Former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon said that Michael Avenatti, or someone like him, could be the Democrat's answer to President Trump in 2020.

"If Bernie Sanders had an ounce of Avenatti's fearlessness, he would've been the Democratic nominee, and we would have had a much tougher time beating him," said Bannon, who appeared on HBO's Real Time with Bill Maher on Friday. "Avenatti ... has a fearlessness and is a fighter. I think he'll go through a lot of this field if he decides to stick with it. I don't think a professional politician is going to be there at the end of the day."

Avenatti, the attorney for porn star Stormy Daniels who also represents one of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh's accusers, Julie Swetnick, has been a frequent Trump critic. Avenatti has also teased a 2020 run, attending early campaign-related events in Iowa as well as the Democratic Party's meeting in Chicago.



Trump is a moron. He knows nothing about me or my client. He is trying to divert attention away from Julie as a smokescreen. I challenge him to debate me regarding Kavanaugh and his accusers and our respective backgrounds. He will never agree because he is a coward and weak. — Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) September 26, 2018



Bannon said Avenatti's outsider background will be to his benefit, as career politicians haven't been able to combat Trump.

"Now, I don't believe a professional politician is going to be there at the end of the day. I've always said it's going to be someone like Oprah, or Avenatti, or somebody that's more media-savvy that's going to be there," Bannon said.

Unlike Avenatti, Oprah has said repeatedly she does not want to run.

The 2020 election, he said, could end up a three-way race.

"If we get past (midterm elections), in 2020, I think you're going to have Trump on the right, a politician, maybe a Kamala Harris or somebody on the left, and then I think you'll have a Bloomberg or Romney in the center," he said.