New York’s Gov Andrew Cuomo is in an almost insurmountable heap of trouble following a duo of sexual harassment charges and calls for him to step down.
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Yes, Gov Andrew Cuomo — the star of the coronavirus crisis who provided a daily dose of calm and trusted information on America’s TV’s during the initial threat of COVID-19 — is now receiving calls to resign after not 1, but 2 female former employees have come forward with claims that he sexually harassed them.
Lindsey Boylan, a former aide to Gov. Andrew Cuomo who is now a candidate for Manhattan borough president in New York City, was the first to detail sexual harassment charges against the governor. According to Ms. Boylan, she endured years of uncomfortable interactions with Cuomo, including an invitation to play strip poker on a government airplane and receiving an unwelcomed kiss from him inside her office in 2018.
“As I got up to leave and walk toward an open door, he stepped in front of me and kissed me on the lips,” Ms. Boylan said. “I was in shock, but I kept walking.”
Charlotte Bennett, who is 25 and once worked as an executive assistant and health policy adviser to Gov Andrew Cuomo, came forward over the weekend with claims that the governor asked her inappropriate questions about her sex life, including if she was monogamous in her relationships and if she had ever had sex with older men. He also allegedly inquired if she thought age made a difference in romantic relationships and said that he was open to relationships with women in their 20s — comments she interpreted as clear overtures to a sexual relationship.
“I understood that the governor wanted to sleep with me and felt horribly uncomfortable and scared,” Ms. Bennett said. “And was wondering how I was going to get out of it and assumed it was the end of my job.”
According to Ms. Bennett, when she reported the conversation to her boss and Cuomo’s chief of staff, she was immediately reassigned to a different job on the other side of the Capitol. Cuomo was never disciplined.
In a statement released on Sunday evening, the 63-year-old Gov Andrew Cuomo denied that he ever made advances or “inappropriately touched” anybody. However, he did concede that he often teased and bantered around with members of his staff, “being playful” while working in what he called “a very serious business.”
“I now understand that my interactions may have been insensitive or too personal and that some of my comments, given my position, made others feel in ways I never intended,” he said. “I acknowledge some of the things I have said have been misinterpreted as an unwanted flirtation. To the extent anyone felt that way, I am truly sorry about that.”
Not everyone is accepting of Cuomo’s apology, particularly since he was charged in February with undercounting COVID-19 nursing home deaths in New York State in order to look better in the court of public opinion.
“I think that a lot of New Yorkers understand there’s a sense of urgency here in regards to Gov. Cuomo. We know he’s a liar, we know he’s a bully. Now he’s being accused of being a sexual predator,” said Brian Olesen, owner of American Shooter Supply who purchased a billboard calling for Cuomo’s resignation.
“We have 15,000 fatalities in nursing homes [and other long-term care facilities] that he’s lied to us about. When are New Yorkers going to stand up and remove this guy from office?”
Mayor Bill de Blasio of New York City, a Democrat who has had a long-standing contentious relationship with the governor, said on Monday that he believes Cuomo’s statement was “not an apology,” but rather an attempt to let “himself off the hook.”
“He seemed to be saying, ‘Aw, I was just kidding around,’” Mr. de Blasio said. “Sexual harassment isn’t funny. It’s serious and it has to be taken seriously.”
New York Attorney General Letitia James has announced that she intends to move forward with an independent investigation into the allegations. However, with political pressure mounting from all angles, Cuomo’s options are dwindling and he could seek to avoid a public circus by resigning as early as this week.
Stay tuned…
(Sigh)! Another man in a position of power and authority, thinking his umm…stuff don’t stink, sexually harassing women (subordinates) in the workplace.
So now a 3rd woman has come forward and accused him of “unwanted advances” which now brings the count to what….3 women?
Andrew Cuomo is typical woman harassing schmuck, who – because of his family name and position – has probably gotten away with really really bad behavior towards women for a long time. Well it’s finally caught up to him.
He should resign…today. But I won’t hold my breath.