President Trump, in his first sit-down interview with 60 Minutes in five years, placed blame on Democrats for the ongoing government shutdown, defended his decision to strike alleged drug trafficking boats, and discussed where the U.S. stands with China, Russia and Israel. He also addressed questions on his immigration crackdown, the indictments of several of his most prominent critics, and the 2028 presidential election. Mr. Trump spoke with 60 Minutes contributing correspondent Norah O’Donnell on Friday at Mar-a-Lago.The interview also marked his first appearance on the show since he sued and then settled with CBS News’ parent company, Paramount, over a 2024 election interview with then-Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris. The settlement did not include an apology. Trump says government shutdown is “Democrats’ fault”As the government shutdown continues, hundreds of thousands of federal workers have gone unpaid, including air traffic controllers. The prolonged shutdown has put millions of Americans at risk of missing their November food stamp benefits.The shutdown, which has now surpassed a month, is nearing a record set during Mr. Trump’s first term in office. Mr. Trump places the blame at the feet of Democrats and said his plan to end the shutdown is to “keep voting.””The Republicans are voting almost unanimously to end it, and the Democrats keep voting against ending it,” Mr. Trump said. “You know, they’ve never had this. This has happened like 18 times before. The Democrats always voted for an extension, always saying, ‘Give us an extension, we’ll work it out.'”He said Democrats have become “crazed lunatics” who have “lost their way.” Senate Democrats are blocking efforts to reopen the government until Republicans agree to extend government subsidies for over 20 million Americans who use Obamacare for their health insurance.What happens to the economy if the Supreme Court invalidates Trump’s tariffs The stock market hit record highs this past week and overall economic growth has been steady, despite the ongoing government shutdown. Mr. Trump attributed the stock market’s success to his tariffs, a signature part of his economic plan.”Look, because of tariffs, we have the highest stock market we’ve ever had,” he said. “Because of tariffs, 401(k)s [are] at the highest level that — and this is millions and millions of people — that we’ve ever had.”This week, the Supreme Court will hear arguments about whether Mr. Trump has the authority to impose sweeping tariffs without congressional approval. The lower courts have ruled against Mr. Trump. The president warned that the “country will be immeasurably hurt” if the Supreme Court invalidates his tariffs.”I think our economy will go to hell,” he said. Trump says ICE raids “haven’t gone far enough”Mr. Trump says the raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, undertaken as part of his crackdown on undocumented immigrants, “haven’t gone far enough.” He said he’s OK with the tactics being used by ICE agents “because you have to get the people out.”One video from New York shows a mother being tackled by an ICE agent, while tear gas was used in a Chicago residential neighborhood. Car windows have been smashed to grab drivers.Mr. Trump described many of the immigrants being targeted by his administration as murderers and criminals. But many of the people who have been arrested and deported aren’t violent criminals. Landscapers, farmers, nannies, construction workers and the families of U.S. service members have been among those caught up in the raids. “We have to start off with a policy, and the policy has to be, you came into the country illegally, you’re going to go out,” Mr. Trump said. “However, you’ve also seen, you’re going to go out. We’re going to work with you, and you’re going to come back into our country legally.”Trump says he’d send Army, Marines to U.S. cities “in a heartbeat” if neededIn addition to ICE raids, Mr. Trump has also ordered the National Guard to five U.S. cities: Los Angeles, Washington, Portland, Chicago and Memphis. He told 60 Minutes that, if needed, he’d use the Insurrection Act “in a heartbeat” to send in the Army or Marines into American cities. “And if I needed it, that would mean I could bring in the Army, the Marines, I could bring in whoever I want,” Mr. Trump said. “But I haven’t chosen to use it. I hope you give me credit for that.”Trump on indictments of James Comey, John Bolton, Letitia James In recent weeks, former FBI Director James Comey, former national security adviser John Bolton and New York Attorney General Letitia James have all been indicted on federal charges and pleaded not guilty. “There is a pattern to these names,” O’Donnell said to Mr. Trump. “They’re all public figures who have publicly denounced you.”Mr. Trump said he did not instruct the Department of Justice to go after them.”You don’t have to instruct ’em because they were so dirty, they were so crooked, they were so corrupt that the honest people we have — Pam Bondi’s doing a very good job. Kash Patel’s doing a very good job — The honest people that we have go after ’em automatically,” Mr. Trump said. In a Truth Social post from September addressed to Bondi, Mr. Trump endorsed the idea that Comey and James were “guilty as hell” and wrote “justice must be served, now!”Trump says he doesn’t want U.S. to be the only country not testing its nuclear weaponsLast week, Mr. Trump directed the Pentagon to immediately resume testing of nuclear weapons “on an equal basis” with other countries.The president said the U.S. needs to test its nuclear weapons because other countries test their nuclear capabilities. He pointed to North