Trump campaign manager speaks to "The Takeout"
Brad Parscale, who is managing President Trump's re-election campaign, spoke to CBS News Chief Washington Correspondent Major Garrett for this week's episode of "The Takeout" podcast. Garrett interviewed Parscale on Tuesday in Florida, in the arena where Mr. Trump launched his 2020 campaign. Parscale said that Mr. Trump will win in a "landslide" in 2020, and discussed his belief that polls are "the biggest joke in politics." Read the transcript of the interview below:
GARRETT: Brad Parscale, good to see you.
PARSCALE: Good to see you, Major.
GARRETT: Describe the last week for you.
PARSCALE: Work as usual.
GARRETT: Not work as usual.
PARSCALE: Oh, you know. Look, you know, I've been doing this for four years. There's tough weeks, there's bad weeks, there's good weeks. This is still gonna be a great week because we're in here with this rally, everything is going on, getting this thing going for 2020. It's going to be amazing and tonight's gonna be epic.
GARRETT: Epic it what sense?
PARSCALE: I mean, every sense of this thing. It's a big venue, it's beautiful. You know, the president's gonna be up there and be, you know, aspirational about where we're gonna go for the next two years and what we're doing for 2020, and the things that he still wants to get done, and the change that he wants to bring to Washington. And I think that's excitement. That's why so many of these reporters are out here. And I think that he's gonna get up there again and he's gonna do what he always does, and be the showman. And he's gonna be the president and he's gonna talk about what's still coming forward.
GARRETT: You said good weeks, bad weeks. Was last week the worst week?
PARSCALE: No, no, no. There -- I don't judge it like that. I just -- look, I'm here to serve the country and serve this president. And not every week can be your best week. You keep moving forward. One thing I learned about this job is you know you have to learn to take incoming and -- as much as you serve sometimes. And my job is to serve the president and so it doesn't matter what my week is. It's all about him and getting him reelected for 2020.
GARRETT: Who decided to get rid of the pollsters, you or the president?
PARSCALE: Look, I'm not gonna comment anymore on the leaked stories and all of the stuff on there. I'm not gonna comment on how I run the operation. I can just tell you right now we're focused on tonight, we're focused on this event and we're focused on the president relaunching for 2020.
GARRETT: Those of us who have been conversations with those around that polling story have been told the polling stories have been misunderstood. What's missing?
PARSCALE: Well, doesn't matter. The numbers today are that he's extraordinary --
GARRETT: It doesn't matter?
PARSCALE: No, no. I'm just saying it doesn't matter for me to comment today at this rally. What I'm saying is right now his numbers extraordinary. I'm not gonna comment anymore about the leaked stories. It just got out of control and all I want to talk about today is we're launching this campaign. It's 2020, we're on a mission.
GARRETT: If the election was held today, I know it's not, but if it were -- would you win Florida?
PARSCALE: I think we win Florida, yeah. I think we win in an electoral landslide as of today. I
think the president --
GARRETT: Define an electoral landslide.
PARSCALE: I think even more electoral points than he did last time. I think right now what he's progressed, we have these shifts. I have continued to say to the president, "You are winning these people over. You are winning this." As they define what they are, what they stand for, you know, free health care for illegal immigrants, all these kind of crazy leftist policies, you know, the new green deal. The president has common sense things that he wants to get done for this country and when Americans really learn what this is all about, he has a winning ticket and he
continues to do that. And as the media doesn't tell what those things are sometimes, but now, as they're starting to talk about them, and there are debates and now they have to get up, we actually know now what this race is about, and what kind of direction this country has, and the president has the right agenda for this country.
GARRETT: So again just to make sure I understand you, election is held today, the president wins in a landslide?
PARSCALE: Yeah, that's what I believe. I believe that and I continue to say that. I think everything right now because their policies are now out there, what they want, and when he runs against a candidate on these policies, he wins.
GARRETT: So Quinnipiac came out with a poll today here in Florida --
PARSCALE: Oh, that's just methodologies and all those things. I don't believe any of that stuff.
GARRETT: Let me ask you this then --
PARSCALE: I was the only right in 2016.
GARRETT: -- Nine points he's down here in Florida. You disregard that?
