Pressure Mounts on NY Governor Cuomo to Resign

By Staff, Agencies

New York’s two US senators, Chuck Schumer, who is also the Senate majority leader, and Kirsten Gillibrand, joined national and state representatives late Friday afternoon in calling for Governor Andrew Cuomo’s resignation.

Cuomo had earlier again refused to resign after a group of New York’s most powerful and prominent Democrats in the House of Representatives joined calls for the governor to step down over the multiple sexual misconduct allegations against him, and scrutiny over his administration’s misreporting of Covid-19 deaths among nursing home residents.”

Schumer and Gillibrand put out a joint statement, saying: “Confronting and overcoming the COVID crisis requires sure and steady leadership. We commend the brave actions of the individuals who have come forward with serious allegations of abuse and misconduct.”

It continued: “Due to the multiple, credible sexual harassment and misconduct allegations, it is clear that Governor Cuomo has lost the confidence of his governing partners and the people of New York. Governor Cuomo should resign.”

At a press conference earlier on Friday, Cuomo denied all of the sexual misconduct allegations and castigated politicians calling for him to quit as “reckless and dangerous” and engaging in “cancel culture”.

“I did not do what has been alleged. Period,” Cuomo said. The governor said he wanted investigations into the allegations to proceed but added: “I’m not going to resign. Period.

“Politicians who don’t know a single fact but yet form a conclusion and an opinion are, in my opinion, reckless and dangerous,” he added.

His statement came shortly after a group of congressional representatives includes Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a standard bearer for the party’s progressive wing, as well as Jerry Nadler, who chairs the House judiciary committee, and Carolyn Maloney, the chair of the House oversight committee.

Nadler said on Friday that Cuomo had lost the confidence of New Yorkers. “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,” the congressman said.

In a joint statement issued with Jamaal Bowman, another New York congressman, Ocasio-Cortez said the latest allegation against Cuomo was “alarming” and “raises concerns about the present safety and well-being of the administration’s staff. These allegations have all been consistent and highly detailed, and there are also credible media reports substantiating their accounts.”

In total, 10 of the 19 Democrats from New York elected to the House of Representatives have now called for Cuomo’s resignation, with Kathleen Rice, who represents a section of New York’s Long Island, previously calling for his removal.