Drama erupted behind the scenes at CBS News as Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, delivered a blunt ultimatum straight from President Trump himself—air his interview as-is or prepare for a lawsuit.
The New York Times got hold of an explosive audio recording revealing the tense moment minutes after Trump wrapped up a 13-minute sit-down with Tony Dokoupil in Michigan for the “CBS Evening News.”
Leavitt didn’t mince words when she confronted CBS producers. She declared the ex-president wanted the network to broadcast the interview untouched, warning, “He said, ‘If you don’t run it full, we’ll sue your ass off!’” Staffers on set reportedly couldn’t tell if Leavitt was joking, with some reacting with nervous laughter. One heard CBS executive producer Kim Harvey respond sarcastically, “Oh, great, OK!” even as Dokoupil tried to cool things off, claiming, “He always says that!” But Leavitt wasn’t in the mood for laughs—her tone, according to witnesses, was deadly serious.
Trump, never one to shy away from a jab, also took a swipe at Dokoupil during the interview, saying the anchor would be jobless if Kamala Harris had snagged the 2024 election. Not backing down, Dokoupil shot back that his position wasn’t in jeopardy either way, to which Trump retorted the anchor would just be making “a lesser salary.”
CBS, meanwhile, swore the threats didn’t rattle them. Network execs told The Post the plan had always been to share the interview uncut, insisting Leavitt’s bombshell warning didn’t sway their editorial judgment. True to their word, the full segment aired in primetime that night.
In response to the Times, Leavitt doubled down, asserting Americans “deserve President Trump’s full interviews, no edits, no tricks. And you know what? That’s exactly what everyone saw.”
But this isn’t the first time Trump’s legal team squared off with CBS. Back in 2024, he targeted the network over a heavily edited “60 Minutes” appearance featuring Kamala Harris. That case ended with CBS’s former parent company Paramount coughing up a jaw-dropping $16 million to settle, a move that triggered outrage and lingering distrust both inside CBS and in wider media circles.
The underlying message? When Trump talks—and demands airtime—he’s dead serious about not being chopped, cropped, or cut in the edit bay. CBS got the message loud and clear this time.
