"Look, I love Ed Rollins like a brother. We've always been pals. ... I worked for Ed. I met him in the Reagan White House early on ... I don't think I could be any closer to anyone in politics."
When asked about the rumors that Rollins may be leaving the campaign, Pinkerton tells me: "That is totally bogus."
Aside from his loyalty to Rollins, Pinkerton has become a big fan of Huckabee, too. In fact, so much of a fan that he actually resigned from Fox News to work on the campaign full-time...
Pinkerton was riding on the campaign bus in South Carolina, during our interview. Regarding his knowledge of the state, he says: "I worked for Lee Atwater for seven years, so I've been all over the state."
With Pinkerton, there is no doubt Huckabee has landed the kind of talent you might expect of a front-runner. This reminds me a bit of when Tony Snow left Fox to work as White House press secretary. Stay tuned ...