N.Y. senators add voices to call for Cuomo to resign
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand called Friday on New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo to resign, adding the most powerful Democratic voices yet to calls for the governor to leave office in the wake of allegations of sexual harassment and groping.
“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,“New York’s two U.S. senators said in a joint statement. “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.”
Both had earlier said an independent investigation into the allegations was essential.
A majority of state lawmakers had already called on Cuomo to resign, and more than half of New York’s Democratic congressional members joined those calls Friday.
As the Democratic Party turned sharply against Cuomo and he faces growing allegations of sexual harassment, he insisted Friday he wouldn’t resign 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,” he said, again calling on the public to let ongoing investigations into his conduct to play out. “Wait for the facts.”
“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.
With a sprawling coalition of congressional leaders joining dozens of state lawmakers in calling for the embattled governor to step down, the Democrat hit back.
“You need to know the facts before you make a decision,” he said. “People know the difference between playing politics, bowing to cancel culture and the truth.”
Cuomo’s growing list of detractors now covers virtually every region in the state and the political power centers of New York City and Washington. His allies insist he will not resign, but as allegations of sexual harassment grow, his political isolation has reached unprecedented levels.
Cuomo has denied he ever touched anyone inappropriately and has said he’s sorry if he ever made anyone uncomfortable. He reiterated that Friday while insisting: “I never harassed anyone. I never assaulted anyone. I never abused anyone.”