NY Lawmakers Give Cuomo a Firm Deadline as Most Support Impeachment
Days after New York Attorney General Letitia James released a report detailing the alleged sexual harassment of 11 women by Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo, the one-time political rockstar might be on his way out.
Cuomo, who in 2020 was hailed by Democrats, the establishment media and Hollywood as a model for leadership, has been given eight days to present evidence to defend himself before he faces impeachment by the state Assembly.
Politico reported that the governor has been informed by the Assembly’s Judiciary Committee that he has until the end of next week to share his side of the story amid a probe that has found evidence backing up allegations that the Democrat is a serial sexual harasser. Cuomo has denied any wrongdoing.
“We write to inform you that the Committee’s investigation is nearing completion and the Assembly will soon consider potential articles of impeachment against your client,” Cuomo was told through his legal team by the committee’s attorneys, according to Politico.
“Accordingly, we invite you to provide any additional evidence or written submissions that you would like the Committee to consider before its work concludes. To the extent that you wish to share any such materials with the Committee, please do so by no later than 5:00 pm on August 13, 2021,” the Assembly said.
That Assembly’s probe, which is separate from the one conducted by James, began in March.
Cuomo’s political career appears to be on the ropes. According to The Associated Press, a majority of Assembly members right now would vote to remove him as governor if he doesn’t go away willingly.
Of the 150 legislators, 86 of them — 57 percent — have confirmed that they would like to see Cuomo removed. As the AP noted, only a simple majority of lawmakers is needed to initiate impeachment proceedings in New York.
News of the Assembly’s preference for Cuomo to step aside comes as high-profile former supporters such as President Joe Biden and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have also called for him to resign.
BREAKING: Pres. Biden calls on New York Gov. Cuomo to resign from office: “I think he should resign.” pic.twitter.com/E2UJmrZdkZ
— CBS News (@CBSNews) August 3, 2021
Pelosi calls for Cuomo to resign ——> pic.twitter.com/wt2EFQeJD4
— Andrew Solender (@AndrewSolender) August 3, 2021
The governor signaled on Tuesday in a lengthy video statement that he has no plans to quit during his third term as governor. Cuomo instead denied any wrongdoing and vowed to remain defiant.
Governor Cuomo Responds to Independent Reviewer Report: https://t.co/sgPuPEDXRU
— Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) August 3, 2021
The New York attorney general’s months-long investigation culminated in a report that concluded that Cuomo “sexually harassed multiple women and, in doing so, broke the law,” James said at a media briefing on Tuesday.
BREAKING: NY Attorney General Letitia James says independent investigation of Gov. Andrew Cuomo concluded that he “sexually harassed multiple women, and in doing so, violated federal and state law.” This included current and former New York State employees https://t.co/5hX3mAWII9 pic.twitter.com/sqbjeSa1Z1
— CBS News (@CBSNews) August 3, 2021
She also issued a separate statement in which called the governor’s alleged behavior “criminal.”
My statement on the independent investigation into the alleged sexual harassment claims against Governor Cuomo: pic.twitter.com/DfBC0xaI37
— NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) August 3, 2021
James said in a news release along with her report that her office came to its conclusions after interviewing 179 people and reviewing 74,000 pieces of evidence.
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