As the race for delegates in tomorrow’s Super Tuesday enters its final hours, MSNBC’s Ed Schultz sat down for an interview with Boston.com in which he opened up about behind-the-scenes at MSNBC on a primary night (it’s basically a ‘crap shoot’); why Newt Gingrich is a “sly fox”; his daily routine (Schultz lifts weights and walks) and what he thinks tomorrow will entail (Ohio is key.) Schultz also answered the questions many wonder – do the anchors get poll results before they are able to disclose them on the air (yes, they get an idea of it). Check out highlights of the interview below:
Q: What is coverage like at MSNBC on a big primary day? Take us behind the scenes. “It’s basically a crap shoot…normally, about an hour before we go on the air we get a briefing from polling experts, and we get a pretty good idea of the way things are going. But we’re not in a position to say anything…You just can’t show up and wing it. You have to come in with a few different areas where you’re rock solid in your research. Other than that, Things unfold in front of us on the air that we have to put in perspective quickly. It’s pretty exciting to be a part of it.”
Q: With so many states in play, what do you think we’ll see tomorrow? " If you relate this to the presidential election in November, all eyes should be focused on Ohio. Ohio’s going to be very, very interesting - it’s a state that’s very concerned about the economy. I would say that’s Mitt Romney’s forte. It’s a state that’s very strong on social issues, and that, of course, is a big part of Rick Santorum’s campaign. Newt Gingrich is really pulling down Santorum’s campaign right now because if Gingrich were out of the race a lot of those votes would go to Santorum. Gingrich has gone on record to say he has to win Georgia. Newt Gingrich is a sly fox. He’s saying: if I don’t win in Georgia, I’m not relevant. He’s positioning himself for a big win, but he wants everyone to know that he’s really up against the wall here. It’s really interesting how he games the media.”
Q: What is your day like? How do you prep for your nighttime show? " Normally I’m up about 7 a.m. and surf the Net. I pay attention to Twitter obviously. I read the New York Times, the Huffington Post. I don’t go to Politico very much. I used to, but I see a real conservative bent.I’ll lift some weights and walk. Do that at least four times a week. I get into the office at about 11 and do the radio show from 12 to 3."
Q: So there’s a window of time when you have poll results but you can’t disclose them, since people are still voting? "We get trend information, but we don’t get rock solid information. That gives us an idea of what could unfold so we’re not completely blindsided."
The story can be read in full here. Be sure to tune into MSNBC for tomorrow’s coverage of Super Tuesday – there will be a special edition of “Hardball” at 5PM ET, followed by special coverage led by Rachel Maddow, Chris Matthews, Rev. Al Sharpton, Ed Schultz and Lawrence O’Donnell.
Follow @msnbctv on twitter for the latest news and breaking developments. Follow Ed on twitter at @EdShow.
