Category: SexualHarassment

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo resigns

Posted on by Hunter

In a surprise announcement, disgraced New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has now announced that he will be resigning from the governorship. The resignation will take effect in 14 days.

Cuomo continued to defend his actions, claiming the claims against him were "false" and that "In my mind I’ve never crossed the line with anyone but I didn’t realize the extent to which the line has been redrawn."

"I am a fighter and my instinct is to fight," said Cuomo. But he said "wasting energy on distractions"—that is, impeachment proceedings against him—"is that last thing that state government should be doing, and I cannot be the cause of that.

"The best way I can help now is if I step aside."

Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul will become the next governor of the state.

Cuomo announces he is resigning as governor of New York pic.twitter.com/QtAjBrWLpI

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 10, 2021

As Cuomo allies resign their posts, Cuomo himself remains in stubborn denial

Posted on (Updated by Hunter

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is not the sort of person to resign just because he did horrible things and everybody now knows about it. He's the sort of person who believes that he can bully his way through anything, whether it be pandemic scandals or harassment scandals. That means we're all in for weeks of having to hear him attack anyone and everyone in an attempt to scurry out from an investigation that called 179 witnesses (!) as it documented years of sexual harassment from a man whose defense has centered around a claim that he's just a hugging, groping sort of guy and it's too bad that nearly a dozen different women couldn't understand that reaching under a woman's blouse to grope her breast is just something he does to "put people at ease."

Cuomo is, as his most cynical critics presumed he would, attempting to dig in despite the New York legislature now moving swiftly to begin impeachment proceedings against him.

On Sunday, top Cuomo aide Melissa DeRosa resigned her post. The state attorney general's report had identified DeRosa as a main player in the effort to discredit and retaliate against one of Cuomo's accusers.

Also on Sunday, a CBS interview with the woman who last week filed a criminal complaint over Cuomo's sexual assault made any possible Cuomo defense even more difficult. Cuomo cannot plausibly claim that the assault, which included groping the woman, meets any definition of appropriate behavior.

On Monday, Time's Up Chairwoman Roberta Kaplan resigned from that organization after the investigation's report identified her, too, as someone who worked to discredit one of Cuomo's accusers.

There is little more to say about this. From President Joe Biden to most of New York's top Democratic elected officials, demands that Cuomo resign have been immediate and near-unanimous. New York lawmakers are moving to close out their impeachment investigation within a month. Party and union leaders have abandoned him.

He should resign. Probably won't, but should. The allegations against him are too detailed for him to claim that it was all a misunderstanding. If he could muster the barest minimum of grace, he might be able to keep his legacy from hemorrhaging into nothingness, but only if he were to leave before New York lawmakers boot him of their own accord.

NEW: Assembly begins to lay groundwork for @NYGovCuomo impeachment: - Heastie believes most, if not all, Dems support impeachment. - Lawmakers planning hearings, review of evidence, articles by early September. - AG already began sending report materials.https://t.co/NHStgzV5Rk

— Luis Ferré-Sadurní (@luisferre) August 9, 2021

Cuomo’s arrogant bluster backfires. Everyone from Biden down is demanding he resign

Posted on by Joan McCarter

An independent investigation, which lasted for five months and included 179 witnesses and 74,000 pieces of evidence, has concluded that New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo sexually harassed multiple women and established a "toxic, hostile, abusive" office culture rife with "intimidation" and "fear." Given that kind of "leadership," it should come as no surprise that Cuomo responded grossly inappropriately and defiantly, like some rabid hybrid of Richard Nixon and Donald Trump. The asshole even had a video at the ready in which he used pictures of both President Barack Obama and George W. Bush hugging disaster victims in the aftermath of tragedy to show that powerful people hug other people and it's totally normal.

What he didn't have ready was a picture of some other high official who "during a hug, reached under Executive Assistant #1's blouse and grabbed her breast." Cuomo insisted Tuesday that all this behavior is just who he is. "I do banter with people," Cuomo said. "I try to put people at ease. I try to make them smile. I try to show my appreciation and friendship." Yes, nothing makes a work colleague smile like groping their breast.

Cuomo's arrogant and tone-deaf response to New York State Attorney General Letitia James' revelations in the report only made it that much easier for former friends and colleagues to abandon him. That includes President Joe Biden, a longtime ally, telling him it's time to go. "What I said was if the investigation by the attorney general concluded that the allegations were correct, back in March, I would recommend he resign," Biden told reporters. "That is what I'm doing today […] I think he should resign," the president said.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who is from New York himself, agreed. He, along with New York colleague Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, released a statement saying it was time for Cuomo to go. "As we have said before, the reported actions of the Governor were profoundly disturbing, inappropriate and completely unacceptable," the senators said. "Today's report from the New York State Attorney General substantiated and corroborated the allegations of the brave women who came forward to share their stories—and we commend the women for doing so."

