In a 60 Minutes conversation with Ross Douthat, President Trump was asked to imagine a final judgment in which forgiving the people he has publicly despised would be the price of paradise, and he answered candidly that he could not. The moment sits at the intersection of faith and grievance, where a leader's claim to a charmed life meets the old human difficulty of letting go of enmity. Behind the exchange lies a quieter record of legal pressure on his critics, with some cases collapsed, one resolved by guilty plea, and others still moving through the courts.
Trump Says He Hates Some Enemies and Can't Forgive Them, Even for Heaven
"I do hate some of my enemies, and I always will."
Mark
Why does this answer matter? It's a hypothetical about heaven.
Mimi
Because Trump chose not to dodge it. Asked if he could forgive Comey, Pelosi and others to get into paradise, he said no, and said he'd be dishonest to claim otherwise.
Luke
Worth noting it's a hypothetical, and he said "probably cannot," which is a little softer than a flat no. He did say no earlier, though.
Mark
He also said he hates some of his enemies and always will.
Mimi
Yes, and Douthat's framing was pointed. He suggested the president had been given a great deal and still couldn't forgive.
Mark
How does that connect to what's happening with those people legally?
Mimi
Comey has been indicted twice, in September 2025 and April, and a third charge over leaking classified information is possible. Letitia James's charges were thrown out. Bolton pleaded guilty in June to retaining classified information.
Luke
Careful here. The interview doesn't link Trump's feelings to those prosecutions. The article places them side by side, but that isn't proof of motive.
Mimi
Fair. The facts are parallel, not connected by anything Trump said in this exchange.
Mark
What's still unresolved?
Luke
Whether the Comey leak case becomes a formal indictment, and what sentence Bolton gets next month.
Le Pouls
- Trump told Douthat outright that he probably cannot forgive his enemies, saying he hates some and always will.
- The admission lands in the middle of active prosecutions, turning a personal grudge into a matter of public law.
- James Comey faces two federal indictments and a possible third over alleged classified leaks, while the Justice Department keeps pressing.
- Letitia James's bank fraud charges were thrown out, and John Bolton pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing next month.
- Two near-term checkpoints, a possible Comey indictment and Bolton's sentencing, will show where these cases are heading.
In a 60 Minutes conversation with Ross Douthat, President Trump was asked to imagine a final judgment in which forgiving the people he has publicly despised would be the price of paradise, and he answered candidly that he could not. The moment sits at the intersection of faith and grievance, where a leader's claim to a charmed life meets the old human difficulty of letting go of enmity. Behind the exchange lies a quieter record of legal pressure on his critics, with some cases collapsed, one resolved by guilty plea, and others still moving through the courts.
Ross Douthat posed a hypothetical to President Trump in a 60 Minutes interview: if the only path to paradise required feeling love and forgiveness toward people you have publicly despised, could you do it? Asked about what he believes awaits him after death, Trump said he is religious and expects heaven in theory. When Douthat named James Comey, Nancy Pelosi, and others Trump has attacked, Trump first deflected, calling those people dishonest and bad for the country, and then answered plainly that he probably could not forgive them, because he hates some of his enemies and always will.
The exchange unfolds against real legal consequences for several of those he has targeted. Three have been federally indicted: former FBI Director James Comey, New York Attorney General Letitia James, and former national security adviser John Bolton. Comey, who led the FBI's Russia investigation during Trump's first term, has been indicted twice within a year, and the Justice Department recently moved to charge him with leaking classified information, a possible third indictment. James faced bank fraud and false statement charges tied to her office's earlier case against the Trump Organization, but a judge threw out both. Bolton, an Iran war hawk from the first administration, is the one who has been successfully prosecuted; he pleaded guilty in June to retaining classified information and will be sentenced next month.
The coming weeks will show whether the Comey leak case becomes a third indictment, and what sentence Bolton receives.
Ross Douthat put a hypothetical to President Trump in an interview for 60 Minutes that aired Sunday night: suppose you have died, and the only thing standing between you and paradise is feeling love and forgiveness toward people you have publicly despised. Could you do it?
The question came after Douthat asked what Trump thinks happens when he dies. Trump answered, "I'm a religious person, so in theory, I go to heaven." Douthat then named specific people: James Comey, Nancy Pelosi, and anyone else Trump has expressed hatred for over the years.
Trump's first response was a deflection. "Well, then I wouldn't be real, would I?" he said, describing those people as "extremely dishonest people, very bad people, very bad for our country." Douthat asked whether that meant the answer was no. "The answer is no. I want to be honest, no," Trump said.
Douthat pressed further. He told the president he had lived the most charmed and remarkable life of any American in Douthat's lifetime, and asked whether, before the judgment throne of God, he truly could not forgive some enemies after all he had been given. Trump asked, "Can I be honest?" and then answered: "I probably cannot do that, no, because I do hate some of my enemies, and I always will."
The exchange lands against a backdrop of real legal consequences for several of the people Trump has targeted. Many have come under legal scrutiny during his second term, and three have been federally indicted: former FBI Director James Comey, New York Attorney General Letitia James, and former national security adviser John Bolton.
Comey, who oversaw the FBI's investigation into ties between Trump and Russia during Trump's first term, has been indicted twice by the Justice Department within a year. The first indictment came in September 2025, the second in April of this year, and that one stems from an Instagram post. Last month, the Justice Department also moved to charge Comey with leaking classified information, which would amount to a possible third indictment.
James, whose office brought a case against the Trump Organization in 2022, faced charges of bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution. A judge threw out both.
Bolton, an Iran war hawk who served in the first Trump administration, is the one persistent target who has been successfully prosecuted. He pleaded guilty in June to retaining classified information and is due to be sentenced next month.
Two things to watch: whether the Comey leak case becomes a third indictment, and Bolton's sentencing next month.
Citations marquantes
I probably cannot do that, no, because I do hate some of my enemies, and I always will.— President Trump, 60 Minutes interview
Well, then I wouldn't be real, would I?— President Trump, 60 Minutes interview
Envie de l'histoire complète ?
Lire l'original sur CBS News ↗
Politics & Governance