27 May 2021: NY Assembly Leaders Accused of Slow Walking Cuomo Impeachment Probe

Cuomo's Impeachment Inquiry Accused of Slo-Walking Its Probe

With evidence continuing to build the NY Assembly's Cuomo impeachment probe is a sham, state lawmakers and public interest groups are using the words "slow-walking" to describe its progress:

State lawmakers and government watchdogs expressed concern that the process is moving too slowly, allowing Cuomo to endure the Assembly inquiry into claims he sexually harassed aides, covered up Covid nursing-home deaths, provided family members with virus testing before it was widely available, mishandled construction of the Mario Cuomo Bridge and misused public resources while writing a $5 million leadership book. State Attorney General Letitia James and the FBI also are investigating some of the claims.

“We should have gone straight into impeachment when we had enough evidence to make that decision to remove him from a position of power,” said Assembly member Ron Kim, a Cuomo critic, in an interview. “What we’ve created is this space for Cuomo to use his position and public resources to re-brand himself.”

The report also confirms the increasing importance of the state attorney general's investigative findings for lawmakers with the Assembly's probe deliberately moving at a snail's pace:

Jay Jacobs, chair of the New York Democratic Party, said in an interview that fundraising for the party hasn’t stalled and that in terms of criticism about Cuomo, “things have been very quiet, relatively quiet, since the initial flurry of allegations.”

“Everybody is awaiting the results of the attorney general’s report and then we’ll see what happens in the Assembly,” Jacobs said....

Two people familiar with James’s investigation said they don’t expect the probe to wrap up before the end of this summer. They said the office has worked hard to keep a tight lid on developments and is taking the issue seriously and rigorously.

It's going to be a long summer.