his first 60 minutes interview Six months later, President Donald Trump defended his decision: forgiveness Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Chao claimed he had no personal knowledge of the cryptocurrency billionaire and was acting based on a politically motivated prosecution by the previous administration.
When asked by correspondent Norah O’Donnell why he pardoned Mr. Zhao, who pleaded guilty to violating anti-money laundering laws in 2023, Mr. Trump answered frankly.
“Okay, are you ready? I don’t know who he is. I know he was sentenced to four months in prison or something like that. And I heard it was a witch hunt for Biden,” Trump said in an interview. published Sunday evening.
Asked how he wants to deal with the “emergence of play-for-play” given Binance’s $2 billion purchase Trump said earlier this year about his family-owned company’s stablecoin that he “doesn’t know anything about it” and is “too busy” with other things.
He added that his sons’ involvement in cryptocurrencies is separate from government affairs: “They run a business, they are not part of the government.”
President Trump went on to describe Zhao as a “respected” entrepreneur and said he was a “victim of government weaponization,” referring to the previous administration.
President Trump said his decision is consistent with broader efforts to support the U.S. crypto sector, with a focus on keeping the country “number one in crypto” amid increasing competition from countries such as China and Japan.
“I want to make crypto great for America. That’s the only thing,” President Trump said.
Adding a comparison to the US position on AI, he said: “Just as we are number one in AI, we are number one in cryptocurrencies. And I want to maintain that.”
The exchange was broadcast as part of a broader interview recorded at Trump’s private residence at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida. It also covered topics such as the ongoing government shutdown following President Trump’s trip to Asia last week, immigration raids, and U.S. trade relations.
This is the first time a president has appeared on a CBS program. calm down Harris received a $16 million settlement after filing a lawsuit with parent company Paramount in July over Kamala Harris’ 2024 campaign interview.
The segment was the first recorded explanation of Zhao’s pardon, which had drawn scrutiny from lawmakers and regulators given World Liberty Financial’s expanding use of cryptocurrencies.
Speculation that President Trump maybe you’ll forgive me Mr. Zhao first surfaced in December 2024, just weeks before taking office, following reports of backchannel lobbying within the digital asset industry.
Just a week before the pardon was granted, Insider claims Rumors have resurfaced.
Democrats have criticized the pardon, and some people suggest Binance said it “put the wheels in place” on President Trump’s cryptocurrency transactions, citing payments and lobbying efforts connected to World Liberty Financial.
others have Moved Strengthening ethics rules, including a proposal to ban members of Congress and senior officials from trading or holding digital assets.
a solution The movement questioning the validity of the pardon was led by Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Adam Schiff, who called for Congress to review Binance’s relationship with the Trump administration.
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