Michael Avenatti Slams LA Times Reporter’s ‘Nonsense’ Bankruptcy Judgment Report
”Sensational reporting at its finest. Check the facts next time please and report accurately,“ attorney for porn star/Trump accuser Stormy Daniels writes
Michael Avenatti has become a media fixture lately, thanks to his legal representation of porn star/Trump accuser Stormy Daniels, but there’s at least one media outlet he wasn’t chummy with on Tuesday — the Los Angeles Times.
Avenatti tore into LA Times reporter Michael Finnegan on Tuesday, after Finnegan tweeted that Avenatti’s law firm was slapped with a $10 million judgment in bankruptcy court, and that a justice department lawyer said that Avenatti had defaulted on back taxes after agreeing to pay them.
In a stern response to the tweet, Avenatti called out Finnegan, saying that the firm in question has “no ties to the Daniels case.”
“Nonsense. Completely different law firm – no ties to Daniels case. Irrelevant. Over blown,” Avanatti wrote. “Sensational reporting at its finest. Check the facts next time please and report accurately.”
Finnegan’s Times story states that U.S. bankruptcy court Judge Catherine Bauer ordered the law firm of Eagan Avenatti to pay former firm lawyer Jason Frank $10 million, after a promised $2 million payment wasn’t delivered to Frank.
“At this point, that’s what’s appropriate,” Bauer was quoted as saying at a hearing.
According to the Times’ report, Avenatti “personally guaranteed” that the payment would be made to Frank last week, but the money was not forthcoming.
The Times also said that, according to the U.S. Justice Department, the firm had defaulted on back taxes to the IRS that it vowed to pay under a separate bankruptcy settlement. Citing court records, the Times reported that Avenatti “personally agreed” to pay the IRS $2.4 million, an amount that includes back taxes, penalties and interest. However, the Times reported, while “at least $1.5 million” of that amount was paid off, U.S. attorney Najah Shariff told the court that Avenatti and the firm missed an installment due last week.
In another Avenatti repudiation published in the story itself, the lawyer accused the news outlet of “purposely confusing me with a separate legal entity that has no role in the Daniels case.”
Avenatti also told the Times, “No judgment against me was issued nor do I owe any taxes.”
In a subsequent tweet, Finnegan responded, “Avenatti has not challenged the accuracy of a single fact in this story, now updated with more details on his personal responsibility for millions of dollars in back taxes and unpaid bills.”
In March, Daniels, who reportedly had an affair with Donald Trump before he ascended to the U.S. presidency, filed a lawsuit against Trump, saying that Trump and his attorney Michael Cohen “aggressively sought to silence” her when she planned to make her story public in late 2016.
According to the suit, Daniels was presented with a “Hush Agreement” referring to Daniels — whose real name is Stephanie Clifford — as “Peggy Peterson” or “PP” and Trump as “David Dennison” or “DD.” However, the suit says, Trump did not sign the agreement.
The suit contends that efforts to silence Daniels have continued unabated, and that in February of this year Cohen “surreptitiously initiated a bogus arbitration proceeding against Ms. Clifford in Los Angeles. Remarkably, he did so without even providing Ms. Clifford with notice of the proceeding and basic due process.”
“Put simply, considerable steps have been taken by Mr. Cohen in the last week to silence Ms. Clifford through the use of an improper and procedurally defective arbitration proceeding hidden from public view,” the suit reads. “The extent of Mr. Trump’s involvement in these efforts is presently unknown, but it strains credibility to conclude that Mr. Cohen is acting on his own accord without the express approval and knowledge of his client Mr. Trump.”
In April, the Associated Press reported that Daniels had again sued Trump, this time for defamation, saying that a Trump tweet in which he dismissed a composite sketch that Daniels says shows the man who threatened her to remain silent about her reported relationship with the president was defamatory.
Breaking: Avenatti law firm hit today with $10 million judgment in US Bankruptcy Court. Justice Dept lawyer says Avenatti also defaulted on back taxes he’d agreed to pay. Story ahead.
Nonsense. Completely different law firm – no ties to Daniels case. Irrelevant. Over blown. Sensational reporting at its finest. Check the facts next time please and report accurately.
— Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) May 22, 2018
Avenatti has not challenged the accuracy of a single fact in this story, now updated with more details on his personal responsibility for millions of dollars in back taxes and unpaid bills. https://t.co/mMw2BkdlBghttps://t.co/9faKDUrmws
Trump White House Revolving Door: 22 Top Staffers Who've Exited, From Omarosa to Scott Pruitt (Photos)
The turnover in the Trump administration continues.
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Michael Flynn
Michael Flynn resigned in February 2017 as President Trump’s national security adviser after less than a month in the position.
The move came after Flynn admitted he gave “incomplete information” about a call he had with the Russian ambassador to the U.S. last December regarding sanctions against Russia, The New York Times reported, and that he misled Vice President Mike Pence and other top White House officials about the conversation.
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Preet Bharara
Months after getting personal assurance from the president that he would remain in his job as a top federal prosecutor, Bharara was asked to submit his resignation in March 2017.
