On Monday, Stormy Daniels’ attorney Michael Avenatti appeared on MSNBC where he spoke about a potential 2020 presidential run.
During an exchange with host Ari Melber, Avenatti stated that he will make his decision by March 2019:
MELBER: Now, you are here in your capacity as an attorney representing Stormy Daniels.
AVENATTI: I am
MELBER: But you have also been playing another roll, which is moonlighting and flirting with the possibility of becoming a Democratic candidate.
Melber then played a clip of Avenatti speaking about how the Democratic nominee must be able to speak to voters who “crossed over from Obama and voted for Donald Trump.”
MELBER: Do you plan to run for president?
AVENATTI: I don’t know yet. I’m continuing to travel around the country. I’m meeting with people; I’m taking with people; I’m gauging the interest. People have been very enthusiastic.
MELBER: When will you make the decision?
AVENATTI: I don’t know yet. I’m gonna make it in the coming months – but let me say this: There’s an enormous amount at stake in 2020. The Democrats have to nominate a real fighter – not a paper tiger, not a make-believe fighter – a real fighter that’ll take the fight to this guy.
MELBER: Right, but if you’re a serious fighter, and you’re really gonna run, you know how this works. It’s just like court. The deadlines matter. Hillary Clinton had publicly declared by April 2015, which for us would be the equivalent of the April after the midterms, and she’d made a lot of moves before then. Will you decide by January, by the start of the new year?
AVENATTI: I promise you I’ll decide by April.
After further exchange, Avenatti said he would make a decision by March 2019.
When Melber appeared to suggest that Avenatti’s public flirtations with a presidential run could be a tease, the attorney pushed back, saying:
I wanna be really clear about something – this is not a TV tease. I mean, this is for real. I’m strongly looking at this. That’s why I’m traveling around the country; I’m listening to people. And look, people have been very enthusiastic because they want a fighter. The Democrats need a fighter, and they better nominate somebody that can actually beat this guy because we have an enormous amount at stake in 2020. We cannot screw this up.
