4 August 2021: Damning Details of Cuomo's Misconduct Force Impeachment Forward

The Damning Details of Andrew Cuomo’s Behavior

This report is primarily about the bombshell findings of the New York State Attorney General's investigation of sexual harassment incidents perpetrated by Andrew M. Cuomo while New York Governor. It does however present some new information about the shift in NY Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie's position on how fast the legislature should proceed with Cuomo's impeachment.

The question, then, is whether the Legislature will impeach him. The state Assembly has been running its own investigation, looking not only into the harassment allegations but Cuomo’s handling of nursing home deaths during the pandemic; construction problems with a bridge named after his father; and his possible use of state resources in preparing a book for which he received $5 million.

Last week, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie urged patience, suggesting that the report from the attorney general’s office, whatever its findings, would not necessarily be enough to trigger impeachment. Following its release, Heastie said, “The conduct by the governor outlined in this report would indicate someone who is not fit for office.”

“Stick a fork in him, he’s done,” says Douglas Muzzio, a political scientist at Baruch College.

The report also describes the toxic environrment the Cuomo administration has established within New York's state government:

The report raises questions about whether Cuomo can be trusted to run his own office, let alone the entire state, suggests Michael Hendrix, director of state and local policy at the Manhattan Institute, a conservative think tank (and occasional Governing contributor).

“You don’t have to read all 168 pages of the attorney general’s report to see words like ‘toxic,’ ‘vindictive,’ and ‘abusive’ appear over and over again in describing Gov. Cuomo and the culture of fear in his office,” Hendrix says. “The question now is whether Andrew Cuomo is politically among the walking dead.”

The answer to that last question depends on what Heastie does next. Will he find new ways to continue blocking the Assembly from voting to impeach Andrew M. Cuomo based on the information it already has? Or will he resume insisting the Assembly can do nothing until it completes its own slipshod "probe", which has been described as a "sham".