“Had I not been fired, and had Donald Trump continued to cultivate a direct personal relationship with me, it’s my strong belief at some point, given the history, the president of the United States would’ve asked me to do something inappropriate,” Bharara said on his podcast.
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James Comey
President Donald Trump fired FBI Director James Comey in May 2017 over his handling of the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s emails.
Trump’s decision was based on the recommendation of both Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, according to Spicer.
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Michael Dubke
Michael Dubke, the first communications director in the Trump White House, resigned in May 2017 in the midst of ongoing blowback for the president's handling of the firing of James Comey.
Sean Spicer
White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer resigned in late July 2017 when Trump hired Anthony Scaramucci as communications director.
According to the New York Times, which first broke the news, Spicer told President Trump he vehemently disagreed with the appointment of New York financier and former Fox Business host Anthony Scaramucci as communications director.
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Reince Priebus
Priebus was ousted from his position as White House Chief of Staff in July 2017, when Donald Trump hired General John Kelly to take his place.
"I am pleased to inform you that I have just named General/Secretary John F Kelly as White House Chief of Staff. He is a Great American,” Trump said in a tweet.
“I would like to thank Reince Priebus for his service and dedication to his country,” Trump went on to say in a separate tweet. “We accomplished a lot together and I am proud of him!”
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Anthony Scaramucci
Scaramucci was the White House Communications Director for 10 days last summer and is now infamous for a wild, expletive-filled interview with The New Yorker's Ryan Lizza. He announced in late September week that he will launch his own media website, called The Scaramucci Post.
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Sebastian Gorka
Sebastian Gorka announced his decision to exit his role as deputy assistant to the POTUS in a letter to the president in late August 2017.
“[G]iven recent events, it is clear to me that forces that do not support the MAGA promise are – for now – ascendant within the White House,” Gorka wrote in the letter, obtained by the Federalist. “As a result, the best and most effective way I can support you, Mr. President, is from outside the People’s House.”
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Steve Bannon
White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon was reportedly fired in August 2017, though he insists he resigned July 27 -- giving two weeks’ notice -- but his leaving was put off because of the events in Charlottesville, Virginia. He returned to Breitbart News, where he vows to go to “war” for Trump.
Fox News
Tom Price
Following a week-long scandal over his lavish use of private jets while traveling on government business, Health and Human Services secretary Tom Price resigned on September 29.
“Secretary of Health and Human Services Thomas Price offered his resignation earlier today and the President accepted,” the White House said in a statement. “The President intends to designate Don J. Wright of Virginia to serve as Acting Secretary, effective at 11:59 p.m. on September 29, 2017.”
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Omarosa Manginault
Former "Apprentice" contestant Omarosa Manigault Newman resigned in December "to pursue other opportunities," according to a White House press release. Trump thanked her for In February 2018, she became a contestant on "Celebrity Big Brother," and bashed Trump in the first episode.
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Brenda Fitzgerald
Centers for Disease Control director Brenda Fitzgerald resigned in January 2018 after a Politico report that she bought shares in a tobacco company one month into her role.
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Rob Porter
Staff secretary Rob Porter left the White House in February 2018 after his two ex-wives both detailed accusations of domestic abuse. Reports emerged that senior aides knew about the allegations for months but did nothing until more details came out to the public, sparking backlash. Trump praised Porter's character and reiterated that he had proclaimed his innocence.
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Hope Hicks
Just one day after testifying before the House intelligence committee in February 2018, the White House Communications Director and longtime Trump loyalist announced plans to resign.
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Josh Raffel
The former head of PR for Hollywood producer Jason Blum's Blumhouse announced in February 2018 that he was leaving his job as a senior communications aide at the White House after less than a year on the job.
Gary Cohn
Cohn, considered one of the most liberal members of Team Trump as director of the National Economic Council, announced in March 2018 he was leaving after a disagreement with Trump over tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. He had previously been mentioned as a possible chief of staff.
John McEntee
McEntee was abruptly fired after serving a year as the president's personal assistant, the Wall Street Journal reported on March 13, 2018. The paper cited an unspecified security issue as the reason for the dismissal.
Rex Tillerson
The secretary of state was abruptly asked to resign in March 2018 after just over a year in the job. The former CEO of Exxon Mobil arrived at the State Department with no experience in government or diplomacy and soon ran afoul of both his agency and Trump, particularly after reports emerged that Tillerson had called the president a "moron" following a cabinet meeting.
H. R. McMaster
The lieutenant general, picked by Trump to be his second national security adviser, resigned March 22, 2017, and replaced by former United States ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton.
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David Shulkin
The U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs was removed from his post in March 2018 following a scandal over travel expenses involving his wife.
Ty Cobb
The White House lawyer who had overseen legal issues related to the investigation into Russian interference in 2016's presidential election announced on May 2, 2018, that he was leaving his position.
Scott Pruitt
The administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency resigned on July 5, 2018 after months of reports about his spending practices and ethics.
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EPA head is the latest to leave the Trump administration
The turnover in the Trump administration continues.