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Together, seasoned political strategist and former White House senior advisor Symone Sanders Townsend and former Representative and cybersecurity expert Will Hurd are uniquely positioned to offer insider insights about how to get things done in Washington, D.C., as well as nuanced analysis of crisis management in today’s most pressing issues.
Seasoned political strategist and commentator Symone Sanders Townsend offers an in-depth analysis of today’s most important issues with authenticity, humor, and unparalleled insight. Drawing on her White House experience as a Senior Advisor, Sanders Townsend shares her expertise in communication and political strategy, in-depth analysis of key political issues, and the challenges and possibilities for radical change, offering vitalizing takeaways that engage as well as inform.
Known for putting good policy over party, Will Hurd draws on his tenure in Congress to share what is coming next in D.C. and his thoughts on how to move the country forward as a united nation. He is currently a managing director at currently Managing Director at Allen & Company, a private investment bank, and author of American Reboot: An Idealist’s Guide to Getting Big Things Done, a vision for leadership that is values-based and inspiring for audiences of all kinds.
Sanders Townsend and Hurd offer powerful commentary about the future of policy and the complex political landscape, and how to strategize for progress despite the rise of partisanship, teaming up for an impactful program that resonates.
Seasoned political strategist, former CNN political commentator, and author Symone Sanders Townsend is a gifted communicator with a passion for problem solving, social justice, and in-depth analysis of today’s most important issues. Sanders Townsend previously served as the national press secretary for U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign, the youngest person to ever hold that title. She served as a senior advisor for President Joe Biden’s presidential campaign and was appointed as a senior member of the Biden-Harris administration, and will now bring her nuanced and critical insight to MSNBC as the host of SYMONE, as well as serving as an anchor and hosting a show on The Choice, MSNBC’s digital streaming arm. In her book No, You Shut Up: Speaking Truth to Power and Reclaiming America, Sanders Townsend shares her take-no-prisoners approach to life, politics, and career success, advocating for a new generation to be powerful in their own right. A rousing call to leadership, Congresswoman Maxine Waters raved, “Symone’s honest and profound reflection on standing up and speaking out is sure to inspire young people across the country to become the change agents the world needs.”
Sanders Townsend is a highly sought-after commentator and speaker, from her TED Talk Stop asking permission!, to an invigorating conversation at SXSW, Politico’s 2019 Women Rule Summit, the National Conference on Race and Ethnicity, and many more. She served as the National Chair of the Coalition of Juvenile Justice Emerging Leaders Committee, a member of the Federal Advisory Committee on Juvenile Justice, and in her role as principal of the 360 Group, Sanders Townsend worked on leading-edge solutions to tough political and social problems. Sanders Townsend shares her expertise in communication and political strategy, in-depth analysis of key political issues, and the challenges and possibilities for radical change with authenticity, humor, and insight.
Cybersecurity & AI expert, former U.S. House Representative, and former CIA officer Will Hurd is a leading voice for bipartisanship, inclusivity, and finding unity in the face of divisive issues. Prior to his work in politics, Hurd served as an undercover officer in the CIA. His service left him with an insider’s understanding of current national security concerns and the future of cybersecurity as the next domain of conflict. While serving in Congress, Politico named Hurd “the Future of the GOP.” He was renowned for his ability to put policy ahead of politics – getting more substantive legislation signed into law in three terms than most lawmakers achieve in decades. Always forward-thinking, Hurd wrote the first national strategy on AI, held the first Congress hearing on AI, and published the first Presidential Plan for AI. He was a candidate for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination. In his book, American Reboot: An Idealist’s Guide to Getting Big Things Done, Hurd provides a vision for leadership that is values-based and inspiring for audiences of all kinds.
A renowned cybersecurity expert, Hurd was recently a managing director at Allen & Company, working with entrepreneurs on the cutting edge of technology to anticipate the shockwaves of the future. He is also a trustee of the German Marshall Fund, a past board member for OpenAI, and served as a fellow at the University of Chicago Institute of Politics. Hurd is an in-demand expert on the future of politics, national security, foreign affairs, and cybersecurity. Offering insights informed by his time in the CIA and politics, Hurd helps organizations and individuals put threats into context and directs focus toward unifying strategies for policy, economic empowerment, and America’s technological future.
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Symone Sanders Townsend is an author and seasoned political strategist.
Sanders Townsend rose to prominence in 2016 as the national press secretary for U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders’s then-presidential campaign. At 25, she became the youngest presidential press secretary on record and was named to Rolling Stone Magazine’s list of 16 young Americans shaping the 2016 election. At 29, she published her first book, No, You Shut Up: Speaking Truth to Power and Reclaiming America and served as a senior advisor for President Joe Biden's 2020 presidential campaign. At 31, Sanders Townsend was appointed as a senior member of the Biden-Harris administration serving as Deputy Assistant to the President and Senior Advisor and Chief Spokesperson to Vice President Kamala Harris.
A communicator with a passion for problem solving and social justice, Sanders Townsend served as the national chair of the Coalition of Juvenile Justice Emerging Leaders Committee and a member of the Federal Advisory Committee on Juvenile Justice before joining Senator Sanders’s campaign. There, she worked to raise the profile of young voices in the fight for juvenile justice reform and brought millennial perspectives to policy conversations. Prior to joining the Biden-Harris administration, Sanders Townsend was principal of the 360 Group where she helped clients find sound solutions to tough political and social problems.
Sanders Townsend is a former political commentator for CNN and resident fellow of both Harvard's Institute of Politics at the Kennedy School and the University of Southern California's Center for the Political Future.
She is a native of North Omaha, Nebraska and currently resides in Washington D.C. with her husband, Shawn.
Will Hurd is currently a managing director at Allen & Company and former member of Congress, cybersecurity executive, and undercover officer in the CIA. For almost two decades he’s been involved in the most pressing national security issues challenging the country whether it was in the back-alleys of dangerous places, boardrooms of top international businesses or halls of Congress.
After stopping terrorists, preventing Russian spies from stealing our secrets, and putting nuclear weapons proliferators out of business, Will helped build a cybersecurity company that prepared businesses for the next domain of conflict – cyberspace.
While in Congress, Texas Monthly and Politico Magazine called Will “The Future of the GOP,” because he put good policy over good politics at a time when America was often consumed with what divides us rather than what unites us. He was able to get more legislation signed into law in three terms than most congressmen do in three decades – substantive legislation like a national strategy for Artificial Intelligence.
Will is a native of San Antonio and earned a Computer Science degree from Texas A&M University. Additionally, he is growing the US transatlantic partnership with Europe as a trustee of the German Marshall Fund, an OpenAI board member, and most recently served as a fellow at the University of Chicago Institute of Politics. He is also the author of American Reboot: An Idealist’s Guide to Getting Big Things Done.
For more information, please visit willbhurd.com.
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