US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has filed a $10 billion lawsuit against CBS, accusing the network of election interference for refusing to release an unedited version of an interview with his Democratic opponent, Kamala Harris, according to court documents obtained by Fox News.
“The edited broadcast created confusion because that was CBS’s intent: to do whatever it took to portray Kamala as intelligent, well-informed, and confident when, in fact, she is none of the above,” the lawsuit emphasizes.
The suit was filed in Texas, citing the network’s alleging the network’s violation of local laws. While Texas is predominantly Republican, CBS is legally incorporated in the Democratic-leaning states of New York and Delaware.
“Due to CBS’ actions, the public could not distinguish which Kamala they saw in the Interview: the candidate or the actual puppet of a behind-the-scenes editor,” the lawsuit asserts.
The interview with Harris aired on CBS’s “60 Minutes” in early October. In a preview released before the broadcast, Harris struggled to clearly respond to the host’s question about US policy toward Israel, a moment that drew criticism from Republicans. However, the full broadcast did not include this segment. Trump accused CBS of fraudulent behavior, demanded the revocation of the network’s broadcasting license, and called for the release of the complete interview transcript.
CBS declined Trump’s request to publish the unedited interview, citing the First Amendment, which guarantees freedom of speech. The network acknowledged that the interview had been edited but explained that it was done to include “as many of the vice president’s answers as the 21-minute format allows.”