New York Post

Probe shows he went out of way to aid Andy

- By BERNADETTE HOGAN, CARL CAMPANILE and BRUCE GOLDING

A devastatin­g cache of documents from the sexual harassment probe that forced Andrew Cuomo from office revealed Monday how much his brother, CNN anchor Chris Cuomo, tried to help a sitting governor stanch the bleeding.

The newly revealed trove of text messages and investigat­ive interview transcript­s, made public by Attorney General Letitia James, also appeared to put the younger Cuomo’s high-profile, cable TV job in peril.

The materials show how Chris Cuomo desperatel­y scrambled to assist his big brother — even by reaching out to “sources” in the news industry for informatio­n — despite publicly claiming that all he did was “listen” and “offer my take.”

Late Monday afternoon, CNN finally broke its silence on the matter, saying it was reviewing the documents and suggesting the “Cuomo Prime Time” host’s future hangs in the balance.

“The thousands of pages of additional transcript­s and exhibits that were released today by the NY Attorney General deserve a thorough review and considerat­ion,” CNN said.

“We will be having conversati­ons and seeking additional clarity about their significan­ce as they relate to CNN over the next several days.”

Last year, Chris Cuomo, 51, said on his Sirius XM show that he’d renewed his CNN contract, which the Celebrity Net Worth Web site pegs at $6 million a year.

Among other things, the evidence compiled by James shows that Chris Cuomo — who’s come under fire for advising his governor brother, 63, amid the scandal — told investigat­ors that he tried to keep actor Alec Baldwin from advocating on Andrew’s behalf.

Dozens of text messages also show Chris Cuomo and Melissa DeRosa, Andrew’s top aide, discussing how to respond.

At one point — on March 7, just a week after Andrew Cuomo authorized James to commission an independen­t probe — DeRosa wrote, “Rumor going around from politico 1-2 more ppl coming out tomorrow.”

“Can u check your sources,” she asked the CNN host.

“On it,” Chris Cuomo responded. Later that day, he texted her: “No resign. No resign. No resign.” She responded, “No resign.” During a July 15 interview with investigat­ors, Chris Cuomo described contacting “another journalist” about a planned New Yorker article on his brother by Ronan Farrow, who had won a Pulitzer Prize for helping expose sexual misconduct by Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein.

“And did you tell anyone at CNN that you were contacting journalist­s about whether the Ronan Farrow piece about your brother would be coming out?” lawyer Jennifer Kennedy Park asked.

“No, not specifical­ly,” Chris Cuomo answered.

Kennedy Park then asked if it was “out of the ordinary” for him “to make calls on behalf of the Executive Chamber or behalf of your brother.”

“Well, I didn’t see it that way,” he said.

Chris Cuomo further claimed that “the idea of one reporter calling another to find out about what’s coming down the pipe is completely business-as-usual.”

The documents also show Chris Cuomo on March 1 critiqued a statement his brother issued a day earlier and sent DeRosa what he thought should have been the response to harassment allegation­s by former aide Charlotte Bennett.

“Here’s what he should have said, ‘I have carefully considered Ms. Bennett’s statement and my own conduct. I don’t dispute that our conversati­on was as she reports,’ ” Chris Cuomo testified.

“‘I also do not dispute that my words and supervisor­y position may have created a hostile work environmen­t. I apologize to Ms. Bennett and will promptly seek to personally communicat­e my apology to her. I also apologize to the people of New York State who have a right to better conduct for their governor. This will not happen again.’ ”

In a March 10 text to DeRosa, he also apparently invoked the names of political consultant Lis Smith and pollster Jefrey Pollock while saying, “You need to trust me lis and jeff more. Not these other people. We are making mistakes we cant afford.”

And in another text later that day, he mentioned an unnamed woman who “has problems with story” and about whom someone “may want to talk.”

“And I know this. Delete thread now,” he added seconds later.

Chris Cuomo testified that he got involved because “My brother asked me to be in the loop. And so from time to time, I would be contacted by Melissa or another member more frequently.”

But during her own testimony on July 6, DeRosa said, “Chris sends me a lot of things a lot of the time.”

“Half of it I don’t engage in. He gives unsolicite­d advice,” she added.

The Aug. 3 sexual harassment report against Andrew Cuomo revealed that Chris Cuomo got “confidenti­al and often privileged informatio­n about state operations” while helping strategize his brother’s response.

That detail sparked outrage among CNN employees, one of whom told BuzzFeed it was a “disgrace to journalism” that Chris Cuomo “wasn’t fired over his inappropri­ate conflict of interest.”

It was later revealed that while on vacation amid the scandal, Chris Cuomo told his brother to resign, just days before Andrew finally pulled the plug on Aug. 10.

When he returned from vacation, on Aug. 16, Chris used his 9 p.m. show to claim that network rules prohibited him from covering the blockbuste­r event — and tried to downplay his role in helping his brother.

“I never reported on the scandal. And when it happened, I tried to be there for my brother. I’m not an adviser, I’m a brother. I wasn’t in control of anything. I was there to listen, offer my take,” he said.

During his July 15 interview, Chris Cuomo testified that both he and his brother know Baldwin and that an unidentifi­ed “very good friend” called and told him, “Alec wants to talk about cancel culture or political correctnes­s.”

“I asked him not to. I said, ‘Tell him to stay out of it. It’s not necessary,’ ” Chris Cuomo said.

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