PARSCALE: Completely, no, I disagree with it. On election night, I showed him winning with 306 using the systems we used, which is a multi-system using artificial intelligence and data we understand. People want to take single things and try make those single things something they're not. And on election night, the whole week before -- and I told this to multiple outlets -- he was going to win by 306. Everybody in the country said he was going to lose. Every single poll showed him losing, but we had him winning. So I don't care what they say. I think most of this poll -- methodology is broken. I said it all before, one thing that's gonna happen is the methodology is broken, of how people do this, and the president is in a choice to win.
GARRETT: I think you just answered this, but I want to make sure I ask the question and get you to verify it in your own voice. Is there any polls you trust other than your own?
PARSCALE: No, I -- I think polling methodology is broken. I actually believe more in digital, the kind of AI technology we use. I don't -- I don't believe in traditional, head-to-head polling.
GARRETT: And that's not even what you're doing?
PARSCALE: No that's not what I'm doing. This is not what I'm doing.
GARRETT: That's not what Tony and John are doing for you?
PARSCALE: No, I'm not saying what I'm doing. The way we build everything, the way we build up our system is a much more -- a methodology that's different and what we know how things are on the ground and we don't share that data.
GARRETT: Understood. And how secure is Mike Pence on this ticket?
PARSCALE: Yeah, one hundred percent. That seems like an odd question. Yeah, it's gonna be the president and Pence. I would -- that question seems odd to me. I've never been asked that. It's Trump-Pence all the way.
GARRETT: Okay. Only reason I ask is there's a gender gap that emerges in polls whether you agree with it or not. Would the president ever consider putting Nikki Haley on the ticket to close that?
PARSCALE: Oh, no, no. This is Trump-Pence. That's the first time that I've ever been asked that, Major, so it's surprising to me, but no. There's never been -- I've never heard any chatter about that.
GARRETT: Understood. The president tweeted about massive immigration raids next week, millions of people. It seemed to take the Senate Majority Leader by surprise. Did it take you by surprise? Is that a political message or a policy message?
PARSCALE: No, this president has always been about securing the southern border. That's important for him. That's what he ran on. That's a promise he made, a promise he kept and he's gonna continue to do it.
GARRETT: And is that timing related to tonight's event? Talking about something that he's never talked about before which is mass internal deportations, not securing the southern border, but deporting and rounding up people inside the United States.
PARSCALE: Well I think the president has always said that he believes that he needs to protect the border, protect the people. I think a lot of these people are people who didn't show up for their court cases and do things. He's made that decision, you would have to ask him, the White House about his decision and timing.
GARRETT: Were you surprised by that tweet?
PARSCALE: No, I'm not surprised by it at all.
GARRETT: And does it help you politically?
PARSCALE: You know, I don't have anything on whether that's gonna help us or not. It's what -- the promise he made, and it's why he won the victory in 2016 and I think, I think that I stand by the promise he made.
GARRETT: Evaluate Joe Biden as a potential opponent for Donald Trump.
PARSCALE: Look, I -- I have never publicly talked about that -- look, I think the president beats every single candidate right now. I think where they're running on the left and their policies, I think the president is in a, in the best position to beat any of the candidates that are currently in the field.
GARRETT: Do you think there is any way Democrats can pull back from what you talked about, which is a leftward drift? Joe Biden seems to represent something less leftward. Do you see him in that regard?
PARSCALE: No, I think they're all drifting left. And I think the debates and everything they're gonna do are going to make them drift left. I think their fundraising apparatus, what they have to do to raise their money, they way that activists have taken over their party, I don't think they have much choice but to run to the left to have enough money to even try to compete.
GARRETT: Do you have an internal policy for those who work for you about what to do if a, hypothetically, a foreign government were to offer something of potential value to the Trump re-election campaign?
PARSCALE: Look, I would never talk about policies that we have, I just don't openly talk about that, but the president stated, the president stated how he would do it. He would listen, go to the FBI if he wanted to and, or, and the things he would do. I would never talk about internal policy.
GARRETT: But that seems like a, not just an internal policy, but something that you would communicate about existing federal law.
PARSCALE: I'm not saying the policy does or do not exist. I'm not gonna confirm either way. We have a lot of policies internally. The president has spoken about it. I'm gonna follow what he said. He said that he would listen and that he would go to the FBI afterwards.
GARRETT: And therefore, is it fair for me to interpret that someone on the Trump campaign should take that as the guidance? Listen and possibly --
PARSCALE: No, I'm not talking about internal policy. I am just saying what the president said publicly. I follow his lead. He is the boss. And that's what it is.
