Parscale speaks out on viral police encounter video, hospitalization in emotional interview

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Brad Parscale reveals story behind viral video of police encounter

Former Trump campaign manager discusses family, current relationship with president in exclusive interview on 'The Story'

President Trump’s former campaign manager Brad Parscale spoke out Tuesday about the now-viral video of a September encounter with police in an emotional exclusive interview on "The Story". 

Parscale choked back tears as he addressed the incident for the first time publically, telling host Martha MacCallum that he and his wife "are in a much better place now" and that they have "never been happier."

"My family is in a great place," he said. "We went through [a] very stressful time for five years. We lost two children during the [2016] election, we buried. We were completely attacked by the left, the right, the media."

PARSCALE SEEN IN FLORIDA POLICE VIDEO GETTING EMOTIONAL IN CUSTODY

Trump replaced Parscale as his campaign manager in July. Two months later, police were dispatched to his Ft. Lauderdale home after Parscale's wife, Candice Blount, reported that she was worried her husband was suicidal and that he had barricaded himself with firearms inside his home.

A two-hour standoff ensued before Parscale was tackled outside by a SWAT team officer and transported to the hospital. The takedown was caught on body camera footage and was widely viewed at the time. In additional footage, Parscale can be seen sitting up in the back of a squad car while complaining about his wife, who accused him of domestic violence at the time -- a claim she later recanted.  

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"I got to a bad place," Parscale said of the incident. "My wife was worried about me. And she helped. And she was there every day by my side, and I love her for it. 

"We have never been happier," he told MacCallum, "and I'm just glad I’ve moved on, and I tried my best for the American people."

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Parscale added that he is "getting better every day" as he recovers from the "stress" of his demanding and often overwhelming role in the Trump orbit. 

"The stress, this is the last piece of it, to have history remember it as it was accurate," he told MacCallum, "and I appreciate telling the American people that, because I love my wife, she loves me. She was the first one there right afterward and she will be the last one I will ever see."

Parscale also became emotional at a later portion in the interview when MacCallum asked whether he had been in touch with the president following the incident. 

PARSCALE FACES ATTACKS FROM TRUMP CRITICS AFTER HOSPITALIZATION 

"I have not," Parscale replied, "and is pretty hurtful, but it’s probably just as much my fault as it is his. I love that family. And I gave every inch of my life to him," he said. "Every inch." 

When asked to convey a final message to his former boss, Parscale encouraged the president to "keep fighting" his legal battles challenging the 2020 election results.

"Don't give up," he said. " The country needs you."