For over 50 years, it has been a custom for the major party presidential candidates to sit down with 60 Minutes in October. In 1968, Richard Nixon and Hubert Humphrey participated in this tradition. This year, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump agreed to interviews.
However, just last week, Trump withdrew from the interview.
The Trump campaign had announced that the interview would take place last Thursday at Mar-A-Lago, Trump’s residence in Florida. They also inquired if 60 Minutes would interview Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, where he was grazed by a bullet in an assassination attempt. 60 Minutes confirmed. On September 9, Trump’s communications director Steven Cheung shared that arrangements were being made for Butler in addition to the sit-down.
However, shortly after, Cheung stated, “the president said yes,” but a week ago, Trump canceled. The campaign provided various explanations for the change. Initially, they objected to 60 Minutes’ intention to fact-check the interview.
“There were initial discussions, but nothing was ever scheduled or locked in,” Cheung stated on X, previously known as Twitter. “They also insisted on doing live fact-checking, which is unprecedented.”
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Trump later demanded an apology regarding his 2020 interview, claiming correspondent Lesley Stahl stated that Hunter Biden’s contentious laptop was connected to Russia, which she did not say.
“Where’s my apology? They should apologize,” Trump remarked on Tuesday night at a press conference in Milwaukee. “They were wrong on everything. So I’d like to get an apology. So I’ve asked them for an apology.”
Trump has asserted that Harris avoids interviews because she struggles to handle them and has rejected participating in a second debate with her. The upcoming Monday night election special may represent the last chance for a national audience to hear from both candidates before Election Day about key issues such as the economy, immigration, reproductive rights, and conflicts in the Middle East and Europe. Both campaigns recognized that the special would proceed if either candidate opted out. Harris, who has also participated in a 60 Minutes interview, weighed in on the situation.
“If he is not going to give your viewers the ability to have a meaningful, thoughtful conversation, question and answer with you, then watch his rallies,” Harris stated. “You’re going to hear conversations that are about himself and all of his personal grievances.”