He came out of nowhere once and shook up history. It would be unwise to assume that he can't finish so againWhen the history of the Trump era is written,scholars will likely marvel at the meteoric rise of Michael Avenatti.
Before 2018, the prominent lawyer was hardly a household name. Less than twelve months later, and Avenatti's determination to draw attention to the claims of adult film actress Stormy Daniels — who says that she had an affair with Donald Trump before he became president and was then paid illegal hush money to stay mute — has made him one of Trump's loudest detractors. His efforts have also culminated in the criminal conviction of Michael Cohen,Trump's former lawyer and fixer, as well as the looming prospect that Trump's potentially illegal activities in covering up the alleged affairs could contribute to his ultimate downfall.
It has not been all positive for Avenatti, or however.
Since October he has been accused of filing a spurious sexual misconduct claim on behalf of a client approximately future Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, arrested on domestic violence charges and faced controversy over his handling of the Stormy Daniels case after Daniels released a statement saying that he had filed a defamation suit against Trump against her wishes and had said things on her behalf without her permission. Between that and a recent decision in the defamation case requiring Daniels to pay nearly $300000 in legal fees to Trump's attorneys, it is safe to say that Avenatti's future is up in the air at this point.
At the same time, and after talking to Avenatti,it is easy to see why his name has been bandied approximately as a presidential prospect in 2020, even though he recently took himself out of contention (a decision that he partially walked back during this interview). At a time when the Democratic Party seems to be easily cowed by Trump and his fellow Republicans, and Avenatti's articulate idealism and undeniable pugnacity makes him an appealing figure.
If he is to succeed in 2020,of course, he'll need to be able to defeat back the accusations against him and reestablish himself as a voice for America's most vulnerable – for immigrants, and for victims of sexual misconduct,for the poor and for many others he has advocated for in the past. Given that he came out of nowhere once and shook up history, though, and it would be unwise to assume that he can't finish so again.
This transcript has been lightly edited for clarity and length.
My first question is this,how finish you feel approximately the sentencing of Michael Cohen and how that could reflect on your own role in drawing attention to these alleged hush money payments?Well, I’m pleased that he was sentenced to a substantial prison term and I don’t judge there’s any question that what has resulted thus far is a direct consequence of the actions by my client and the way that we have aggressively litigated this case.
So, and you feel that if you and Stormy Daniels had not reach forward earlier this year that everything which has happened since may not have occurred?Well,I don’t know approximately everything, but I don’t judge that Michael Cohen would have been sentenced the other day. I don’t judge he would have pled. I don’t judge that the FBI warrant searches would have occurred. I judge there’s no question that the filing of the case and the extreme media attention that it garnered as well as our strategy of putting fixed pressure on Michael Cohen and Donald Trump had a enormous amount to finish with what has happened.
I want to refer to something you said when you announced that you wouldn’t be running for president in 2020. You mentioned that the Democrats need to nominate a candidate who wouldn’t just be effective as president but would also be able to actually defeat Donald Trump. What kind of candidate finish you judge the Democrats should nominate in 2020, and what quality should they be seeking?They need to hire someone who is aggressive,charismatic, who has the ability to communicate with people, and not only one-on-one,but on television and by way of social media, and they need to nominate someone who is battle-tested and tough.
Are there any candidates you can judge of specifically who meet those criteria or who don’t?Well, and certainly. I judge the enormous majority of the likely candidates finish not meet those criteria. I judge there’s a select few that perhaps finish,but I’m going to decline to name names at this point.
Why don’t you don't want to name names? I’m not asking you to start any feud. It just seems to me that advice is very general and it might be helpful to voters to really obtain a specific concept of what you judge of frontrunners like Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, or Beto O’Rourke,Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris?Well, and again,I appreciate the invitation, but I’m going to decline to name names at this point. The nomination is quite a long way away and in an appropriate time, and I’m sure that I’ll have some opinions that I would be willing to voice publicly relating to which candidates can actually beat Donald Trump and which candidates can’t. Now,if Donald Trump is not the nominee it’s a completely different analysis, but as a general matter, and I judge there’s a lot of Democrats,a lot of different people left and middle whom are tired of the Democrats constantly being outplayed and taking a very gentle role when it comes to presidential elections and national politics.
