19 February 2021: Governor Cuomo Blames Critics for Spreading "Lies" and "Misinformation"

Rattled Andrew Cuomo rants about nursing home scandal 'lies,' won't take responsibility

This article reports on Governor Cuomo's latest attempt at damage control:

A defensive Gov. Andrew Cuomo went on a 15-minute rant Friday in which he vowed to counter what he claimed were "lies" and "misinformation" about his handling of nursing homes amid the COVID-19 pandemic — and accused his critics of "causing pain" to the relatives of residents killed by the disease.

During a virtual news conference from Albany, Cuomo said, "I'm not going to let you hurt New Yorkers by lying about what happened. Surrounding the death of a loved one."

"So, I'm going to take on the lies and the unscrupulous actors, especially when they cause pain and damage to New York," he said.

"I should have done it before. And I should have done it more aggressively."

"This is different," he said.

"This is causing the pain to families who lost a loved one."

His remarks, which appeared to have been scripted and were accompanied by slides reinforcing his message, came a day after the New York Law Journal reported that the FBI and the Brooklyn US Attorney's Office had launched a probe of his COVID-19 task force in the wake of The Post's report.