Stormy Daniels’ attorney Michael Avenatti is out-trumping Trump at his own game, making a mockery of him and his legal team, playing Cohen and Giuliani like tiny insignificant fiddles.
We have all heard of forced errors in baseball, but what if they are happening right under the noses of Trump and his personal attorneys Michael Cohen and Rudy Giuliani?
Avenatti has drawn criticism from Team Trump for his near constant use of the media, but what if that is by design?
Avenatti has touched on the subject a few times on Twitter and during interviews, most recently posting an interesting tweet this week on the subject.
On Sunday, he tweeted: “Listen up: Not all cases are the same nor is the winning strategy. Here, the constant media/PR pressure has forced Trump, Cohen, et al. to make a series of huge errors and to make damaging admissions helpful to our case. This was not by accident. And we’re not changing.” ending with his trademark “#basta” hashtag.
Listen up: Not all cases are the same nor is the winning strategy. Here, the constant media/PR pressure has forced Trump, Cohen, et al. to make a series of huge errors and to make damaging admissions helpful to our case. This was not by accident. And we’re not changing. #basta
— Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) May 6, 2018
There is little doubt that Trump is a master manipulator of the press after he turned his campaign theatrics into literally millions upon millions of dollars of free advertising as the media hung on his every word and deed.
But if Avenatti’s tweet is correct, and with is track record of success so far we have no reason to doubt him, it seems clear that Avenatti is beating Trump at his own game.
Check out what Axios had to say about Avenatti and his media strategy just this morning:
He’s making news on Twitter, building his social-media followers, teasing his announcements with reality-show theater, and is ubiquitous on cable TV.
Using Trumpian tactics, Michael Avenatti, Stormy Daniels’ lawyer, managed to push Iran and a big day of midterm primaries into prime time’s background, with stunning charges in a “Project Sunlight” report he posted for reporters to feast on.
Avenatti is also using his media strategy to gather investigatory information on his case as well. Check out this exchange with CNN host Anderson Cooper:
- AVENATTI: There’s been a lot of criticism lately, not a lot, there’s been some – about our media strategy and how often I’m on CNN and how often I’m on your show and other networks, etc. okay? It’s all a bunch of nonsense, because here’s the bottom line, Anderson [Cooper], It’s working. It’s working in spades and one of the reasons and one of the ways it’s working like it is is because we’re so out front on this. People want to send us information. People want to help our cause. People contact us with information.
- COOPER: When you talk about your cause, what is your cause?
- AVENATTI: Our cause right now is having the NDA [non-disclosure agreement] invalidated, holding Michael Cohen accountable for his defamatory statements, holding Mr. Trump accountable for his defamatory statements, and ultimately having all the information relating to this account, the LLC, and the payment to my client laid out for the American people so they can decide what to do.
Avenatti responds to the critics of his always-on-TV strategy: "Here's the bottom line, Anderson: It's working. It's working in spades… Because we're so out front on this, people send us information, people want to help our cause…" https://t.co/eKFkSdG7tt
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) May 9, 2018
He also appears to be goading Rudy Giuliani into appearing with him on television, hoping for another round of incriminating gaffes by the aging lawyer.
He has been whittling away at Giuliani since his stunning appearance with Fox News host Sean Hannity where he admitted that Trump knew about the $130,000 hush money payment to Stormy Daniels by his personal attorney Michael Cohen.
Just yesterday he was at it again, tweeting: “I think it would be very helpful for the public to witness a discussion between Mr. Giuliani and me concerning the facts of the case, etc. I am willing to participate on any network provided both sides are provided a fair shake. I am also willing to do it on 12-hrs notice.”
I think it would be very helpful for the public to witness a discussion between Mr. Giuliani and me concerning the facts of the case, etc. I am willing to participate on any network provided both sides are provided a fair shake. I am also willing to do it on 12-hrs notice.
— Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) May 8, 2018
Trump may consider himself the master of media manipulation, the master of the “art of the deal,” but it seems in Michael Avenatti that he – and his bumbling legal team – have met more than their match.
As Axios pointed out, it appears that Avenatti has mastered the art of the tease.
Check out the following list of quotes from his appearance with Anderson Cooper last night, courtesy of Axios.
- “We certainly have next steps planned out.”
- ‘”I hope the president goes on ‘Fox & Friends’ tomorrow, and then I hope that Rudy Giuliani makes the rounds on Fox.”
- “There are more bombshells coming. There’s more evidence. There’s more information.”
- “[B]ecause we’re so out front on this, people send us information. People want to help our cause.” [emphasis provided by Axios]
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