’60 Minutes’ Airs Scathing Segment on ‘First Felon in the Oval Office’ Despite Pressure to Avoid Sensitive Stories About Trump

Veteran 60 Minutes anchor Scott Pelley reported on President Donald Trump’s efforts to strong-arm some of the country’s top law firms into doing his bidding on Sunday night’s episode of the embattled CBS newsmagazine. Pelley’s segment pulled no punches in describing Trump’s efforts and reminding viewers that Trump is the “first felon” ever to sit in the Oval Office.

The segment raised eyebrows as it comes amid reporting that Shari Redstone, the head of CBS’s parent company Paramount Global, had pressured the show to delay “sensitive” stories that might anger Trump. Redstone is currently in talks to merge her company with Skydance Media, which will require the Trump administration’s approval. Additionally, Trump is currently suing 60 Minutes for tens of billions of dollars over its pre-election interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris.

In late April, 60 Minutes’ veteran executive producer Bill Owens quit in protest of the pressure being put on the show not to upset Trump. Pelley offered his thoughts on air, saying “none of us is happy” about corporate leaders stepping in and putting pressure on the news show’s content.

“It was hard on him and it was hard on us, but he did it for us — and you,” Pelley said at the end of a recent CBS evening news broadcast.

Pelley, who has won a record 51 Emmys for his reporting over the years, made it clear that he was not bowing to any such pressure.

“It was nearly impossible to get anyone on camera for this story because of the fear now running through our system of justice. In recent weeks, President Trump has signed orders against several law firms — orders with the power to destroy them,” Pelley began on Sunday’s segment, adding:

That matters because lawsuits have been a check on the president’s power. Many firms and attorneys have been targeted, among them Marc Elias, a long time opponent of Trump who is the only lawyer the president has named who was willing to appear on 60 Minutes. Elias, and others, are warning that Trump’s assault on the legal profession threatens the rule of law itself. Elias says that for him, it began with the president’s personal grudge.

As the segment continued, Pelley spoke to Elias about the risks he’s now taking in opposing Trump:

Marc Elias: Donald Trump hates me because I fight hard, and I fight for free and fair elections. I insist on fighting for democracy in court, fighting for voting rights in court, and insist on telling the truth about what the outcome of the 2020 election was.

Scott Pelley: Are there risks in doing the work that you’re doing?

Marc Elias: I’d be an idiot not to be worried. The question though is what do you do? Right, do you just cower in the corner? Do you just try to disappear? Do you just leave democracy to– fend for itself? Or do you stand tall and do the best you can every day to– represent your clients and try to preserve the rule of law?
Marc Elias first crossed Trump in 2016. He was the top lawyer for the Clinton campaign. Then, in 2020, when Trump and allies challenged the election results, Elias fought in court and won. Trump calls him a “thug.”

Marc Elias: Donald Trump is the walking embodiment of everything that is wrong with the American political system. And so, when Donald Trump says that I am unethical or that I am undermining his vision of America, I say, “Boy, I must be doin’ something right.”

The orders threatened to bar attorneys from where they work, courthouses and federal agencies and cancel the contracts of law firm clients. For example, an aerospace company could lose its federal contracts if it stayed with the firm. A senior partner at one firm told us the president’s orders were, quote, “diabolical.” “Intended to bankrupt [us].” He said, within hours, his major clients were threatening to drop his firm. It took only a matter of days before America’s wealthiest and most powerful law firms buckled.

In a shock to the legal community, nine major firms went to the White House to make a deal. Some say they were pressured, not by a written order, but by a message from the White House threatening an order.

As the segment continued, Pelley noted, “Trump’s attack on the law firms has been described by a federal judge as “…a personal vendetta…” None of his targets is charged with any crime. Trump, however, was indicted by federal grand juries in cases about the 2020 election and allegedly concealing classified documents. He pleaded not guilty. Those prosecutions were dropped only because he was reelected. Last year, a state jury convicted him of falsifying business records, making him the first felon in the Oval Office.”

Watch the full segment here.