Korea, Russia and China, even though Vice Adm.Richard Correll, who was nominated by Mr. Trump to lead U.S. Strategic Command and if confirmed, would be in charge of the country’s nuclear weapons, recently told Congress that neither Russia nor China was conducting nuclear explosive tests.”Russia’s testing, and China’s testing, but they don’t talk about it,” Mr. Trump said. “You know, we’re a open society. We’re different. We talk about it.”Will Trump try to stay in the White House beyond 2028?When asked to set the record straight about a hypothetical run for a third term, Mr. Trump pivoted to praising members of his Cabinet. “I don’t even think about it. I will tell you, a lotta people want me to run,” he said. “But the difference between us and the Democrats is we really do have a strong bench.”The 22nd Amendment in the U.S. Constitution prevents presidents from being elected to more than two terms.Mr. Trump said it was too early to name possible Republican candidates for the White House in 2028, but said he does like Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.”I like so many people,” he said. “We have an unbelievable bench.”Trump pardons Binance founder, says “I don’t know who he is”Mr. Trump, who once called bitcoin “a scam,” pitched himself as the pro-crypto presidential candidate during his campaign. His family even launched a new cryptocurrency company called World Liberty Financial, run by his sons, which has added billions to the family’s wealth. Last month, Mr. Trump pardoned Changpeng Zhao, the billionaire founder of cryptocurrency exchange Binance, who pleaded guilty in 2023 to a money laundering-related charge.The government at the time said Zhao had caused “significant harm to U.S. national security,” essentially by allowing terrorist groups like Hamas to move millions of dollars around. Mr. Trump, who pardoned Zhao, said he doesn’t know who the Binance founder is. “I know he got a four-month sentence or something like that. And I heard it was a Biden witch hunt,” Mr. Trump said.In 2025, before Zhao was pardoned, Binance helped facilitate a $2 billion purchase of World Liberty Financial’s stablecoin. World Liberty Financial told 60 Minutes it had no involvement in the pardon.Trump on meeting with Xi Jinping, trade relations with China60 Minutes’ interview with Mr. Trump came just after his return from a trip to Asia, which culminated with a meeting with China’s President Xi Jinping and an easing of the trade war between the two countries.Taiwan has been a flashpoint in U.S.-China relations for years. Mr. Trump said that Xi knows “the consequences” of military action in Taiwan, but he declined to expand on how he would respond if China were to invade the island, telling O’Donnell: “I can’t give away my secrets.”Trump and Xi struck a one-year trade deal that, for now, averts the escalating tensions between the two economic superpowers. Mr. Trump said that in exchange for lower tariffs, China agreed to sell the U.S. valuable rare earth minerals and to start buying American agricultural products again.”This is a very competitive world, especially when it comes to China and the U.S.,” Mr. Trump said. “We’re always watching them, and they’re always watching us. In the meantime, I think we get along very well, and I think we can be bigger, better, and stronger by working with them as opposed to just knocking them out.”Trump says Gaza ceasefire is “not fragile”Last month, Mr. Trump was instrumental in reaching an Israel-Hamas ceasefire, leading to the release of 20 living hostages and the remains of other hostages. In the weeks since, Israel and Hamas have accused each other of violating terms of the agreement. The ongoing tensions have provoked fears that the U.S.-brokered peace deal could crumble.”It’s not fragile,” Mr. Trump said of the ceasefire. He said Hamas “could be taken out immediately if they don’t behave.”Efforts to resolve the war in UkraineIn August, Mr. Trump met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska for a high-stakes summit focused on ending the war in Ukraine. The talks failed to produce the ceasefire that Mr. Trump had sought.O’Donnell asked Mr. Trump why Putin would not end the war — a war Mr. Trump said would never have happened if he’d been president when it began.”That was Joe Biden’s war, not my war. I inherited that stupid war,” Mr. Trump said. Mr. Trump pointed to his success in ending other international conflicts since his return to office. “You know how I solved ’em? I said, in many cases, in 60% I said, ‘If you don’t stop fighting, I’m putting tariffs on both of your countries and you’re not going to be able to do business with the United [States],” Mr. Trump said. The strategy is different with Putin “because we don’t do very much business with Russia,” Mr. Trump said. Escalating U.S. tensions with VenezuelaCloser to the American mainland, the U.S. military has struck and destroyed at least nine vessels in the waters off Venezuela, killing more than three dozen alleged drug smugglers. U.S. lawmakers, including at least four Republicans, have questioned the strikes’ legality. F-35 fighter jets, eight U.S. warships and an estimated 10,000 U.S. troops are now in the Caribbean. The Pentagon also recently directed the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group to the region.Mr. Trump declined to comment on potential land strikes in Venezuela. “I wouldn’t be inclined to say that I would do that,” he said. “Because I don’t talk to a reporter about whether or not I’m going to strike.”O’Donnell asked Mr. Trump if the U.S. was going to war against Venezuela.”I doubt it. I don’t think so. But they’ve been treating us very badly,” he said.