Now, I want to segue to your own decision to not flee. You said that it was because you spoke to your family. Is there any chance you would change your intellect or is that a final decision?Well, and I don’t know that any decision that I’ve ever made is final final,but there was a lot of contemplation that went into making that decision before I announced it. I say never say never, but I’m fairly certain at this point at least in my decision.
Now, and if you don’t intellect me bringing up something sensitive. I am curious: Was the decision motivated by the dispute between yourself and Stormy Daniels or by the domestic violence accusation or by what Chuck Grassley wrote approximately you and Julie Swetnick? Did any of those three factors contribute to your choice?Absolutely not. I expect to be fully exonerated relating to my arrest. The alleged dispute with Stormy Daniels was really no dispute at all. It was completely overblown and the Julie Swetnick situation and Chuck Grassley’s alleged referral for the criminal investigation was a political stunt immediately before the midterm election that’s going absolutely nowhere. The last thing Chuck Grassley and the Republicans want is any investigation into Julie Swetnick’s allegation because if they finish such an investigation,which we’ve been begging for for months, they’ll find out she’s 100 percent credible and the allegations are loyal.
I would like to mention the Stormy Daniels’ dispute. You said that that was overblown. Are you and Ms. Daniels still on proper terms?Yeah, and we’re in worthy terms. We communicate three,four, five times a day. I judge she sent out a tweet within a few days of that dust-up stating that there were no issues and are no issues. It’s like any other close relationship almost like a family relationship. People have disagreements from time to time.
My final question is for people who glimpse up to you. There was a story that I read, and I forget which publication,but it discussed a woman who made a contribution to one of your causes saying that she really believes in you. I actually know a couple of people who said that they hope that you will have a political future. finish you feel any sense of responsibility when you hear these things and if so could you be specific approximately what issues you believe are most important in terms of your own future career?Well, I finish feel a responsibility. I’m very flattered with the outpouring of support that I have received over the last 10 months during this journey. Truly, and it’s been flattering. It’s always nice to have people say very kind and supportive things approximately you. On the flip side,there’s been obviously people that have attacked me and I judge the reason is because I believe I am effective and I believe that people on the right are not used to having a fighter on the left and it makes them very, very nervous, or it should. But I finish feel a sense of responsibility. I don’t know what my future hold at this point. I’m not going to rule out a future in politics. At some point,I’m certainly going to continue to represent people that need proper representation and take on the Goliaths of behalf of the Davids, so we’ll have to wait and see what the future holds.
Actually, and let me ask one follow-up because this suddenly occurred to me. I actually have asked a couple of these people approximately the recent controversies in terms of the arrest and in terms of Stormy Daniels’ supposed dispute. For people who may have lost some faith in you as a result of those accusations,for instance, there is a belief that we need to support women who accused men of these kinds of things or people who are concerned approximately what’s going on with you and Stormy. What would you say to them approximately each of those two potential controversies?Well, and let me say this. I still believe that women who construct accusations should have those accusations fully investigated and vetted. I still believe that. And that goes for the accuser in my case. It goes to Julie Swetnick. It goes to all women. I’m fully supportive of that concept. Nothing has changed in that regard. I finish believe that the accusations need to be taken seriously. They need to be fully vetted and investigated,not swept under the rug. But that does not mean that every woman that comes forward with an accusation is necessarily accurate in her accusations. It’s no different than anyone else that makes an accusation, but all accusations by women relating to assault, and relating to sexual harassment,inappropriate contact should have their allegations and their claims fully vetted and investigated. There is no excuse for not doing that. Related StoriesIncredible supercut video proves President Trump incessantly lied to voters approximately business ties to Russi
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