Joe McQuaid at his desk at the New Hampshire Union Leader. Credit: Amanda McGowan

Joe McQuaid is not one to mince words. 

Here's an example. When it was revealed that Congressman Frank Guinta was found to have accepted over $300,000 in questionable campaign contributions, McQuaid—the publisher of the New Hampshire Union Leader, a newspaper legendary for its cantankerous editorials and sizeable influence on the presidential primary—let rip a fiery (and succinct) reply. 

"Frank Guinta is a damned liar," it read, underneath a photograph of Guinta's face. Signed: Joseph W. McQuaid, publisher. 

McQuaid is no stranger to controversy. Most recently, he got into a spat with Fox News after the network decided to artificially winnow down the crowded Republican primary field for their first televised debate. McQuaid took umbrage at the idea that Fox would pick and choose who they wanted in attendance without the voters of New Hampshire having a say, so he arranged a forum of his own.

Naturally, The Scrum had to sit him down for a chat. We met with McQuaid in his Manchester, New Hampshire office (stay tuned for a bonus audio tour of his office, by the way) and talked about his theory behind the rise of Donald Trump, his big problem with the media's overreliance on polling, and shares his favorite recent angry voicemail from a reader.