Michael Avenatti just gave the perfect response to Trump fans accusing him of being a paid operative

Michael Avenatti, the attorney for Trump’s alleged adult film star mistress Stormy Daniels, is rapidly transforming into one of the president’s most unlikely and dangerous enemies. Yesterday, he revealed that Trump’s lawyer Michael Cohen received $500,000 from a shady billionaire Russian oligarch, raising the spectre of a bombshell pay-for-play scandal.

By all indications, this is but the beginning of Avenatti’s war on Trump and his cronies. He’s a bulldog, refusing to back down even as the entire apparatus of the right-wing lie machine aligns against him.

One specific hit piece aimed at Daniels’ lawyer questioned where his funding is coming from, the implication clearly being that some as-yet-unrevealed sinister forces are funneling money to Avenatti so he will go after Trump. Conveniently, the piece failed to mention that Avenatii has already explained his money comes through crowdfunding and client-fees.

Richard Armande Mills, a writer for hack far-right rags like The Daily Caller and an employee of Charlie Kirk’s abominable Turning Points USA organization even tried to start a hashtag #WhoPaysAvenatti.

Of course, having already explained in detail #WhoPaysHim, Avenatti didn’t hesitate to immediately respond on Twitter and encourage his followers to mock the so-called journalists who are trying their hardest to construct a narrative around him that will give President Trump a smokescreen to hide behind.

It won’t work, and the motivations are as transparent as they are pathetic. Avenatti included a link to a dropbox statement that reiterates his funding methods. It also directs his critics to “get over it” and states that neither he nor Stormy Daniels (real name Stephanie Clifford) intends to back down.

It’s a bold move and shows once again that Mr. Avenatti has all his bases covered. He’s exercising the kind of transparency that Trump and Michael Cohen are unable to, since revealing their secrets would doubtless reveal a staggering web of criminality and corruption. Avenatti is fighting their shadowy approach with disinfecting daylight.

Natalie Dickinson

Natalie is a staff writer for the Washington Press. She graduated from Oberlin College in 2010 and has been freelance blogging and writing for progressive outlets ever since.