Wesley Donehue has an unconventional background for a Republican consultant…growing up in public housing with two parents who struggled with drug addiction…but that upbringing fueled his passion to work in politics and his interest in crisis communications. In this conversation, we talk Wesley’s path to politics, his work as a digital consultant for big GOP names like Lindsay Graham, Marco Rubio, Herschel Walker, and many more – and his recent book Under Fire, which lays out his 13 rules for how candidates, campaigns, and organization should handle crisis.
IN THIS EPISODE…
How failing a college class leads Wesley to a career in politics…
How Wesley gravitated to an expertise in digital politics…
Wesley talks best practices for digital politics…
Wesley talks about the role that digital played on Lindsay Graham’s $100M 2020 Senate re-election…
Wesley on how anti-Trump candidates have gotten back into the good graces of Trump voters…
Wesley on the best campaign managers he’s worked with…
Wesley talks how his chaotic upbringing led him to the field of crisis communications…
What led Wesley to write Under Fire, his new book on dealing with crisis and cancel culture…
Wesley talks the most importance of his 13 rules to deal with crisis…
Wesley cites a politician who handled crisis especially poorly…
Wesley’s analysis of how Donald Trump handles crisis…
Wesley on kitchen cabinets, preparation, and the question of apologies…
Wesley touches on the recent crisis surrounding his firm’s client Herschel Walker…
Wesley recounts when he personally faced an effort to “cancel” him…
Wesley talks his habits that have helped him develop an energetic work ethic…
Wesley’s recommendations when visiting his hometown of Charleston, SC…
AND 1-star reviews, BLM, Calculus II, cold-and-flu season, cord cutters, Jim DeMint, Dow Chemical, earthquake plans, engineering majors, Ferraris, the gap and the gain, David Goggins, Trey Gowdy, Instagram, Ironman marathons, the King of Pop, the MCU, Pabst Blue Ribbon, pounds of flesh, Push digital, Joe Rogan, Mark Sanford, the scraps, Section 8 Housing, soul mates, stoicism, thin skin, Star Trek, U of South Carolina, Phil Vangelakos, vulnerability studies, yachts & more!