New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo unlawfully committed multiple violations of sexual harassment against current and former state employees, a bombshell
The governor engaged in unwanted groping and comments of a sexual nature that created a hostile environment for women, James said at a Tuesday morning press conference in Albany.
“This is a sad day for New York,” James said, her tone somber. The report was civil in nature, not criminal.
In a whirlwind day that included President Biden calling for Cuomo to resign, the governor came out swinging and vehemently denied the allegations. He said he would not step down. Through his attorney, Rita Glavin of Glavin pllc, Cuomo also posted a
“The facts are much different than what has been portrayed,” the governor said in a 14-minute televised press conference. “I never touched anyone inappropriately or made inappropriate sexual advances. That is not who I am.
“I welcome the opportunity for a full and fair review before a judge and jury.”
Independent investigators Joon Kim and Anne Clark, after five months of work that included an 11-hour interview with the governor on July 17, produced evidence that painted a “deeply disturbing yet clear picture,” James said.
She also accused Cuomo, 63, and his senior team of retaliating against “at least one former employee” for coming forward with her story, James added. “Gov. Cuomo’s administration fostered a toxic workplace.”
“These were not isolated incidents, they were part of a pattern,” said Kim, a partner at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP and a former acting U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York.
Kim said Cuomo’s actions extended beyond his own office, and included a state trooper assigned to his detail. He said investigators gathered evidence from 11 women, nine of whom are or were state employees.
The most serious allegations included “touching intimate body parts,” said Clark, a partner at Vladeck, Raskin & Clark PC.
“In light of this in-depth report, and for sake of the citizens of this state, Cuomo must resign immediately,” said Anthony Figliola, vice president at Empire Government Strategies. “These abhorrent allegations cannot be ignored. Not only for the alleged perpetrator, but for those in Albany who knew it was going on and turned a blind eye.”
State leaders including Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, House Speaker Carl Heastie, D-Bronx, and Senate President Andrea Stewart-Cousins, D-Yonkers, all called on Cuomo to step down. So did Northeast governors Ned Lamont of Connecticut, Dan McKee of Rhode Island, Phil Murphy of New Jersey and Tom Wolf of Pennsylvania, all Democrats.
“The women who came forward are courageous, and they have been heard,” DiNapoli said.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, long a political foe of Cuomo, also called on the governor to resign.
The controversy mushroomed in early March, just as Cuomo and lawmakers were in the home stretch of enacting a $209 billion fiscal 2022
Cuomo’s diminished political strength amid multiple scandals — including his management of nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic, enabled the legislature to move more assertively on legislation such as the legalization of recreational marijuana use.
“This time, the legislature pushed back,” Figliola said.
Top lawmakers also threw up headwinds to Cuomo’s recent proposal to bifurcate the leadership of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which operates New York City’s mass-transit system.
Cuomo loyalists had painted Democrat James, a former New York City Council member from Queens and later, city public advocate, as forging a political agenda with a possible eye on Cuomo’s office.
“Today we are living in a superheated if not toxic political environment,” Cuomo said. “That shouldn’t be lost on anyone.”
Investigators interviewed 179 individuals, James said, including complainants, current and former members of the executive chamber, state troopers, additional state employees and others who interacted regularly with the governor. More than 74,000 documents, emails, texts, and pictures were also reviewed as evidence.
St. Johns University law professor Anthony Sabino said the third-term governor could still draw on his survival instincts.
“For any other politician, this would be a death sentence, especially in today’s environment of zero tolerance for even accusations, let alone evidence, of such adventurism,” said Sabino, a white-collar defense attorney. “But Andrew Cuomo is resilient, if nothing else.
“He has or continues to battle against charges that he mishandled New York nursing homes during the health crisis. And he has vigorously contested these charges of improprieties. Who is to say he won’t survive this latest development?”
State Republicans have waited for this moment, said Joseph Krist, a municipal bond analyst and publisher of Muni Credit News. Cuomo, should he remain in office, is up for re-election next year.
“It's going to be hard to fight this. Cuomo has been terrible to enough people for a long time and now they have something to hammer him with. And they will,” Krist said.
“I've already gotten mailers from my Republican state senator about Cuomo. They do have a well-funded candidate, Lee Zeldin, to run against Cuomo but I never underestimate the ability of the Republicans to blow it.”
Sabino contrasts Cuomo with former president Richard Nixon, who resigned in 1974 amid the Watergate scandal.
“Nixon resigned. Cuomo won’t,” Sabino said.
“With a year before the next gubernatorial election, it is a certainty he will fight to stay in Albany for another four years. Andrew Cuomo just might qualify as the ‘Teflon governor.’ ”
