New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, currently embroiled in multiple scandals, issued a statement apologizing for making two women who have accused him of sexual harassment “uncomfortable.”
Cuomo apologized for his actions and said he simply felt he was “being playful” and that he was “joking.”
“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,” the Democrat said.
“I acknowledge some of the things I have said have been misinterpreted as an unwanted flirtation,” he added. “To the extent anyone felt that way, I am truly sorry about that.”
Still, Cuomo insisted he never engaged in any inappropriate touching or inappropriate requests.
“To be clear I never inappropriately touched anybody and I never propositioned anybody and I never intended to make anyone feel uncomfortable, but these are allegations that New Yorkers deserve answers to,” he suggested.
Lindsey Boylan, a former Cuomo aide, claims that he forcibly kissed her on the lips and suggested “let’s play strip poker.”
The New York Times followed those allegations with a report that a second aide, Charlotte Bennett, had been asked by the governor if she “had ever been with an older man.”
Breaking: Cuomo admits some behavior with women was ‘insensitive or too personal,’ offering apology and ceding control of probe. | Just The News https://t.co/gPjg5tAMwp
— John Solomon (@jsolomonReports) March 1, 2021
RELATED: NY Journalist Accuses Cuomo Of ‘Terrorizing’ Him For Doing His Job As A Reporter
Cuomo’s Sexual Harassment Problems Are Real
Anyone with even a cursory knowledge of New York politics knows Andrew Cuomo’s apology is a sure sign that he is in big trouble with this sexual harassment scandal.
He simply does not admit to anything.
But he clearly is seeing signs of Democrats whole-heartedly turning on him for what is now four ongoing scandals:
- Secretary to the Governor Melissa DeRosa admitted in a conference call that the administration hid information on COVID nursing home deaths from federal investigators.
- The nursing home scandal itself, which involved Cuomo famously issuing an executive order forcing nursing homes to take on patients that had tested positive for coronavirus.
- Democrat state legislators and media members accused Cuomo of bullying them over the nursing home scandals as well as past negative reporting.
- And now, multiple claims of sexual harassment levied against Governor Cuomo.
Now, former staunch allies are turning on him.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the women making the sexual harassment claims against Cuomo “should be heard and not silenced” and “any allegation should be reviewed.”
.@DanaBashCNN asks @PressSec if @JoeBiden believes @NYGovCuomo’s accusers or the gov. Spox says story was “hard to read, as a woman” and calls for independent “review” of both sets of allegations. pic.twitter.com/0fN8xPS6Cc
— Casey Seiler (@CaseySeiler) February 28, 2021
President Biden has indicated he backs an “independent review” of the claims.
And House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has labeled the allegations “credible.”
“The women who have come forward with serious and credible charges against Governor Cuomo deserve to be heard and to be treated with dignity,” Pelosi (D-CA) said.
Nancy Pelosi calls sexual harassment claims against Cuomo “credible.” But wait! There will be more! I advised patience when CNN, MSNBC, ABC, NBC, CBS protected Cuomo by spiking story, promising the tsunami will hit. Trust the Universe.@nypost https://t.co/kQWJ3EZwvF pic.twitter.com/YW5qSDIIiX
— Marty Davis (@MartyDavis) March 1, 2021
RELATED: Walls Closing In? Cuomo Admin Under FBI Investigation For COVID Nursing Home Scandal
The ‘Luv Guv’ Is In Trouble
As to our earlier statement that Cuomo is figuring out he’s got some serious problems, New York Times correspondent Maggie Haberman agrees.
“Hearing Andrew Cuomo apologize for anything is breathtaking,” Haberman said.
“I have covered him on-and-off for 20 years, and I can’t remember another time when he has done that. I think it speaks to the degree to which he knows he is in real trouble.”
Haberman also pointed out that initially, Cuomo did his best to avoid an independent probe and instead appointed his own choice to oversee any investigation.
That person – former federal Judge Barbara Jones – just so happens to be a former law firm colleague of former Cuomo aide Steve Cohen.
After a significant outcry, Cuomo’s office said that he’ll allow New York Attorney General Letitia James to appoint her own investigators in the sexual harassment investigation.
Haberman believes Cuomo is “very concerned” about the investigation because it might go in directions he “can’t control.”
“I think he was trying to avoid having Tish James, the New York attorney general, end up with an independent probe into what has happened. I think he resisted that repeatedly,” she stated.
“I think ultimately, he had to throw up his hands and give in to it yesterday. We saw multiple statements from his office come out about such a probe. And eventually, he appeared to just give in.”
James, a Democrat, got the nursing home cover-up scandal off and running with the mainstream media – (it had been covered here relentlessly for months).
She accused Cuomo and his administration, particularly officials at the State Health Department, of undercounting COVID deaths at nursing homes by as much as 50%.
There has been ongoing speculation that James could primary Cuomo in 2022.
