Controversial S#!T

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti is sounding more and more like a guy who is running for prez in 2020 after coming to Sen. Ted Cruz's defense ... and getting critical of President Trump.

We got hizzoner at Avalon in Hollywood Tuesday night where he was hosting a fundraiser for the Democratic party. We wanted to get Garcetti's take on Cruz getting heckled out of a D.C. restaurant ... a la Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

Garcetti tells us he was NOT down with activists chasing Cruz and his wife out of the D.C. joint and you gotta watch -- because it's the words he uses that have presidential campaign written all over it. He hasn't announced yet, but based on our recon ... Garcetti's definitely running in 2020.

The Mayor also had some parting shots for Trump, laying full blame on 45 for what he considers America's failing image in the world's eyes. Garcetti's point ... he would've LOL'd with the rest of the United Nations Assembly.

The lawyers for Brett Kavanaugh and Dr. Christine Ford both have strong Hillary Clinton connections.

It's interesting ... Kavanaugh's lawyer, Beth Wilkinson, is a high-powered, Washington D.C. lawyer who represented multiple top Clinton aides involved in the FBI email investigation during the campaign. She's also a long-time Democratic booster, and is married to CNN contributor David Gregory.

As for Dr. Ford ... her lawyer, Debra Katz, was a campaign fundraiser for Clinton during her 2016 Presidential campaign. Earlier, we posted a pic of Hillary with a woman who'd mistakenly been identified as Katz, but it wasn't her.

Couple other facts about the attorneys at the center of Thursday's Senate hearing -- Katz famously represented a University of Colorado student who claimed she was the victim of retaliation by the school after she said she was subjected to a sexually hostile academic environment.

Wilkinson was a prosecutor in the case of Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh and successfully argued for the death penalty.

If Cardi B wants her own set for the Super Bowl halftime show ... GIVE CARDI B HER OWN SET ... so says Miguel, who tells TMZ Sports she'd KILL it if given the chance.

We broke the story ... the "I Like It" spitter is in negotiations with the NFL to join Maroon 5 to perform at Super Bowl LIII in Atlanta ... but wants to have her own set during the show.

Of course, the decision to go with Adam Levine's band has been met with a ton of criticism ... and Waka Flocka Flame told us last week the show should feature black performers with real connections to ATL.

So, when we asked Miguel if the NFL should give in to Bardi's demands, he's ALL about it ... saying "Cardi would kill that!!"

12:50 PM PT -- We've obtained more docs detailing the alleged incident. The report states Ravenel allegedly grabbed the victim's hand and placed it on his penis. While Thomas allegedly tried to remove her clothing, the victim's shirt got wrapped around her neck, causing her to struggle to breathe.

The docs state Ravenel pulled the victim's pants down and said, "Show me your pu**y," while he allegedly began to grab her genitals. The woman was able to escape and she immediately told her sister and then ex-husband of the assault. Photos were taken of her injuries.

Ravenel has been released on a $20k personal recognizance bond, but had to surrender his passport, cannot leave the state, and a no contact order is in place for the alleged victim.

10:34 AM PT -- According to a police report -- obtained by TMZ -- the arrest comes on the heels of an accusation made by a woman in May who told cops Ravenel forcibly raped her at his home in 2015.

An article published by People in May stated the woman worked as a nanny for Ravenel. She says Thomas was out with friends and when he returned home he cornered her in a bedroom, undressed himself and proceeded to remove her clothing. The report did not detail much more than that.

"Southern Charm" star Thomas Ravenel has been arrested for assault and battery in South Carolina.

Ravenel was booked Tuesday morning in Charleston County and is currently being held without bond. The 56-year-old's listed charge is for assault and battery in the 2nd degree.

Ravenel -- who was South Carolina's state treasurer in 2007 -- resigned from the position after he was indicted on federal cocaine distribution charges.

He left the Bravo show earlier this year after multiple women came forward and accused Ravenel of sexual assault. In leaving the show, he said, "I'm not doing the show anymore. In the contract they have the right to fictionalize your story. They took advantage of me. I decided I've got too much to lose and informed them I'm not coming back."

It's currently unclear what led to Tuesday's arrest.

Originally Published -- 9/25/2018 8:52 AM PDT

Serena Williams got a "raw deal" at the U.S. Open -- all because of a DUMB rule that should be changed immediately ... so says tennis great Chris Evert.

The rule -- players are forbidden to receive any instructions from coaches on the sideline.

The ump at the U.S. Open claimed Serena and her coach violated the policy and he docked her a point penalty. Things went nuclear from there and Williams was later penalized a full game.

