FILE – In this May 30, 2018, file photo Michael Avenatti, attorney for Stormy Daniels, talks to reporters as he leaves court in New York. Before he began representing porn actress Stormy Daniels in her legal fight against the president, Avenatti was virtually unknown outside a small legal community. But in less than six months, the sharp-witted litigator has skyrocketed to becoming a household name as one of President Donald Trump’s chief critics. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

As Red State‘s Alex Parker wrote earlier, liberal icon Michael Avenatti, who has floated the possibility of running for president in 2020, is once again in trouble with the feds and was indicted today on extortion and fraud charges.

A quick recap via The Hill:

Michael Avenatti was hit with two separate indictments on Wednesday in New York for his alleged extortion of Nike and for allegedly defrauding his former client, adult-film star Stormy Daniels. These are the latest charges filed against the lawyer, who has previously faced other charges in federal courts in New York and California. Avenatti has tweeted in recent hours that another indictment was forthcoming.

Watching the rise and fall of Avenatti over the last couple of years from the cheap seats has been fascinating. He’s someone who, on the surface, gave off the appearance of having it all together. He said all the right things to the left and the mainstream media (but I repeat myself) which put him in their good graces for what it seemed would be a very long time.

Love him or hate him, @MichaelAvenatti is a master of the media… https://t.co/iAkxcD2iDw — Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) May 9, 2018



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CNN's Brian Stelter last year on Michael Avenatti running for president: "And looking ahead to 2020, one reason I’m taking you seriously as a contender is because of your presence on cable news.” pic.twitter.com/2Wn2bX17kx — Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) May 22, 2019

They literally could not get enough of him and his supposed legal “expertise”, especially when it came to the issue of President Trump who – to Avenatti – wasn’t just someone he fought against in the courts. To Avenatti, Trump was also Public Enemy Number One.

And that means, with 254 overall appearances, all of 26 were on elsewhere. https://t.co/2k2ayqJaOo — Gerry (@GerryDales) May 22, 2019

The Federalist‘s Ben Domenech posted a pretty epic tweet thread on this very issue last month (first tweet is below):

Read the full thread – unrolled – here.

The video montage below, done by the Free Beacon, reminds us of how leftists and media types hung on to Avenatti’s every word. They just knew Avenatti was going to be the guy who finally took Trump down:

Here’s another one, done back in March:

Last year the media came down with a fever and the only cure was Michael Avenatti. Forgot all about it? Well, for a trip down memory lane, please enjoy this supercut recapping some of the highlights. pic.twitter.com/OlKDftM8YA — Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) March 26, 2019

One video clip in particular that didn’t make it into either montage is the one of “The View” co-host and fake Republican Ana Navarro comparing Avenatti to… the Holy Spirit. Via MRC-TV from last August:

“Lately, to me, you’re like the Holy Spirit. You are all places at all times. Right. I mean, I do — I see you all over cable news, I see — there’s a seat available if you want to be a co-host at ‘The View.’ There’s people here you can pitch. He’d be a great lady around the table” Navarro ranted. “[Avenatti] has a bigger calling here. Being a lawyer is minimal compared to what he’s doing,” Joy Behar said. Navarro interrupted, “The priesthood?” Behar continued, “He’s out there saving the country.”

Click below to watch the cringe-worthy segment:

I think it’s safe to say that Avenatti’s 2020 presidential ambitions have been pretty well flushed down the toilet at this point. But he should look on the bright side: After all is said and done, there will always be a place for him on “The View” next to Joy Behar and Ana Navarro.

You go, dude.

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—Based in North Carolina, Sister Toldjah is a former liberal and a 15+ year veteran of blogging with an emphasis on media bias, social issues, and the culture wars. Read her Red State archives here. Connect with her on Twitter.–