Donald Trump re-election strategist Brad Parscale was widely mocked on Labor Day after a new bombshell report in The New York Times on his campaign facing a “cash crunch” after already blowing $800 million.
“Brad Parscale, the former campaign manager, liked to call Mr. Trump’s re-election war machine an ‘unstoppable juggernaut.’ But interviews with more than a dozen current and former campaign aides and Trump allies, and a review of thousands of items in federal campaign filings, show that the president’s campaign and the R.N.C. developed some profligate habits as they burned through hundreds of millions of dollars. Since Bill Stepien replaced Mr. Parscale in July, the campaign has imposed a series of belt-tightening measures that have reshaped initiatives, including hiring practices, travel and the advertising budget,” the newspaper reported.
“Under Mr. Parscale, more than $350 million — almost half of the $800 million spent — went to fund-raising operations, as no expense was spared in finding new donors online. The campaign assembled a big and well-paid staff and housed the team at a cavernous, well-appointed office in the Virginia suburbs; outsize legal bills were treated as campaign costs; and more than $100 million was spent on a television advertising blitz before the party convention, the point when most of the electorate historically begins to pay close attention to the race,” the newspaper noted.
Parscale attempted to deflect blame to “the family” in an interview with the newspaper.
“I ran the campaign the same way I did in 2016, which also included all of the marketing, strategy and expenses under the very close eye of the family,” Parscale said. “No decision was made without their approval.”
Still, Parscale is receiving criticism.
Veteran GOP strategist Ed Rollins blasted Parscale for spending “like a drunken sailor.”
“If you spend $800 million and you’re 10 points behind, I think you’ve got to answer the question ‘What was the game plan?’” Rollins explained.
Here’s what others were saying about Trump’s re-election campaign and Brad Parscale:
https://twitter.com/IsaacDovere/status/1303090849178411009?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/fmanjoo/status/1303082536449449984?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/GaryLegum/status/1303098176023547904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/BradMossEsq/status/1303088589555798017?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/thegarance/status/1303094336796717059?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/TheStefanSmith/status/1303096548662939649?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/AhmedBaba_/status/1303091673724051462?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/RelentlessYapp/status/1303090725324644352?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/GaryLegum/status/1303100163813257219?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/bendreyfuss/status/1303090452254654465?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw