The Governor’s woe’s have gone national….
Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Sunday retreated from his plan to have a former federal judge, who has close ties to one of the governor’s closest allies, investigate claims against him of sexual harassment.
Mr. Cuomo said that he would ask Letitia James, New York’s attorney general, and Janet DiFiore, the chief judge on New York State’s highest court, to jointly pick someone to investigate sexual harassment accusations lodged by two women who worked in the Cuomo administration.
The move came amid mounting criticism over Mr. Cuomo’s initial choice of Barbara S. Jones, a former federal judge who worked with Mr. Cuomo’s longtime adviser, Steven M. Cohen, after leaving the bench.
In an effort “to avoid even the perception of a lack of independence or inference of politics,” the Cuomo administration has asked Ms. James and Judge DiFiore to “jointly select an independent and qualified lawyer in private practice without political affiliation to conduct a thorough review of the matter and issue a public report,” Beth Garvey, a special counsel to the governor, said in a statement….
White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Sunday said President Joe Biden supports an “independent review” of the sexual harassment accusations leveled against New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo last week by a pair of former aides — adding that it was personally difficult for her to read the latest account of alleged misconduct by the governor.
The remarks from the president’s top spokesperson came after Lindsey Boylan, a candidate for Manhattan borough president who formerly worked for Cuomo and the state’s economic development agency, revealed in a blog post on Wednesday that the governor had kissed her without her consent and asked her to play strip poker….
image…Pool photo by Seth Wenig
New York Attorney General Pushes Back on Cuomo
New York Attorney General Letitia James’ (D) office said that she did not accept an earlier statement from Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s (D) office proposing that she and the state’s chief appeals judge appoint an attorney to investigate sexual harassment allegations against him, The Hill reports.
Said James: “To clarify, I do not accept the governor’s proposal. The state’s Executive Law clearly gives my office the authority to investigate this matter once the governor provides a referral.”
Does Cuomo even give this to the AG?
Cuomo is now not dening his comments to the first woman…
Cuomo says conduct sparking sex harassment allegations was just kidding around, ‘misinterpreted’…
The 3rd woman’s complain against Cuomo….
A third woman has accused New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo of unwanted sexual advances, joining two former aides to the governor who previously released their own accounts.
Anna Ruch, 33, told The New York Times in an interview published Monday evening that she met Cuomo in 2019 at at wedding, during which the governor, 63, put his hand on her lower back. After she says she removed his hand, Cuomo then placed his hand on her cheeks before asking if he could kiss her. A photograph of Cuomo with his hands on her face was provided to the Times.
“I was so confused and shocked and embarrassed,” she told the newspaper. “I turned my head away and didn’t have words in that moment.”…
More…
The Difference Between Al Franken and Andrew Cuomo
First Read: “For one thing, there hasn’t been a cascade of calls for Cuomo to resign; so far, just one New York congresswoman, Kathleen Rice, has called for Cuomo’s resignation. (Notably, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand wants the matter investigated first.)”
“In addition, unlike with Franken in 2017, Democrats are under less pressure to claim the political high ground and make an obvious contrast against a current congressional candidate (Roy Moore in Alabama) or a current president (Donald Trump).”
“And Cuomo has never been someone willing to walk away, even when facing a crisis that’s become impossible to control.”
“But Democrats need to be asked this question after the latest allegation against Cuomo: How could you call for — or accept — Al Franken’s resignation, but not do the same for Cuomo?”