Authentic

If you’re getting ready to launch a new campaign, set up a nonprofit or other organization, or just feel like you’re ready for a fresh perspective, look no further. We’re a one-stop shop for all things digital and we’d love to work together! Our services include: 🤝 General Consulting 💰 Online Fundraising 🧑💻 Digital Advertising 🎨 Logo and Branding 💻 Graphic and Web Design 📱 Social Media 💬 Mobile Messaging 💡 and more Our team has helped campaigns big and small in races for president, governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, senate, house, state legislature, and mayor. We’ve worked with both established organizations and organizations that are just getting off the ground. We’ve even helped a few small businesses maximize their digital footprint. Whatever you need, we’re here to help. ⤵️ Email us at hello@authentic.org to get started.

Excited to share that Quiller has been acquired by our friends at Grassroots Analytics today. I have so many emotions in this moment—mainly immense pride for the risk we took in building Quiller, and for the team I got to partner with to execute on it. I especially want to shout out Hillary Lehr and Marshall Seid, who are two of the smartest, humblest, hardest-working people I’ve ever met. I’ve enjoyed every moment working with them. The truth is, I could spend all day listing out the people who got us from the conception of the idea, to building a prototype, to getting something into the hands of customers, to building the second iteration of it. They know who they are, and they know how deeply I love and respect them. I’ll do my best to tag as many of them in the comments below. Grassroots Analytics—and particularly Meghan McAnespie—were the first people (besides our friends at Higher Ground Labs) who believed in the idea we had. Who were willing to put a little bit of resources, sweat, and tears into trying to build something we think could be useful for campaigns. Transitioning this into being a GA product will give us so many more opportunities to scale up development, provide more support for our customers, and continue positioning it as a leader in responsible AI. Because I believe this space has to embrace artificial intelligence to improve a broken Democratic Party that’s spending way too much time on the wrong things. And I think the team at GA, who I’ve gotten to know over the last couple of years, is amazing. I think very highly of Danny, Meghan, and the rest of their team and what they do. I’m excited to see where they take this. I’m going to be staying involved—so it’s not a goodbye for me. This is such a great opportunity to scale up, and it means a lot that there are people out there who believe in this vision: that there can be a co-pilot in everyone’s pocket in the Democratic Party, helping them write content, helping them get the work done, helping us get through this moment in time where so many horrible things are happening. And to reflect on one final thing: I'm incredibly proud that Quiller is the first exit I’ve had as an entrepreneur. I don't create these things because of the money. I create them because there are problems worth solving and opportunities worth creating. And Quiller is, I think, the third or fourth business I’ve ever built. I’m grateful I had the chance to build something that somebody wanted to buy—something someone wanted to put more resources into to make it bigger and better than it ever could have been. I wish I could go back in time and tell myself a couple of years ago—the guy running around pre-ChatGPT, telling anybody who would listen that I thought I could build a robot that could write fundraising emails. That guy sounded a little nuts. And at times he felt a little nuts. But I think he was right in the end. And that’s pretty damn cool. To the next chapter. Thanks, y’all.

Authentic is hiring for some senior positions on our paid media team. We're looking for experienced people who are ready to step into the role of Director or Associate Director and work on some of the most important races this cycle, including some pretty big Senate and gubernatorial races we're involved in. We're also happy to talk to anyone interested in contracting, just to add a little extra support on the side. I'll post a link to our careers page at the bottom. If you know anyone you think would be a good fit, please like and share this post, and tag them in the comments so they see it. If you have any questions, feel free to DM me—I’ll do my best to respond.

I’m looking to expand the contractor and freelancer network that Authentic has. We’re looking for folks who can help with creative design, video editing, writing content like fundraising emails and digital ad copy, and developers who can help with websites and other tech stuff (fun AI projects.) If you know someone who’d be a great fit, tag them in the comments or share this with them so they can check it out. Feel free to have them DM me directly—I’m happy to get them added to the list and connected with our team for when we need a little bit of help. Thanks! ✌️

Elon Musk wants to dismantle key Democratic Party infrastructure like ActBlue. Let’s be crystal clear about why 👇 ActBlue is the backbone of Democratic grassroots fundraising. It allows everyday people—not billionaires—to fuel campaigns from city council to the White House. It’s how we compete with the right-wing megadonor machine. And now, Musk and his allies are trying to destroy it. They’re spreading outright lies—accusing ActBlue of crimes that aren’t even possible. The whole thing is absurd. But the goal isn’t truth—the goal is to create a pretext for a partisan Congress and a weaponized Justice Department to take down key Democratic infrastructure. We’ve seen this playbook before. I know because they came after my company last yewar with similar BS conspiracy theories from crackpots like Laura Loomer. We fought back and won by hanging tough and telling the truth about what Authentic does and who we serve. These kinds of attacks are not normal. There used to be an unspoken rule: You don’t go after campaign staff and infrastructure just to cripple the other side. But Republicans are throwing out the rulebook because they know that if they succeed in dismantling ActBlue, Democrats may not be able to compete in 2025, 2026, or 2028. And let’s be clear—the disinformation being spread right now isn’t just an attack on ActBlue. It’s an attack on all of us. If they can successfully come after ActBlue, they will use that success to come after everybody on the Democratic side: consultants, staffers, tech, donors, and everybody in between. We cannot let Republicans threaten our ability to raise grassroots contributions for Democrats and progressives. We cannot let them abuse the power of the federal government to spread conspiracy theories that damage our democracy. Corrupt billionaires like Elon Musk want to rig the game, to make it easier for them to win elections. But our power lies in our numbers. Let’s show them we’re not backing down by supporting ActBlue publicly, using the platform to elect more and better Democrats in 2025 and 2026, and sharing this post—if you can. #StandWithActBlue