GARRETT: One more question on that because there's existing federal law. The FEC has put out a statement on that--
PARSCALE: Well, I think the president has disagreed --
GARRETT: -- Is it the policy of the Trump Campaign to follow that law?
PARSCALE: We always follow the FEC laws. We always follow the FEC laws. With everything we do.
GARRETT: Okay, so then it would be to call the FBI if you got any --
PARSCALE: Well, the president said that. The president said he'd listen and call the FBI.
GARRETT: Okay. so you don't -- because some people have seen a conflict there, some space between those two.
PARSCALE: There's a lot of people that see a lot of conflicts to what the president says even when he's one hundred percent correct.
GARRETT: You see no conflict in the president's statement --
PARSCALE: No, I think that what the president has said is exactly --
GARRETT: -- and FEC law?
PARSCALE: No I don't think the president did that at all. I think the president has said you listen, call the FBI.
GARRETT: Okay. Does this campaign have any position on if Roy Moore should run for the Senate?
PARSCALE: Oh, I'm not -- I don't talk about any other races. Look, I think we'd b -- have the best candidate, Alabama would be the best thing we could have.
GARRETT: And is that candidate potentially Roy Moore?
PARSCALE: I didn't, I have never spoken about other candidates. That's their race.
PARSCALE: I have one focus and that focus is getting Donald Trump reelected. I have one boss, the president of the United States, and [my job] is to get him reelected.
GARRETT: How often does that one boss talk to you?
PARSCALE: Sometimes five times a day. Sometimes I get a couple days off. You know? We have a great relationship. I mean have worked for this family for nine years. You know, I think people, I think that's one of the few things the public does not know. I have worked for him for a long time. I have worked for this family for almost a decade, for most of my adult life. I have a very close relationship with the entire family.
GARRETT: Who calls you more, the president or Jared?
PARSCALE: Oh Jared and I are friends, though. Jared and I sat around and talked about Father's Day and what our kids are doing.
GARRETT: But he's also deeply involved in this process.
PARSCALE: Well of course. I talk to Jared significant amounts, but I talk to a lot of people a lot. But yes, I talk to Jared a significant amount. But Jared and I are, are the same age and friends and our families and we're tied together in a lot of ways.
GARRETT: For this campaign how much pressure do you feel that you didn't feel in 2016 or do you feel pressure now that you didn't feel then?
PARSCALE: Well, just like when I met you I didn't have a lot of pressure in 2016 -- nobody knew who I was. I met you, you didn't even know who I was. So, in 2020, as we see people come by and slap me on the back, it comes with pressure. You know? I try to be a perfectionist. I want to do the best I can for this president. You know? And I am going to do everything I can for this country and yeah, I feel pressure. I feel like I was made for this I feel like a fish finally in water.
GARRETT: As opposed to what?
PARSCALE: Life before that as a fish a little out of water, right? You know, what do I really want to do? What do I really want to do next? And this found me and sometimes uh, I think luck and God help you get there.
GARRETT: When you said to me a moment ago the methodology is broken. I know you and I could have a very deep internal conversation but for someone who is listening to you in my audience --
PARSCALE: I think things have changed.
GARRETT: -- who also think that polling is somehow wrong, in basic simple terms as you can --
PARSCALE: The country is too complex now to just call --
GARRETT: Explain what you mean.
PARSCALE: I just think the country is too complex now to call a couple hundred people and ask them what they think. there are so many ways and different people who show up and vote now. The way turnout now works. The abilities that we have now to turn out voters. It's not -- The polling can't understand that. And that's why it was so wrong in 2016. It was 100% wrong. Nobody got it right. And -- not one public poll. The reason why, it's not 1962 anymore. It's not a place where there's only a few ways and decisions where everyone lines up to vote, you know, like a good old American. Now there's a lot of distractions when you go to vote, the world has changed. It's complicated, not everyone picks up their phone, I don't know a person that picks up a phone number they don't know, this is just the world we live in now. And I think that -- I've been saying, and I've said it for years that all the polling and current straight up polling is broken. It is a misleading and misinformation thing of almost every candidate in the United States. It only works in extremely, extremely small areas that kind of traditional polling and the president, that large national thing, doesn't work anymore. And I just don't believe any of them anymore.