Enter Evert ... who tells TMZ Sports both sides deserved blame for the altercation -- but ultimately, it proves the anti-coaching rule is stupid and should be done away with since EVERYONE breaks it anyway.

"The real fault was the rule," Evert said at the Buoniconti Fund’s 33rd Annual Great Sports Legends Dinner.

"Everybody coaches on the side. Every coach coaches. ... So, change that rule."

Sen. Ted Cruz and his wife got a taste of what Sarah Huckabee Sanders was served, as they were both heckled out of a D.C. restaurant by people protesting Brett Kavanaugh.

Ted and the missus, Heidi Cruz, were trying to dine Monday night at an Italian joint called Fiola, when they were confronted by a group of protesters who were chanting, "We believe survivors." One woman from the group tried to get the TX senator to speak on Kavanaugh in the wake of a second accuser alleging sexual misconduct ... but TC wouldn't bite.

He told the woman, "God bless you, ma'am" ... and it looks like he even tried taking off his jacket off and sitting down for dinner in an attempt to ignore the protesters. They were relentless though, and Ted and Heidi eventually hightailed it out of there.

Chris Hemsworth and Elsa Pataky are building a monstrosity of a home in Australia ... and the massive building is pissing off tons of people who say it's totally out of place and looks more like a shopping mall.

You can judge for yourself ... but it's easy to see why the Internet is going crazy over Thor's new fortress. There are endless amounts of concrete, a huge chunk of forest missing and it dwarfs everything else in Byron Bay.

Chris and Elsa have been building their dream house for nearly a year -- they've reportedly poured $8 million into the project -- but the colossal compound has become a nightmare for neighbors.

The sprawling estate is expected to feature a huge swimming pool, steam room, gym and a luxury spa. All it's missing is a moat.

The NYC comedy club where Louis C.K. did one of his "comeback" sets last month showcased another comedian who was in the crosshairs of the #MeToo movement ... Aziz Ansari.

Aziz was one of three surprise guests Sunday at the Comedy Cellar in Greenwich Village, where he, along with Amy Schumer and Jeff Ross, each did 20-25 minutes of stand-up. Aziz did not address his own #MeToo allegation, but was received well nonetheless.

Someone who apparently did even better than Aziz ... Ms. Schumer. Her set killed ... we're sure Jeff did just fine too.

As we reported ... this is the second place Louis crashed at the end of August in his return to stand-up. He stopped off at a club in Long Island before hitting the city, where photos caught him checking his phone during the gig.

Other comedy clubs in the area told us they'd welcome Louis with open arms ... but some people, including fellow comics, aren't so ready to have him back in the spotlight after he admitted to sexual misconduct.

Joe Theismann says the NFL should straight-up just take the pads off QBs now ... 'cause the league's new roughing-the-passer penalty "has reached the point of absurdity."

The ex-Redskins quarterback watched guys like Clay Matthews get flagged for simply tackling QBs all day Sunday ... and he was LIVID.

So much so -- Joe tells TMZ Sports the next step for the NFL will be to just eliminate QB hits from the game altogether.

"This is my question to the NFL, 'What is the defensive player supposed to do?' Would somebody please explain it to him?" Theismann says.

Remember ... Theismann's career was ended by a violent hit to the QB -- and even he can't believe some of the flags he's seen through three weeks so far.

"You wanted an offensive game, I understand that," he tells us.

"But now you've reached the point of absurdity."

Still ... even with all the flags protecting QBs -- Joe had a hard time watching passers not slide ... telling us that's why Jimmy Garoppolo's season is over after just 3 games.

By the way ... Joe says Jimmy should be ready to go for the 2019 season -- if he follows some of the tips Joe learned during his lengthy rehab process.

Brett Kavanaugh just played his virgin card to defend himself against multiple accusations of sexual assault ... saying he never had sex -- or anything close to it -- through his high school years and many years after.

In a clip from Kavanaugh's Fox News interview with Martha MacCallum, Kavanaugh, which is set to air later Monday night, he says, "I've never sexually assaulted anyone. I did not have sexual intercourse or anything close to sexual intercourse in high school."

MacCallum pressed the contentious Supreme Court nominee more, asking if he was a virgin through all the years in question -- when the assaults allegedly happened? Brett responded, "Yes."

The problem with his virgin defense is none of Kavanaugh's accusers are claiming he forced intercourse.

Jesse Williams drew some major criticism after promoting his new Emmett Till film with memes that incorporated Nike's new campaign with Colin Kaepernick ... and it was so harsh, he pulled the pics.

News broke Monday that Jesse was tapped to direct a new film about Emmett's mother, Mamie Till. The film follows Mamie's fight for justice after her 14-year-old son was murdered in the South for allegedly whistling at a white woman. Jesse promoted the project by posting the pics below ...