"No elected official is above the law," Schumer and Gillibrand concluded. "The people of New York deserve better leadership in the governor's office. We continue to believe that the Governor should resign." House Speaker Nancy Pelosi urged him to resign if for no other reason than "respect for the office he holds." She added: "As always, I commend the women who came forward to speak their truth." New York Reps. Hakeem Jeffries, Thomas Suozzi, and Gregory Meeks released a joint statement saying: "The time has come for Governor Andrew Cuomo to do the right thing for the people of New York State and resign." The remainder of the state's Democratic delegation soon followed suit. Reps. Jerrold Nadler, Carolyn Maloney, Brian Higgins, Nydia Velázquez, Ritchie Torres, Yvette Clarke, Kathleen Rice, Grace Meng, Adriano Espaillat, Jamaal Bowman, Mondaire Jones, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said, "For the good of New York State, Andrew Cuomo must resign. If he does not, the New York State Assembly must begin impeachment proceedings."

Cuomo's fellow Democratic governors from neighboring states—Govs. Ned Lamont of Connecticut, Dan McKee of Rhode Island, Phil Murphy of New Jersey, and Tom Wolf of Pennsylvania—also called for his resignation, writing in a joint statement that they are "appalled at the findings of the independent investigation." There's pretty much no one besides Cuomo and possibly his brother Chris at CNN (CNN—you've got a big problem there) who thinks he needs to stay. His refusal to resign will lead to his impeachment.

Carl E. Heastie, the speaker of the State Assembly, said Tuesday: "He can no longer remain in office […] We will move expeditiously and look to conclude our impeachment investigation as quickly as possible." He said that Cuomo had "lost the confidence of the Assembly Democratic majority." The report's finding are "disturbing," he said, adding that the conduct by the governor outlined in this report would “indicate someone who is not fit for office."

Andrea Stewart-Cousins, the majority leader of the State Senate, concurred. "This report highlights unacceptable behavior by Governor Cuomo and his administration," she said in a statement. "As I said when these disturbing allegations first came to light, the Governor must resign for the good of the state. Now that the investigation is comet and the allegations have been substantiated, it should be clear to everyone that he can no longer serve as Governor."

She and many others made it a point to "give a special thank you to the courageous women who bravely stepped forward to shed light on this awful situation. We all owe them a debt of gratitude." Indeed, the personal and professional risk these women took in taking on Cuomo makes obnoxious denials and excuses that much more egregious. His performance Tuesday will do nothing to help in in this impeachment. He has virtually no one on his side.

Meanwhile, Cuomo is facing a criminal investigation in Albany County, said David Soares, the county district attorney, on Tuesday. Soares said in a statement that his office would request the investigative materials from the attorney general's report and encouraged other women who have been abused by Cuomo to come forward to assist in the inquiry.

Resign, dirtbag

Posted on (Updated by Hunter

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo responded to a comprehensive report describing years of sexual harassment, abuse, and retaliation aimed at the women who worked around him with a gaslighting and farcical statement not even worth a response. Cuomo insisted that his numerous accusers—the investigation cited interviews with 179 people, 40 of them under oath—were all lying or misinterpreting his behavior and that he, of course, was the true victim.

It was a grotesque performance. Cuomo again said he will not resign, despite the expansive, damning evidence against him. He should.

Tuesday, Aug 3, 2021 · 8:50:28 PM +00:00 · Hunter

President Joe Biden is now calling on Cuomo to resign.

Tuesday, Aug 3, 2021 · 9:22:35 PM +00:00 · Hunter

New York State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie says lawmakers will “move expeditiously and look to conclude our impeachment investigation as quickly as possible.”

Cuomo's fellow Democrats are wasting no time in condemning him and demanding his resignation. New York Democratic Reps. Gregory Meeks, Tom Suozzi, and Hakeem Jeffries issued a joint statement calling on Cuomo to resign.

Even before the results of the investigation were released, top Democratic figures gave clear statements insisting on Cuomo's resignation if the allegations against him were found to be true. President Joe Biden made such a statement in March, as did Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand. Schumer and Gillibrand again demanded that resignation today.

New York State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins has issued a new statement demanding that Cuomo "must resign for the good of the state." State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie issued a statement vowing the Assembly will "now undertake an in-depth examination" and that the conduct outlined in the report indicates "someone who is not fit for office." Assembly Member Yuh-Line Niou says articles of impeachment against Cuomo have already been drafted.

Meanwhile, House Republican Conference chair Rep. Elise Stefanik, a backer of alleged sex trafficker Rep. Matt Gaetz, jumped lazily into the conversation with a tweet, wondering "how long” it is going to take for each of the aforementioned top Democrats to call for Cuomo's resignation. Responders were thorough in documenting that each of those calls have already happened. Not that it mattered. Stefanik campaigned for, and won, Rep. Liz Cheney's leadership post after Cheney was stripped of it for being unwilling to lie about an insurrection; Stefanik’s pitch to the party was that she would have no such moral qualms.

