Cuomo’s Dark Days

W e were glad to see Gov. Cuomo rise to defend three of his top aides whose records have been subpoenaed by US Attorney Preet Bharara — not least because it’s a strong sign that Cuomo himself is in the clear.

The governor will still be damaged, just as New Jersey’s Gov. Chris Christie was bloodied badly by his underlings’ Bridgegate outrages: You’re defined by who you hire.

Cuomo’s counsel, Alphonso David, late Monday night released a statement expressing the gov’s “full confidence” in Bill Mulrow, Jim Malatras and Andrew Kennedy, terming all three as “nothing more than victims or witnesses to a potential crime.”

Sadly, that “potential crime” plainly involves Joe Percoco, a decades-long Cuomo confidant who may have steered huge contracts to firms that paid him fat fees while he was off the state payroll in 2014.

More precisely, while he was running Cuomo’s re-election campaign — work that earned him $225,000, including a $120,000 bonus.

As we’ve noted before, the scandal also taints the entire Buffalo Billion — the gov’s signature economic-development effort, which is looking like just the latest in the long, long line of New York “jobs-creating” boondoggles.

And the probe may yet expose corruption elsewhere. Cuomo’s statement of support also left out Peter Cutler, formerly with the Empire State Development Corp., and Gil Quinones, the CEO of the New York Power Authority. It’s not clear that either is personally under investigation, but both ESDC and NYPA have a lot of room for graft . . .

As we say, nothing that’s come to light so far even hints that Cuomo himself crossed the faintest line. On the other hand, it’s a still-growing corruption probe of an administration led by a man who once promised to clean up Albany.

Maybe it’s time for a new, and truly independent, Moreland Commission?