GARRETT: When you hear the phrase "silent majority" what does that mean to you?
PARSCALE: I believe there's -- I, I mean, I kind of feel like I was one of those people, a Kansas native, a kid, you know that had to work to get up and didn't have a voice. You know, just, you know, so many things were going to big cities and these things and forget that there are so many people across America. You know the kid that goes to a farm country school that plays basketball, the kids down the street, the mom and dad that are working, you know, three or four jobs. They needed a voice and I feel like President Trump said "I'm gonna speak for you. I'm gonna drain the swamp and I'm gonna stop letting these people who don't have your best interests at heart, take you the wrong direction."
GARRETT: And what do you think it means to Trump supporters when they hear "silent majority"? Do you think you're speaking a common language?
PARSCALE: I think it feels like it wakes them up and I think the president talks perfectly, perfectly in their voice. They finally have somebody fighting for them.
GARRETT: Perfectly to what they want to hear?
PARSCALE: Yeah, I think the president, I think the president knows how to speak to his base and I think he knows how to speak to all Americans. I think some just choose not to listen, but I think he's, I think he's going to go down as one of the great orators of all time.
GARRETT: Really?
PARSCALE: I think he is. I think it depends. Look at how many people are here tonight: tens of thousands of people. They're not coming just to stare at him. They're coming to hear him and just because other people disagree that there's one style, there are multiple styles of that and I think he is going to be, go down in history for that. These rallies, this is our five hundred and fiftieth rally, millions of people, millions will come hear him speak, and it's because of his style, it's how he can talk to them and it resonates with them. And every time they leave this, you can feel the community vote change. Communities, these people go back to their jobs, they go back to their places, they talk about what they heard and it has a huge impact. That's what you saw in the primary and the president with almost no apparatus destroyed all those other candidates and the reason was he knew how to speak to people.
GARRETT: How badly as the campaign manager for the reelection of Donald Trump do you want the House to convene impeachment hearings?
PARSCALE: No I, I, I never want that. First of all, I think it'll never never happen. I think it's a joke. I think this president um uh, I don't even really think about that, but I don't think it would happen.
GARRETT: It almost seems like he's spoiling for that fight though.
PARSCALE: Yeah, well you'd have to ask him that one. Uh, you know --
GARRETT: You don't think there's any political upside for the campaign?
PARSCALE: You know, look, I think there's political upside --
GARRETT: --because it appears some house Democrats are afraid there might be and that's why they're reluctant.
PARSCALE: Major, Major, you can agree there's a lot of things that can happen in the world that can be a political upside that you would never want. Right? And I would never speak about those things. I wouldn't want this either. This is not good. Uh dividing our country and dividing that kind of, you know -- those types of fights are never good. The president is gonna win. He's gonna win on the agenda and the message that he wants and I would never promote anything like that.
GARRETT: What has been, if anything, the political impact of the Mueller investigation?
PARSCALE: I actually think the ending has been a good thing and him being fully exonerated. And all this lies about Russian collusion and all this crap that said that we cheated and these things and they want to act like all this stuff that never happened now. But they were saying a thousand things, but I think when the average independent voter and the swing voter start to see wait, none of this happened, I think we've seen these huge boosts in numbers. I mean support and success and clicks on our website and you could feel the rush of energy that came back from some people that thought, "hey, maybe there was something." But all of a sudden, there was nothing. And now they kind of saw the whole thing was a conspiracy against him. And I think that brought him a lot of extra support and people who had maybe thought something was there.
GARRETT: What are you doing tonight in terms of this rally in terms of mobilization and visualization that you've never done before?
PARSCALE: So, uh, really for the most part, it's just a mega rally, we still have some technology coming out of the road it's going to come out next month. We did not have it done, I didn't have it done tested well enough. On a big epic night tonight, I didn't want it to go wrong and we're going to do. I want more testing first. I want to be very secure about it. Uh but we still, the digital effort we'll walk out of this rally with probably over 100,000 cell phone numbers.
GARRETT: How will you obtain those?
PARSCALE: Through the rally system, how they, you can't get in here unless you put your phone number into a system and its verified. You have to repeat back with a code and we have to make sure that number is valid, then we know your support. We ask you questions, we ask you donations. It leads to millions of dollars in revenue and it also leads into a team now that we can get on apps later then we can get them door knocking and have them rally, block parties, you know doing things. That kind of mobilization. I plan on having almost 2 million volunteers in that technology. That's over two and a half times what I had in 2016. But this time we'll actually be able to have technology to move them as an army.