I’m not ready to share the full job description just yet, but I’m looking to hire a Special Assistant to work directly with me across multiple projects and companies. This person will be an employee at Authentic, with all the awesome benefits that come with it. I’m looking for someone who can help with three main areas: 1️⃣ Administrative Support – Managing my calendar, email, schedule, coordinating meetings and travel, and handling other logistical tasks. 2️⃣ Content Creation – Helping me get more organized and strategic about my thought leadership across various platforms. 3️⃣ Special Projects & Strategic Support – Joining important client meetings, preparing briefs, working on proposals, and assisting with outreach materials. To me, this is an ideal role for someone who has some campaign experience but is looking to step off the trail. It’s a unique opportunity for someone who wants to grow quickly and gain direct exposure to high-level work—whether that means supporting my clients, managing big projects, or honing their leadership skills. Think of it as a trial-by-fire mentorship: you’ll work closely with me every day, acting as an extension of myself while learning a ton along the way. This is not a “carry my bags” or “grab me lunch” type of role. It’s a serious position for someone ready to dive in, take ownership, and contribute meaningfully. My hope is that this person will eventually grow into a leadership role at Authentic—or use this experience as a springboard to pursue their own ambitions (which I will help them achieve if things workout), whether that’s working on campaigns or joining another organization. So, if you know an ambitious person who’s angry about the election results and looking for a fast-paced, dynamic opportunity—someone who’s organized, creative, and ready to do the work—send me a message on LinkedIn or tag them here.

I have some thoughts on the letter that some Democrats sent to ActBlue this week. I share their concerns about exploitation in the space, which is why we work hard at Authentic to run ethical digital fundraising programs that don’t scam people. The work we did this year for Adam Schiff, Tammy Baldwin, and Jon Tester was intentional and thoughtfully executed. We raised hundreds of millions of dollars without using scams—proving it can be done. That said, I declined to sign the letter. Here’s why: * 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐝. Some of the tactics it criticizes are fine. They’re essential tools for raising the money we need to compete. (Also, I’m 100% behind getting rid of Final Notice emails, but is that ActBlue’s place to enforce?) Some of the ideas hurt ActBlue's ability to succeed and would cripple our ability to raise money, forcing campaigns to abandon the platform. Scammers aren’t going to stop—they’ll migrate to other platforms with even less accountability. ActBlue has been proactive, shutting down some of the worst offenders. Weakening them would hurt the entire ecosystem when we can least afford it. * 𝐀𝐜𝐭𝐁𝐥𝐮𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐤, and we need to rally around them. Republicans want to dismantle ActBlue. They see it as a cornerstone of our party’s infrastructure, one of the reasons we’ve been able to compete with billionaires like Musk. They’re lying about it—and creating public infighting makes their job easier. ActBlue isn’t the problem—it’s our greatest asset. Its team works tirelessly to build tools that help Democrats win, all while navigating ethical challenges in good faith. We should be rallying around them. * 𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐜 𝐟𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐬 than they solve. This topic is important, but it shouldn’t be leaked to the press and Pod Save America. Letters like this don’t pressure anyone into action—they fuel the media narrative of “Democrats in disarray,” distracting from the real threats. If we want to address scams, we need to focus on the right targets—the FEC, Congress, and collaborative efforts within the party—not targeting our most important fundraising platform. I care deeply about cleaning up digital fundraising and have spent two decades building programs that respect donors while delivering the money we need to win. Our team has worked to show that it’s possible to be bold, aggressive, and ethical at the same time. We need more people in the arena doing the work—not targeted media campaigns against our greatest ally in that fight. I have a lot of respect for the organizers of this letter and those who signed it, but they missed the mark here. P.S. Don’t attack the people who are working on these programs. The organizers of the letter did a good job here, but a lot of other people haven’t. Digital staff are under extraordinary pressure to deliver and are easy punching bags for people who have no problem accepting checks from ActBlue to fund their work. ✌

Congratulations to our team at Authentic for winning two CampaignTech awards this morning—both for our innovative tool, Spark! This suite of AI-powered tools helps our clients better connect with Democratic activists and raise more money online.

Last week was rough, but I do want to take a moment to celebrate our team at Authentic for doing some amazing work. 77% of our clients won, including some major Dem victories—Tammy Baldwin, Adam Schiff, Pat Ryan, Angie Craig, Jeff Jackson, and more. That said, some of the losses really stung—particularly Jon Tester (our firm's oldest client) and Whitney Fox (who I think ran an incredible campaign.) Already having a lot of conversations about 2025 and 2026. I'm sad, but ready to go for the next cycle. We're not f*cking going anywhere. If you're already thinking about 2025 and 2026, feel free to send me a message on here or check out our website: authentic.org