Despite his many scandals, Gov. Andrew Cuomo dances the most around the sexual assault allegations levied against him.
Whether he’s being whiny, wormy or just self-righteous, Gov. Andrew Cuomo is at his absolute worst when addressing the sexual-assault allegations against him.
When asked about the various probes (including a federal review of the nursing-home horrors), Cuomo often hunkers down, saying, “I did nothing wrong, period, and I’m not resigning, and I’m doing my job every day.”
He’s also insisted the public arena is “unfair,” claiming that his accusers can say what they will while he must avoid addressing the specifics. In fact, nothing’s stopping him, except perhaps his lawyers’ advice.
And he has actually said plenty, for example saying that at work he’s often “being playful,” makes “jokes” and will, “on occasion, tease people in what I think is a good-natured way.” He has also apologized “if [his accusers] were offended” by his remarks and vehemently denied any physical impropriety.
Meanwhile, there’s the passive-aggressive effort to cast doubt on Attorney General Letitia James’ investigation. His spokesthug Rich Azzopardi planted the idea last month in the face of a new probe of the gov’s book deal, calling the investigations of the gov “a political pile-on,” noting that “both the comptroller and the attorney general have spoken to people about running for governor, and it is unethical to wield criminal referral authority to further political self-interest.”
That plainly inspired the reporter who asked Cuomo this week if the Assembly should take James’ findings at face value, given the rumors she’s eyeing a run against him in next year’s primary. The gov’s reply: “I’m not telling anyone to have faith in anything. Everybody makes their own decisions.”
Nice of him — since it’s impossible for anyone to put any faith in the governor’s words on anything these days. (His never-ending lies on the nursing-home coverup are enough to guarantee that.)
The fact remains: The Assembly has more than enough evidence of major misconduct on the care homes to impeach him already, though it’s apparently waiting on James to report on the sexual allegations. All the delay does is give the gov and his team more time to muddy the waters.