GARRETT: When you said a moment ago, that you had technology that wasn't quite ready to roll out, can you give me any sense of what that is?
PARSCALE: App, apps for phones. I want to be -- there's no rush right now, we got 17 months to go. I want to have it really hardened and tested well. I want it to be perfect using a smaller rally the first time. Uh, I wouldn't want 50,000 people not being able to use the phone. You know we haven't tested it, you know how could it work with this much LTE, that many people using their phone at the same time. We got some more testing to do, we'll gradually build up. And I think that's really going to be the tool that kind of unleashes the army of Trump.
GARRETT: And the army of Trump is now controlled by you. In 2016, it was partly you and partly the RNC. describe to me --
PARSCALE: Yeah, we're, me and the RNC are one me and Ron [RNC chair Ronna McDaniel] are still one --
GARRETT: Describe those, how they work, differently now than in 2016.
PARSCALE: You know, I think at the last two months of the RNC, we were pretty -- you know I had a great partner in Katie Walsh -- we really built the team together the last couple of months. I think right now though, it's built from the ground up together, it's built from the ground up. And I think that Ron and I's relationship is like, one I just said the other day in a speech that I feel like she's a sister now. And that you couldn't have ever had a stronger party and campaign mechanism.
GARRETT: As this campaign continues, do you win it with technology or do you win it with the president?
PARSCALE: First of all, the president always wins it. My job is to get the last .1%, the voter that maybe didn't hear him, get the little bit more turn out up. You know, the president is going to win this. I've always said the president won the primary, the first election, literally with his airplane and a cell phone and you know a Twitter account. This time, though, we have to do some more mobilization. We have the power of incumbency and this time I have that time and the opportunity and the money to try and get him from .1% to that .2% and if I can do that, then I've done a good job.
GARRETT: And for this president, the campaign is about vindicating 2016 or something bigger?
PARSCALE: No, no no, no. I have no ill will towards anything. This whole thing is about the president. It's about winning for 2020. It's never been about the campaign, it's always been about the country. And uh trust me I did not do this for the money. I had a good, nice cushy job down in Texas never been in politics before. But, you know, my dad called me one night and said, "you gotta do this for this country. You gotta do it." And I was like, "I know I do." I gotta give everything I have to this, everything I have. I gave every blood, sweat, tears, pain, painful day, sleepless nights, time away from my wife, my kids, uh to make sure that what I believe was the best thing for my family, my children and their future.
GARRETT: Joe Biden, just to say, something he said earlier this week, could win Georgia, Texas, North Carolina, and Florida, and even through South Carolina, now I know you don't want to talk about him personally, but just in a general sense --
PARSCALE: I don't think we're losing any of those states. Can I tell you the truth --
GARRETT: Describe the map as you see it *CROSSTALK* and as, and as you --
PARSCALE: I...I've been saying this *CROSSTALK* I think our map from 2016 is comfortable.
GARRETT: -- Polls. Polls --
PARSCALE: And I think we had New Hampshire, we add New Mexico, and we add Nevada if it was today.
GARRETT: And what about Minnesota?
PARSCALE: I think Minnesota is right there at the margin of error. We didn';t win that in 2016. I think that's a state that we have to go fight for. It's a tough site -- no one -- no Republican has won that since Nixon, I believe. It's been a long time. Don't hold 100% to that but I think I'm right. That's a tough state, we're gonna go fight there. Yeah, we're gonna be in there now. We weren't in there in 2016 as much. We're gonna go in there more. I've talked lately about going into states like Oregon. You know, that was released, and going and maybe fighting there. It's all about turn out. This is about turn out. People don't understand, you know, 16 million Americans won't vote. You get 2 extra million of them to show up through technology and enough money. You can -- The whole map changes.
GARRETT: And talk to me about the money advantage you have over the DNC --
PARSCALE: Oh, significant --
GARRETT: -- or the Democrats --
PARSCALE: We're gonna probably raise $10, 18 million dollars today. Maybe 20.
GARRETT: Today?
PARSCALE: Just today.
GARRETT: Because the president just sent out an email which they just ask for 7. You're gonna get 20?
