Andrew Cuomo, Governor of New York,
and the only person who wishes it was still 2020.
A few weeks ago, Cuomo was hit
with sexual harassment accusations
from two former staffers.
But much like coronavirus in New York nursing homes,
the allegations have only been getting worse.
NEWSWOMAN: In recent weeks, seven women have accused
the governor of sexual misconduct or harassment.
The sixth accusation came from the Albany Times Union,
which reported that a female aide to Cuomo
alleges the governor aggressively groped her
late last year while she was alone with him
in his private residence.
And today, New York magazine says it interviewed
more than 30 women who have either worked with
or interacted with Cuomo, and found that bullying
was a defining element.
Jessica Bakeman, a journalist, said Cuomo's...
Another woman, Kaitlin, said she was hired as an aide
for her looks, and that she was verbally and mentally abused
by him and his staff.
Today's New York Times says its investigation
showed Cuomo's office is afflicted
with a culture still rooted in the Mad Men era,
including an expectation that younger female staffers
wear makeup, dresses and heels,
because it was rumored that was what the governor liked.
Whew!
These allegations are some serious shit.
Bullying and groping women.
A Mad Men office culture.
And pushing women to wear dresses and heels?
I mean, it sounds like Cuomo basically thought of himself
like a bouncer outside a nightclub.
Which is convenient for him, because that might be his job
in a couple of months.
And practically every day now,
there are more and more accusations piling up.
It's getting so bad that he's gonna have to bring back
his power point slides just to track the harassment claims.
I mean, just in the past couple of weeks,
we've heard about him harassing staffers, journalists,
wedding guests-- it seems like no women in New York
were safe from this guy.
At some point we're gonna find out the Statue of Liberty
only holds that torch so she can fend him off.
Now, Cuomo insists that an investigation
into these allegations will exonerate him.
And while President Biden is willing to wait
and see where the investigation leads,
he might be the only one left.
NEWSWOMAN: Governor Cuomo is digging in
despite a cascade of demands from politicians--
many fellow Democrats--
saying that he needs to step down
for the good of the state.
Almost all of the state's Democratic congresspeople
are calling on Cuomo to go,
along with its two U.S. senators
Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand.
Governor Cuomo has lost the confidence
of his governing partners,
as well as the people of New York.
NEWSWOMAN: Long-time congressman Jerry Nadler says...
Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
and Congressman Jamaal Bowman jointly said...
That's right. No one wants anything to do with Cuomo.
AOC wants him to resign.
Schumer wants him to resign.
His brother renamed his CNN show from Cuomo Prime Time
to just It's Just Chris, Okay??
It's Just Chris.
But yes, many Democrats say that Cuomo
can no longer effectively lead New York.
And photos like this one aren't helping.
I mean, if you're walking around outside wearing a blanket,
you don't look like you're on top of things.
You look like you either got saved from a drowning car,
or you live with 100 cats.
Or maybe his strategy is just to go in disguise.
Maybe that's what he's trying to do.
Andrew Cuomo? No, I'm an old Italian grandmother,
Nonna Maria.
Okay, Granny, well, let's get you back into a nursing home.
Oh, shit. That backfired.
And remember, while all of this is going on,
New York is still in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic.
The state is even dealing with its own New York mutation,
which makes corona easier to catch,
and also makes you weirdly defensive about bagels.
And if you want to convince people
that you're still focused on corona,
it's probably a bad idea to have your vaccine czar
spending his time doing this.
NEWSMAN: Now a report in The Washington Post
makes claims that one of Cuomo's top advisors
and vaccine czar Larry Schwartz, may have crossed ethical lines.
Accused of making calls to county executives
questioning their loyalty.
NEWSWOMAN: One executive was so upset by the call,
the person filed an ethics complaint
with the State Attorney General's Office.
According to the report, one official believed
getting vaccines to his area could suffer
if Schwartz was not pleased with his response.
And the governor's office and Schwartz deny
that the governor did anything wrong.
Schwartz told the Post that when he made those calls,
it was not in his roll as a vaccine czar,
but only as Cuomo's friend.
Oh.
That response is so gangsta.
I'm not calling you as the guy
who has all the vaccines your area needs,
I'm just calling you as Cuomo's friend...
who has all the vaccines your area needs.
I just want to know if you support him...
or if you like getting COVID-- it's just a question.
And look, he can say that he was just calling as a friend,
but he is the vaccine czar.
Like, he should be doing vaccine shit.
Like, where does he even find the time for chitchat?
Because I'm spending all my time in an alley behind Walgreens,
trying to lick the insides of used syringes.
Although, I guess it's not entirely his fault.
Like, it's not completely his fault, you know what I mean?
They did make him the vaccine czar.
If you don't want people to abuse their power,
maybe stop calling them czars, you know?
Hey, you know those tyrannical rulers from the old days?
That's your job now. But, like, be nice, okay?
So, Cuomo's attempts to stay in power
are only giving people more reasons
to call for his resignation.
But Cuomo says it's never going to happen.
And he has a very dumb explanation for why.
NEWSWOMAN: New York governor Andrew Cuomo
reiterating he's innocent amid mounting allegations
and ongoing investigations into his alleged misconduct.
The governor also saying he isn't going anywhere.
That's right.
From the time he became governor ten years ago
to his years as attorney general,
back to when he worked in the Clinton administration,
Andrew Cuomo has never been part of the political club.
And if you disagree, you can drive your ass out of New York
on the bridge they named after his governor dad.
But yes, Andrew Cuomo thinks that holding him to account
for his actions is...
"cancel culture."
Which is obviously making people pretty angry.
Especially nursing home residents.
They're like, "Bitch, you cancelled Gladys."
And I got to be honest, if this is cancel culture,
well, then I have no idea what cancel culture means anymore.
I guess it's, it's about letting Dr. Seuss books be racist,
but also not letting politicians get away with sexual harassment.
Cancel culture feels a lot like watching WandaVision.
Every time I think I get what it's about,
the next scene is, like:
now it's about a purple witch
who's only pretend possessed?
But this is the new playbook, you know?
It's the new playbook for all these kinds of scandals.
You just refuse to step aside,
and you hope that things eventually blow over.
It worked for Donald Trump.
It worked for Ralph Northam.
And Andrew Cuomo hopes it'll work...
for Nonna Maria.