President Trump gave an exclusive interview to CBS Evening News anchor Tony Dokoupil Tuesday conducted on the floor of a Ford assembly plant in Dearborn, Michigan. The wide-ranging conversation, which aired that evening and took up nearly half the broadcast, covered foreign threats, the domestic economy, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, and a controversial ICE shooting.
The most attention-grabbing moment came when Trump told Dokoupil that if Kamala Harris had won the 2024 election, "you probably wouldn’t have a job right now," attributing it to a presumed economic collapse under her administration. He added that Dokoupil's boss (referring to Paramount CEO David Ellison) "might be bust."
Dokoupil later pushed back lightly, saying he believed he'd still have the job even if "the other guys won," prompting Trump to quip, "Yeah, but at a lesser salary."
Reports from Iran suggest 12,000, and possibly as many as 20,000 people, may have been killed in the government’s crackdown on anti‑regime protests. pic.twitter.com/jU30zcxeZU
— CBS Evening News with Tony Dokoupil (@CBSEveningNews) January 14, 2026
On foreign policy, Trump issued a stark warning to Iran amid reports of a violent crackdown on nationwide protests, with sources citing at least 12,000 deaths. He emphasized that the U.S. had already neutralized Iran's nuclear capacity and that "help is on the way" in various forms (though not to Iran's regime), while stressing the need to avoid overlooking global threats even as he focused on America.
On the death of Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old mother of three who was shot and killed by an ICE agent in Minnesota, President Trump told @TonyDokoupil, “I would bet you that she, under normal circumstances, was a very solid, wonderful person,” while adding that her “actions… pic.twitter.com/Emu31Yy02N
— CBS Evening News with Tony Dokoupil (@CBSEveningNews) January 14, 2026
Domestically, Trump defended the economy as potentially "the strongest... in the history of our country," pointing to booming auto industry activity (including 24-hour shifts and expansions at Ford, GM, and Stellantis), low inflation, high growth, record job numbers, and a surging stock market. When Dokoupil noted that many Americans (including some Trump voters) don't feel the prosperity in everyday life like groceries, Trump countered that he inherited a mess and that the country is now "the hottest" economically.
Trump also addressed the recent fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good by an ICE agent in Minneapolis. He defended the agent, described Good as likely "a very solid, wonderful person" but said her actions were "pretty tough," and framed ICE's work as difficult due to border policies under the prior administration. When asked for a message to Good's father (a Trump supporter grieving the loss and the "domestic terrorist" label applied to her), Trump expressed love for "all of our people" and reiterated support for deporting criminals.
On Fed Chair Jerome Powell, who faces a criminal probe tied to a $2.5 billion Fed renovation, Trump called him a "lousy Fed chairman" who is "either corrupt or incompetent." He brushed off questions of political retribution, saying he "can't help what it looks like."
Trump reiterated that his power as president is limited primarily by his own morality, while acknowledging the Constitution and courts as checks.
The interview highlighted Dokoupil's new role at the helm of CBS Evening News amid network changes, and reactions were mixed, with some praising the unedited airing and others criticizing the tone or framing.