Cuomo is finding no base of Democratic support today. The allegations against him are serious, severe, and well-documented, and his gaslighting and insulting blanket denials may only serve to pressure state lawmakers to impeach him faster.

Andrew Cuomo needs to resign immediately. His staff needs to resign immediately instead of continuing to support him. The investigation has been concluded; Cuomo has no plausible defense.

The floodgates open on New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and calls to resign pour out

Posted on by Laura Clawson

At the beginning of the day Friday, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, now the subject of sexual harassment allegations from six women, faced an impeachment investigation and calls to resign from more than half of the state legislature. Things got worse for him from there.

Within the space of minutes, 11 members of New York's congressional delegation called for Cuomo to resign. Rep. Kathleen Rice had already done so. She’s now joined by Reps. Jerry Nadler, Jamaal Bowman, Mondaire Jones, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Carolyn Maloney, Yvette Clarke, Nydia Velazquez, Grace Meng, Antonio Delgado, and Adriano Espaillat.

Cuomo had long been known to be a bully, but he was successful in his bullying—it was something discussed privately, or alluded to only very carefully in public. Then Lindsey Boylan, a former aide, came forward with detailed allegations that he, among other things, “would go out of his way to touch me on my lower back, arms and legs,” for a long period, eventually kissing her against her will. Boylan’s account was followed by that of another former aide, Charlotte Bennett, who said that, after Cuomo asked her detailed personal questions including whether she had ever had sex with an older man (she had played middle school sports against Cuomo’s daughter), “I understood that the governor wanted to sleep with me, and felt horribly uncomfortable and scared. And was wondering how I was going to get out of it and assumed it was the end of my job.” Next came Anna Ruch, who said that within minutes of meeting Cuomo at a wedding, she had to remove his hand from her lower back and was then stunned as he put his hands on her face and asked if he could kiss her.

Cuomo’s fourth accuser, Ana Liss, is another former staffer, who offered a similar account to Boylan and Bennett, including inappropriate questions and inappropriate touching, though not to the extent Boylan described. “I’m not claiming sexual harassment per se. I’m just saying that it wasn’t a safe space for young women to work or for women in general,” Liss said. A fifth accuser described an “inappropriate” and “unethical” hug 21 years ago. And the sixth accuser remains unidentified, but apparently still works in Cuomo’s administration and says that he groped her last year.

Nadler kept his statement purely to the sexual harassment allegations against Cuomo, saying “The repeated accusations against the Governor, and the manner in which he has responded to them, have made it impossible for him to continue to govern at this point.” Nadler called for due process in investigations that could lead to criminal charges, but concluded “Governor Cuomo has lost the confidence of the people of New York. Governor Cuomo must resign.”

In a joint statement, Ocasio-Cortez and Bowman focused on the sexual harassment allegations—which, they noted, include two sexual assault allegations—saying “The fact that this latest report was so recent is alarming, and it raises concerns about the present safety and well-being of the administration’s staff.” Ocasio-Cortez and Bowman also cited “the extensive report from the Attorney General that found the Cuomo Administration hid data on COVID-19 nursing home deaths from both the public and the state legislature” in joining—as they emphasized—55 members of the state legislature in calling for his resignation.

Jones' call for Cuomo’s resignation was more wide-ranging, touching on not only sexual harassment and the nursing home deaths, but his handling of vaccination site locations and “an alleged cover-up of potential structural defects in the Mario M. Cuomo Bridge.” By contrast, Delgado's statement was terse, describing “a culture of aggression that is unfit to lead.” Not as terse as Espaillat, though, who simply tweeted “It is time for Governor Cuomo to resign.”

Meng: “The mounting sexual harassment allegations against Governor Cuomo are alarming. The challenges facing our state and New Yorkers are unprecedented, and I believe he is unable to govern effectively. The Governor should resign for the good of our state.”

Velazquez: “As one brave victim after another has come forward, it has become undeniable that Governor Cuomo has sexually mistreated women, abused his office, and lost the trust of the public to lead.”

Maloney: “We have come a long way, but now is the time to finally ensure that this generation’s courage stops harassment once and for all.”

Clarke: “These troubling allegations have reached a level that I believe impedes Governor Cuomo’s ability to serve the people of New York State to the best of his abilities.”

At this point, a majority of the House Democrats from New York have called on Cuomo to resign. Additionally, the Long Island Democrats in the state Senate have jointly called on Cuomo to “step aside” for the duration of the state attorney general’s investigation into the sexual harassment allegations, allowing Lieutenant Gov. Kathy Hochul to take over during that time, while one state senator said the entire state Senate Democratic delegation wanted him to resign.

Cuomo has thus far responded belligerently to calls for him to resign. Will this tip him over? It’s hard to see what he thinks he can accomplish under these circumstances.