4 things Michael Avenatti said in Des Moines (and 4 things Iowans said about him)

What Michael Avenatti said:

1. 'The question in 2020 is not who would make the best president'

"In 2016, the Democratic Party ran, in my view, the most qualified candidate to ever seek the office of the presidency of the United States. Ever. ... But the question in 2020 is not who would make the best president of the United States. ... The question is, 'Can the individual beat Donald Trump?' And as a party we need to be really, really honest with ourselves and each other when we answer that question."

2. 'I will not run' if Trump and Pence aren't on the ballot

"If Donald Trump resigns and does not run, and if Mike Pence does not run and resigns … I will not run. So people that say that this is about me wanting to become president of the United States or about ego or anything else, that’s just simply not true."

3. 'We should have fought like hell' on Merrick Garland

"We should have fought like hell to get an up-down vote on Judge Garland for the U.S. Supreme Court, and we didn’t. ... I would have shut the government down if I (wasn't) getting an up-down vote. ... I would have gone on a 50-state tour. I would have worked morning, noon and night and drummed up support among the American people to give me that up or down vote. I would have done any number of things. What I would not have done was sat back and allow the Republicans to effectively steal the seat and ultimately install their pick after the election."

4. 'I'm not going to accept any corporate PAC dollars'

"In the event that I decide to run, I’m not going to accept any corporate PAC dollars. I know some others that are thinking about running have said the same thing. But here’s the other thing I’m going to say: Anybody that runs for the presidency of the United States should refund any corporate PAC dollars they’ve received since January 1, 2016. It’s not enough to be a Johnny-come-lately on the issue ... "

https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/politics/2018/08/23/michael-avenatti-des-moines-iowa-president-democrat-donald-trump-caucuses-stormy-daniels/1069383002/