This clip from MSNBC's The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell covers the high-stakes legal feud between Michael Cohen and Michael Avenatti back in May 2018. O'Donnell leads off with a report from Vanity Fair's Emily Jane Fox, highlighting Cohen's statement that he "just can't take this anymore" amidst the relentless press coverage. The segment features Avenatti appearing via remote video alongside Fox in studio to address court filings where Cohen's legal team attempted to bar Avenatti from proceedings in the Southern District of New York. Around 04:43, O'Donnell brings up a tweet from Avenatti questioning whether Cohen's lawyer Stephen Ryan had a conflict of interest due to lobbying work for Qatar. Later in the segment around 06:42, O'Donnell asks Fox about Cohen's mindset, leading into a discussion on how frustrated Cohen felt remaining silent on counsel's advice while figures like Rudy Giuliani appeared on television making his legal position more complicated. Watching this segment years later serves as a surreal snapshot of the 2018 news cycle, when cable news was dominated by daily courtroom drama and media jockeying. Avenatti's aggressive, media-first strategy is on full display here, and O'Donnell's probing questions capture just how chaotic the situation was behind the scenes for everyone involved. Knowing how the legal sagas eventually unfolded for both Cohen and Avenatti gives the entire interview an added layer of irony.