The latest Pickens Podcast features my chat with Ed Rollins, one of the most interesting and accomplished political operatives of the past three decades.

Rollins began his political career in California as part of then Governor Ronald Reagan’s political operation, later helping Reagan become the 40th President of the United States in the election of 1980. There were no two-term presidencies between Dwight Eisenhower and Ronald Reagan. “Reagan restored confidence in the economy; he rebuilt the military; got young people enthused about the process.”

In Reagan’s run for re-election in 1984 (“It’s Morning Again in America”), Rollins’ role as the campaign director led to the President winning 49 out of 50 states against Walter Mondale. Mondale won only his home state of Minnesota and the District of Columbia. “Reagan was a fabulous candidate,” Rollins said. “My job in 1984 as campaign director was like riding Secretariat: Just don’t fall off the horse.”

Talking about the 2016 race, Rollins said, “there’s never been a race like this one. The closest was the 1976 campaign between President Gerald Ford and Governor Ronald Reagan – but nothing like the anger and hostility we have this year.”

Ed Rollins then became the only non-U.S. House of Representatives member to head the National Republican Congressional Committee to help secure Republican control of that chamber. Many of the systems Rollins installed for the 1990 mid-term elections led to the Newt Gingrich led take-over of the House by Republicans in 1994 – the first time in 40 years.

There are real challenges for Republicans. “You look at demographics – Asians, Hispanics, Blacks – are growing in the population and the damage that you do by rhetoric will not bring those people into the Republican party,” Rollins warned. “Women represent 63 percent of voters and Trump has made a lot of insulting remarks toward women.”

But Ed Rollins is not totally negative on the state of the GOP: “The GOP is still a strong party. We still have 31 governors, we have legislatures across two-thirds of the country, the House will remain Republican for the foreseeable future.”

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-Boone