CBS anchor Margaret Brennan's latest dust-up with administration official adds to Trump lawsuit drama

"Face the Nation" moderator Margaret Brennan has repeatedly been shamed on-air by Republicans, generating antagonistic attraction for CBS arsenic the institution deals with a litany of different important issues. 

Shari Redstone, CBS genitor Paramount's controlling shareholder, has done everything successful her powerfulness to wide a way for the Trump administration's FCC to o.k. a multibillion-dollar planned merger with Skydance Media. Redstone has fixed lawyers the greenish airy to settee President Donald Trump’s predetermination interference lawsuit, though a woody has not been made, and has kept tabs connected CBS News’ reporting connected the administration. 

But if Redstone wants CBS News journalists to debar irking Trump officials up of the high-stakes merger, "Face the Nation" anchor Margaret Brennan appears to person missed the memo. 

TRUMP REJECTS PARAMOUNT'S $15 MILLION OFFER TO SETTLE CBS NEWS LAWSUIT, DEMANDS APOLOGY

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent clashed with CBS big Margaret Brennan implicit the economical interaction of President Trump's tariffs connected imported goods.  (Getty Images)

On Sunday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called retired Brennan for informing successful March that Trump medication tariffs connected imported goods would rise prices for American consumers aft ostentation cooled to a four-year debased successful April. 

"Margaret, erstwhile we were present successful March, you said determination was going to beryllium large inflation. There hasn't been immoderate inflation. Actually, the ostentation numbers are the champion successful 4 years. So wherefore don't we halt trying to accidental this could hap and hold and spot what does happen," Bessent told Brennan successful her latest viral clash with a Republican. 

Brennan tussled with Secretary of State Marco Rubio successful February aft she suggested that free code had been "weaponized" to bring astir the Holocaust successful Nazi Germany.

After Vice President JD Vance criticized European allies for adopting a "soviet"-style attack to censorship astatine the Munich Security Conference successful Germany, Brennan made nefarious inferences.

"[Vance] was lasting successful a state wherever escaped code was weaponized to behaviour a genocide," Brennan said to Rubio. "He met with the caput of a governmental enactment that has far-right views and immoderate historical ties to utmost groups. The discourse of that was changing the code of it. And you cognize that."

"Free code was not utilized to behaviour a genocide. The genocide was conducted by an authoritarian Nazi authorities that happened to besides beryllium genocidal due to the fact that they hated Jews, and they hated minorities, and they had a database of radical they hated, but chiefly the Jews," Rubio told Brennan. 

The "Face the Nation" anchor besides had a testy speech with Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., implicit then-FBI manager nominee Kash Patel connected the time earlier Trump's inauguration.

She clashed with Vance successful January implicit unvetted refugees successful the country. She specifically asked whether helium stood by his past comments that the U.S. should not "abandon anybody who's been decently vetted."

"Well, Margaret, I don't hold that each these immigrants, oregon each these refugees person been decently vetted," Vance said. "In fact, we cognize that determination are cases of radical who allegedly were decently vetted and past were virtually readying violent attacks successful our country. That happened during the campaign, if you whitethorn remember. So, clearly, not each of these overseas nationals person been decently vetted."

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CBS News CEO Wendy McMahon near the web past month, citing tensions wrong the company. (James Leynse/Corbis via Getty Images; Michele Crowe/CBS via Getty Images)

In March, Trump sat down with The Spectator’s Ben Domenech for a wide-ranging interview and was asked astir the speech Brennan had with Rubio.

"I telephone it ‘Deface the Nation,’" Trump said.

"Brennan is similar anybody connected the thoroughfare that you could instrumentality and say, ‘Go successful and inquire a fewer questions,’" Trump added. "That was truthful bad, I don’t get however you prosecute immoderate of these people."

While Brennan continues to irk Trump and his allies, her firm overlords are looking to onslaught a woody with the president. 

Fox News Digital confirmed past week that Trump rejected a $15 cardinal connection to settee his lawsuit. The talks are ongoing, but the president's ineligible squad is demanding astatine slightest $25 cardinal and an apology from CBS News.

The ordeal began past October erstwhile Trump sued CBS News and Paramount implicit allegations of predetermination interference involving the "60 Minutes" interrogation of then-Vice President Kamala Harris that aired weeks earlier the statesmanlike election. The suit alleges CBS News deceitfully edited an speech Harris had with "60 Minutes" analogous Bill Whitaker.

Redstone, who recused herself from colony discussions successful February, isn’t thrilled with being tied up successful litigation with the sitting president and wants to get things resolved. But not everyone from CBS News is connected the aforesaid page. 

"60 Minutes" enforcement shaper Bill Owens abruptly resigned successful April, saying helium nary longer had capable independency to tally the programme however helium wanted. 

Last month, CBS News CEO Wendy McMahon followed Owens retired the door, citing tensions wrong the company. McMahon’s resignation fueled speculation that a colony with Trump was looming, arsenic she and Owens were some known to entity to apologizing for what galore media observers see a emblematic editing determination astatine the bosom of the lawsuit. 

CBS NEWS STAFFERS RATTLED BY CEO'S ABRUPT EXIT AS TRUMP LAWSUIT LOOMS OVER NETWORK

"Face the Nation" anchor Margaret Brennan has repeatedly been shamed on-air by Republicans. (Screenshot/CBS)

"60 Minutes" correspondents person been speaking out, adding to the ongoing headache for Paramount Global. 

Scott Pelley took a not-so-subtle changeable astatine Trump past period during a commencement address astatine Wake Forest University. 

"Why onslaught universities? Why onslaught journalism? Because ignorance works for power," Pelley told Wake Forest graduates. "First, marque the information seekers unrecorded successful fear, writer the journalists and their companies for nothing. Then, nonstop masked agents to abduct a assemblage student who wrote an editorial successful her assemblage insubstantial defending Palestinian rights and nonstop her to a situation successful Louisiana charged with nothing. Then determination to destruct the instrumentality firms that basal up for the rights of others."

On Friday, Lesley Stahl admitted she was bothered by the situation. 

"To person a quality enactment travel nether firm pressure—to person a quality enactment told by a corporation, ‘do this, bash that with your story, alteration this, alteration that, don’t tally that piece.' I mean, it steps connected the First Amendment, it steps connected the state of the press," Stahl said.

PARAMOUNT FACING MOUNTING PRESSURE FROM CBS STARS, DEM LAWMAKERS AS COMPANY MULLS SETTLING TRUMP LAWSUIT

President Trump is seeking $20 cardinal successful a suit against CBS, alleging predetermination interference implicit its handling of a "60 Minutes" interrogation past twelvemonth with Vice President Kamala Harris. He rejected a $15 cardinal colony offer. (Left: (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images), Right: (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images), Right: Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

"It steps connected what we basal for. It makes maine question whether immoderate corp should ain a quality operation," she continued. "It is precise disconcerting."

Meanwhile, Redstone is acceptable for a important windfall if she’s capable to flip Paramount to Skydance. Bloomberg reported past twelvemonth that she would person $180 cardinal successful severance connected apical of the astir $350 cardinal she would pouch from the merger. 

Skydance Media CEO David Ellison, the lad of billionaire Larry Ellison, would instrumentality power of CBS arsenic caput of the recently formed Paramount Skydance Corp. erstwhile Redstone exits. 

He would besides inherit Brennan, whom Newsweek referred to arsenic "MAGA’s favourite punching bag" successful February. 

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Fox News Digital’s Joseph A. Wulfsohn and Hanna Panreck contributed to this report.