PARSCALE: Oh yeah. I -- I hope so. We asked -- our goal was 25 I believe is what it was.
GARRETT: For today?
PARSCALE: Yeah. I mean that's the goal. I mean I think that we're gonna shoot for everything we could, but I -- I wouldn't be surprised if we pull in a good 18 million, which would be 3 times Biden's first day.
GARRETT: Just on one day?
PARSCALE: Yeah, just on one day. Our infrastructure is like nothing this country has ever seen before. Small dollar bundling up operations, large dollar operations -- everything we have. Nothing like the country has ever seen. We have tens and tens and tens of millions of email addresses and phone numbers.
GARRETT: And you intend to spend every penny?
PARSCALE: Well, we'll have some left at the end, there's -- you gotta keep some for some buffers, but yeah. I plan to do everything I can to get every single voter out. There's over -- There's a hundred, a hundred one million voters that would vote for Donald Trump in this country.
GARRETT: How many? PARSCALE: A hundred, a hundred one million registered voters that would vote for Donald Trump. If you look at the numbers. Oh, yeah, but that's if everyone voted 100% turnout.
GARRETT: So that is your universe one hundred to one hundred and one million potential voters for Donald Trump. Not voters writ large, just for Donald Trump.
PARSCALE: Yeah, those are ones that have registered voters --that -- there's millions more that aren't even registered to vote. But those are yeah, that's our total universe size.
GARRETT: That's a staggering number much larger than he got in 2016.
PARSCALE: Well, no no, that's every voter. That's whether they voted are not.
GARRETT: Oh, I see, you're not saying those are potential Trump voters.
PARSCALE: Those are potential Trump voters.
GARRETT: Potential voters, or not potential Trump voters.
PARSCALE: Not potential Trump voters, there's 180 million -- I think --190 million registered voters.
GARRETT: Right but I mean he didn't get a hundred million in 2016.
PARSCALE: No, no, no, that's not what I'm saying. What I'm saying is my universe to go find them.
GARRETT: Right.
PARSCALE: Those are who I can advertise to show up is over a hundred million big.
GARRETT: How many of those do you think are gettable? Realistically, 80?
PARSCALE: I mean --
GARRETT: -- 70, 60 --
PARSCALE: I mean, who knows? We'll know on November 4th. But, it's plenty.
GARRETT: More than enough.
PARSCALE: That's why all of the polls don't mean crap. None of these polls mean anything. It's the biggest joke in politics. It's the fakest thing. It's the fakest thing.
GARRETT: Then why do they get in the president's craw?
PARSCALE: You'd have to ask him that. They don't matter --
GARRETT: -- You know him. Come on, you talk to him every day.
PARSCALE: Because it's fake. Because the media, because the media makes it look like they matter. They don't.
GARRETT: Then why does he care?
PARSCALE: Because the media-- I don't know. You'd have to ask him that.
GARRETT: But you talk to him you know he gets churned up about this.
PARSCALE: He's in a great mood. He's in a great mood. They don't matter, they're so fake they make someone think that they are winning or losing. That's not how it works.
GARRETT: So when he says to George Stephanopoulos those polls don't exist, he means what?
PARSCALE: Eh, I'm not gonna talk -- I'm not gonna comment. I -- I don't know. I don't know. They --they -- the polls that he -- George was talking about didn't exist. I'm not gonna talk about that stuff anymore. I'm just saying there's a hundred million people out there that we can go get plus some.
GARRETT: So next week, there'll be two Democratic debates. Do you expect the president will watch those?
PARSCALE: I don't think so. I ask him, he has a lot of different ideas of what he wants to do. I don't think he's made a decision on that yet.
GARRETT: Do you have an idea?
PARSCALE: I'm gonna be down there.
GARRETT: What do you think the campaign should do or how do you think the campaign should approach the Democratic conversation as it moves forward?
PARSCALE: I don't wanna comment on strategy. We have our ideas of what we're doing. My goal right now honestly as the campaign is structural, structure, build out data mining operations, build you know the way our field operation works, build out our coalition programs. I'm not gonna talk about PR strategy, communications strategy, the president leads that. But my job as campaign manager is to build a structure because math matters, these people in the crowd matter, the data mining matters, and I need to build the best operation in American history.
GARRETT: Right. You're gonna be down for the debates, though?
PARSCALE: Yeah.
