns CBS, over alleged deceptive editing of a Kamala Harris interview. Trump claimed the editing was designed to tip the scales in favor of Democrats ahead of the election. The case was settled in July, ahead of Paramount needing FCC approval for their $8 billion merger with media company Skydance, with Trump receiving $16 million.
During the interview, Trump praised CBS’s new editor-in-chief, Bari Weiss, describing her as a great leader. He emphasized that “60 Minutes” was forced to pay him significant money because they altered Harris’ answer to a question just two nights before the election, inserting a new response. Trump insisted that news organizations cannot present fake news and must maintain legitimacy.
As part of the Paramount settlement agreement, the company committed that “60 Minutes” would release transcripts of interviews with eligible presidential candidates after such interviews air, subject to redactions for legal or national security concerns. While Paramount was not required to apologize to Trump, this transparency measure was included in the resolution.
The interview also featured Trump making numerous claims that drew scrutiny. He falsely stated that grocery prices are declining when Consumer Price Index figures show they increased 2.7 percent over the previous year. Trump claimed inflation was at 2 percent or lower, though the most recent figure stood at 3 percent. He also asserted that $17 trillion was being invested in the United States, a figure nearly double the White House’s own inflated estimates.
O’Donnell noted in a voiceover during the broadcast that World Liberty Financial has denied any involvement in the pardon decision. The network included an editor’s note on the YouTube upload stating the extended interview was “condensed for clarity,” though the full transcript revealed the most contentious moments regarding corruption allegations were entirely absent from both video versions.
The “60 Minutes” broadcast averaged just over 8.5 million linear television viewers per show last season.