The bunch of photos featured both Emmett, Mamie and others involved in the outcry following his death with Nike's new Kaep-led tagline, "Believe in something. Even if it means sacrificing everything." He also teased his new flick with "TiLL Coming Soon."

A lot of people were not amused by Jesse trying to conflate the two subjects, and he was quickly hit with a wave of backlash. Jesse then removed all but one meme he'd posted ... the one of Emmett's uncle pointing out the white men who killed him in court.

Jesse has been hailed as a modern day civil rights hero and was even given the Humanitarian Award by BET two years ago ... where he delivered a powerful speech about police brutality in America.

Sorry, Khalil Mack ... Mike Ditka thinks you got a great shot at an NFC North title -- but he's telling TMZ Sports it's time to slow the roll on the '85 comparisons.

ICYMI ... Chicago beat up Arizona on Sunday and is one Aaron Rodgers-led miracle away from being 3-0 -- leading some to call this Chicago's best squad since 1985.

But Ditka -- who coached that historic Super Bowl team 33 years ago -- says let's all calm down with that talk.

"I don't know if the talent level on this defense is near what it was on our defense," Iron Mike tells us.

Don't get it twisted ... Ditka's still in love with this team -- saying they do at least hustle and pursue like Mike Singletary and William Perry used to.

LeBron James says his move to join the Lakers was strictly a basketball decision -- and had NOTHING to do with his budding Hollywood career.

... so, you believe him?

King James just spoke with reporters at Lakers Media Day where he was decked out in his full #23 Purple and Gold uniform.

During the Q&A session with reporters, he was asked if he ultimately picked the Lakers over other (better) teams so he could be closer to Warner Bros Studio ... where he has a major development deal.

Remember, LeBron has movies coming out -- "Space Jam 2" and a new "House Party" flick -- and is working on other TV shows and a "Shut Up and Dribble" documentary narrated by Jemele Hill.

But, Bron says he's a ballplayer first -- and joined the Lakers because he felt it was the right fit for him on the court ... even though they sucked last season.

Asia Argento is breaking her silence on Anthony Bourdain's suicide … saying his death left a hole that can’t be filled, and anger was the only thing that kept her from taking her own life.

Tears streamed down Asia's face as she revealed her initial reaction to her boyfriend's death was anger. Anger because she felt he was "abandoning me, my kids."

Asia also told DailyMailTV -- in her first interview since Bourdain’s death -- her anger has now been replaced by an emotional hole that cannot be filled by anything.

Interestingly, Asia's initial interview -- which airs Monday and Tuesday -- comes just as CNN begins running the final 5 episodes of Anthony's hit show, 'Parts Unknown.'

What she says is also interesting because she had posted a cryptic message in the hours before Bourdain was found dead in a French hotel room. She was wearing a shirt that said, “F**K EVERYONE” and included the caption ... "You know who you are."

Asia's IG post led to speculation she got into an argument with Bourdain right before his suicide ... and there are rumors something happened that cut him to the core.

Judge Judy has handled thousands of cases, both as a family law judge and a TV jurist, so she knows a thing or 2 when she says people need to slow down and hear the evidence in the Kavanaugh/Ford showdown.

We got the most famous judge in the U.S. of A Sunday in Bev Hills, and she couldn't have been clearer ... we don't know enough to form an intelligent opinion on who's telling the truth and who's not.

Some Republicans have already taken Kavanaugh's side, and some Democrats have said they believe Ford ... despite the fact that they haven't heard even a minute of testimony. What's even worse ... some of these senators are on the Judiciary Committee and they're the ones who will vote, so on both sides there's a danger of the hearing becoming a kangaroo court.

Jimmy Bennett walked right into a buzz saw when he sat down for an interview on Italian television ... getting skewered by the host over his claim he was sexually assaulted by Asia Argento ... and the central issue was ejaculation.

Jimmy was straight-up asked if he ejaculated during his sexual encounter with Asia, and the audience moaned when he answered yes ... suggesting someone who ejaculates must have enjoyed it, so it couldn't be rape.

The age of consent for sex in Italy is 14 ... and Jimmy was 17 when he had sex with Asia in a Marina del Rey, CA hotel room.

Just because Jimmy ejaculated doesn't mean Asia didn't take advantage of a minor. It's a crime in California for an adult to have sex with a person under 18 ... and Asia was 37 at the time.

Jimmy went on to describe his sexual encounter with Asia ... and the host said, "It's difficult to believe a woman can rape a man, an act of sex that is complete cannot be rape."

Jimmy was asked about the photo he took with Asia after they had sex. The interviewer says the pic looked like he enjoyed himself ... again missing the point about United States laws.