GARRETT: Messaging or just observing?
PARSCALE: Observing. My team will be down there. I'm very supportive of my team.
GARRETT: When you think about turnout, because we've talked about that a little bit, is it your job to build in your mine or in structurally, worst case scenario is bigger turnout in 2016 for Democrats?
PARSCALE: No, I, I look at, play with all kinds of things. I'm not gonna talk about my data strategy in that detail.
GARRETT: No, but I mean do you assume that there will be more Democrats in 2020 than there were in 2016?
PARSCALE: I know there's plenty of Republicans for me for whatever that we need to do. And with our operation, our job is to turn out more of those than theirs.
GARRETT: And is there something different for the presidency? I want to ask you a question based on the movie --
PARSCALE: Are we walking?
GARRETT: -- Yeah, the American President. In that movie, you remember one of the sub-plotlines --
PARSCALE: You can talk and walk, right?
GARRETT: Yeah, Micheal Douglas's approval ratings were going from sixty six down to forty eight. This president has never dealt with that problem.
PARSCALE: I don't believe in any of that stuff. It doesn't matter. He has the strongest base in American history.
GARRETT: And what is the value of that? What is the intrinsic value of that?
PARSCALE: Because I can -- they'll let me make contact to show up. This base is so strong, they're working for him, and we are going to have the most prospects ever. We might have emails and cell phone numbers from more people than we need to have vote. No one's ever done that.
GARRETT: Because the base is so strong?
PARSCALE: Yup. And there's millions of them. Twenty percent of the people that come to these rallies haven't voted for him.
GARRETT: How many?
PARSCALE: Twenty percent.
GARRETT: How do you know that?
PARSCALE: Because everybody has given me their phone number and I can go look on their, on their voting history.
GARRETT: And they're all potential new voters?
PARSCALE: Twenty percent of almost every rally.
GARRETT: Of almost every rally?
PARSCALE: Yup.
GARRETT: And have you figured out a way to gold mine that, I mean mine that?
PARSCALE: Yeah, we data mine all of it now. I can just text them and say I need you to show up and then when they install the app, I can make sure they show up to vote. Think about that. Think about if twenty percent of voters show up who didn't show up in 2016.
GARRETT: For Trump?
PARSCALE: Yeah.
GARRETT: That builds out above what 2016 was.
PARSCALE: They can't poll for that.
GARRETT: And that's --
PARSCALE: They can't poll for that.
GARRETT: They can't poll for that?
PARSCALE: Yeah, because it -- they don't know their likely voter or registered voter or anything, almost. I mean they can't find them.
GARRETT: So in essence, you know more than the pollsters know --
PARSCALE: -- Yes --
GARRETT: --about your base?
PARSCALE: Yeah, Because I have, none of them have one hundred million, one hundred and forty million records. They have to go off two hundred people. I get to go off fifty, sixty, eighty --
GARRETT: -- ninety million?
PARSCALE: Yeah, right. I mean I have a hundred and forty million cell phone numbers. I don't know like I have crazy data. I know more than they do. They're trying to make a guess. I know.
GARRETT: Now the crowd is just beginning to fill in.
PARSCALE: Yeah, this is very very early.
GARRETT: This is very very very early.
PARSCALE: It's like five minutes in.
GARRETT: Yeah there's nothing deceptive about this at all.
PARSCALE: Otherwise we wouldn't be able to walk around.
GARRETT: Right because this will, this arena will be full.
PARSCALE: Yeah.
GARRETT: Right. How many rallies do you contemplate in this reelection campaign? Two a month, three a month --
PARSCALE: I don't know. We'll do a lot.
GARRETT: -- is there a magic number?
PARSCALE: No. We'll see. We'll get it going along. Right now, a couple a month.
GARRETT: Couple a month.
PARSCALE: Yeah, we're building, building data. The president gets out and talks to the people. He needs - he likes communicating.
GARRETT: What happens to him on the other side of a rally, when you talk to him? What does he feel like?
PARSCALE: Oh, usually he's always happy. He feels, this energizes him. He loves the people. He wants to talk to the people. He did this for them.
GARRETT: Is there something he came here, is coming her tonight that he hasn't said before?
PARSCALE: Aspirational. We'll wait to see what that is, you know, I'm not going to go ahead of him, but he's going to be talking about 2020 and what this future is and what he's going to bring for this country.
