Former Mace adviser testifies congresswoman planned to pressure ex-fiancé on properties

Donehue testimony details Mace claim of ‘hacking’ ex’s phone in ongoing battle

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Political consultant Wesley Donehue recently testified under oath that Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) attempted to use compromising photos found on her ex-fiancé's phone to pressure him into signing over full ownership of two properties.

In sworn testimony on April 28, Donehue — a former top strategist for the congresswoman who has since rebuked her on multiple occasions — stated that Mace showed him multiple images of women in various states of undress. She claimed to have found them on the phone of her former fiancé, businessman Patrick Bryant, and alleged they were taken without the women's knowledge or consent. Bryant has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and accused Mace of misusing her political position to attack him.

Donehue stated under oath that Mace showed him several images she claimed were secretly taken by ex-fiancé Patrick Bryant, including photos of a possibly unconscious woman and others taken without consent. Rather than reporting the photos to authorities, Mace allegedly said she intended to use them to gain full ownership of two homes the couple co-owned: one in Washington, D.C., and one in Isle of Palms, S.C.

According to Donehue, Mace explicitly asked him to deliver a message to Bryant: give her both properties or she would release the photos publicly. Donehue refused, describing it as a clear attempt at blackmail.

"You used the word 'blackmail,'" Donehue said in the deposition, first published by FITSNews. "That was actually a word I was using, too — internally, when I was talking to people in my company or talking to my wife. Like, she's asking me to blackmail someone… asking me to do something that I thought was illegal." 

He emphasized the situation made him uncomfortable and ultimately led to him severing professional ties with the congresswoman. 

He also testified that Mace admitted accessing her ex's phone and digital accounts without his knowledge — which she described to him as "hacking" — and said she planned to retrieve more data during a Caribbean trip with Bryant and his friends despite flagging the wrongdoing to Donehue.

"She said while she was there she was gonna try to get more information out of his phone," he said in the deposition. "And I told her that she needs to contact the authorities, and she asked me why. And I said, 'Because, Nancy, as your campaign consultant, if it ever comes out that you knew of women being harmed and you didn't do anything about it, your career is over.'"

But Mace’s Congressional staff pushed back, citing other areas of Donehue’s sworn testimony, where he supported her central claims.

“In his deposition, Wesley Donehue said he and Congresswoman Mace were friends. He said she came to him emotionally distraught and afraid for her safety. He saw bruises on her body. Nothing else matters,” one of Mace’s Congressional staff said in a comment provided to 24sight News. 

“The word ‘blackmail’ wasn’t Donehue's, it was first used by the attorney in a leading question. Donehue only repeated the term after it was introduced to him.

The rest is just deposition clickbait,” the Mace staffer said.

Donehue described a deteriorating working relationship with the congresswoman, arguing she was displaying erratic behavior and inappropriate conduct. 

The deposition provides new details into the ongoing controversy that has sparked defamation lawsuits involving Mace and several men she lodged accusations against during an inflammatory February speech on the House floor, accusing Bryant and three business associates of sexual abuse. Among those suing her is Brian Musgrave, a longtime friend of Bryant, who claims her public accusations were categorically false and damaging to his career, according to a suit filed in March.

Mace recently filed a lawsuit against another man she named in her speech, Eric Bowman, for defamation over a slew of social media posts accusing her of being connected to porn stars and misusing her political position.

Mace — a moderate-turned-firebrand who was first elected to her House seat in 2020 and played a role in the ouster if former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) — has voiced interest in running for governor, with the congresswoman taking aim at rumored gubernatorial hopeful, South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson, during her floor speech taking aim at Bryant and his associates in her Feburary floor remarks. 

Donehue asserted he was reluctant to be involved in the legal dispute but was ultimately deposed, telling 24Sight News: "I'll just say I didn't want to talk about these things. I told them everything I know about Patrick and Nancy's relationship. I hope that maybe sometime soon, we can move on past their soap opera drama and focus on the important issues that impact the country."

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