Michael Avenatti, it seems to me, is like the star of a cartoon called The Worst the Law Profession Has to Offer (here and here).

Every time I see him on the boob tube, I’m surprised he’s been given another microphone. But maybe the ludicrousness of his claims and posturing makes for good TV.

Even better TV, perhaps: fear.

If so, the attorney is currently serving up some must-see goofiness: On CBS Evening News Tuesday, in light of being the subject of a federal investigation into an attempted shakedown, Michael admitted he’s “scared.”

How very, very un-Avenatti of him.

Here’s Mike, who officials say they have on tape committing a really big no-no:

“Of course I’m nervous. I am nervous. I’m concerned. I’m scared. I feel terrible for my family. I feel bad for my friends.”

The Daily Wire summed it up nicely:

Famous for his defiant self-assurance, even after losing multiple legal battles with Donald Trump and amid mounting financial and legal problems, Avenatti struck a different tone with CBS after FBI agents laid out a potentially devastating case against him and his alleged co-conspirator, fellow celebrity lawyer Mark Geragos, who counts Jussie Smollett and Colin Kaepernick among his lists of clients.

On Monday, Avenatti was arrested and charged with extortion in an alleged “shakedown” attempt of Nike for millions of dollars. In a complaint submitted to the Southern District of New York, FBI Special Agent Christopher Harper alleges that over the course of a few days this month, Avenatti and an unnamed co-conspirator, who multiple reports say is Geragos, “devised a scheme to extort a company [Nike] by means of an interstate communication by threatening to damage the company’s reputation if the company did not agree to make multi-million dollar payments to Avenatti and [his co-conspirator], and further agree to pay $1.5 million to a client of Avenatti’s.”

Speaking to Jericka Duncan, Michael also insisted that “any suggestion” he attempted to extort Nike is “absurd;” he only made “threats”:

“There’s legal experts that say I was well within the line as an aggressive attorney. There’s many that say that. And the fact of the matter is, this was not extortion. People make threats all the time in connection with trying to settle a case.”

For a moment, he scooted a little closer to typical Avenatti:

“Most people are sticking by me. They believe in me. They know what I’m all about.”

Yes — people “know what he’s all about.”

But then it was back to fear:

“But sure, I’m nervous. I’m scared. I’m all those things. And if I wasn’t, it wouldn’t make a lot of sense.”

Michael Avenatti, as an attorney, hasn’t made a living making a lot of sense; subsequently, he’s become a national joke.

But at this moment in his career, at least for him, it’s not very funny.

Stay tuned.

-Alex

Relevant RedState links in this article: here and here.

See 3 more pieces from me: Fahrenheit fails; sweet, creamy, and evil; and the treachery of white modeling.

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