More than a dozen congressional Democrats from New York, including both senators, put out statements in what appeared to be a coordinated release Friday morning, calling on the state’s governor, Andrew Cuomo, to resign.
This marks the first time that multiple Democratic lawmakers at the Congressional level have called for Cuomo to step down. Rep. Kathleen Rice had previously demanded the governor resign.
In recent days, Cuomo, himself a Democrat, has faced multiple allegations of sexual harassment and misconduct spanning the decade he has served as the top executive of New York. He has repeatedly denied the allegations, most recently to reporters on Tuesday in Albany.
The most recent allegation on Tuesday, originally published by the Albany Times Union, sparked a new wave of calls for Cuomo to leave the governor’s office. Cuomo has been accused of sexual harassment by six women including a current aide.
“This is very simple: I never touched anyone inappropriately. As I said last week, I never made any inappropriate advances (and) as I said last week, no one ever told me at the time that I made them feel uncomfortable,” Cuomo said.
After remaining relatively quiet about the allegations, other than calling for an independent investigation, 12 Democrats spoke out Friday. A series of statements from lawmakers including Judiciary Committee Chair Rep. Jerry Nadler and House Oversight Committee Chair Rep. Carolyn Maloney called on Cuomo to resign.
“The repeated accusations against the Governor, and the manner in which he has responded to them, have made it impossible for him to continue to govern at this point,” Nadler’s statement read.
Maloney echoed his calls in her own statement: “We have come a long way, but now is the time to finally ensure that this generation’s courage stops harassment once and for all.”
Still, others focused on the experience of the women who have alleged misconduct by Cuomo. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Rep. Jamaal Bowman released a joint statement.
“[W]e believe these women, we believe the reporting, we believe the Attorney General, and we believe the fifty-five members of the New York State legislature, including the State Senate Majority Leader who have concluded that Governor Cuomo can no longer effectively lead in the face of so many challenges,” they stated.
Rep. Nydia Velazquez’s statement was short and to the point.
“As public servants, we must earn the trust and respect of those we represent. There is only one way the governor can truly restore accountability and confidence to his office: he must resign,” she said.
Reps. Delgado, Meng, Clarke, Espaillat, Jones, Higgans, and Sean Patrick Maloney all concurred in their individual statements. As of press time, only Reps. Meeks, Torres, Jeffries, Tonko, Morelle, and Suozzi had not commented Friday morning.
This marks 13 total Congressional Democrats who called on Cuomo to resign. Together, they are more than half of the Democratic members of the House of Representatives representing New York. Neither of New York’s Senators has called for Cuomo’s resignation.
Late on Friday, both Sen. Chuck Schumer and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand put out a joint statement also pressing the governor to leave office.
“I did not do what has been alleged. Period,” he said while asking for current investigations to proceed. “Wait for the facts.”
He also appeared to add a remark for the congressional delegation, stating, “Politicians who don’t know a single fact but yet form a conclusion and an opinion are, in my opinion, reckless and dangerous.”
Benjamin Deeter and Mike Nam contributed to this report.
Updated on March 12, 2021, at 5:53 pm ET with response from Cuomo.
Americans looking to purchase at-home COVID-19 tests will now have to shell out a bit more money after an agreement expired between the White House and companies to sell the tests at cost. The price of Abbot's BinaxNow test kit from October to December was $14 apiece; on Tuesday, Walmart's website listed the test for $19.88, and Kroger listed the tests for $23.99. Carbon Health Regional Clinical Director Dr. Bayo Curry-Winchell joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss the impact higher prices will have as the nation experiences another surge in cases.
After the Chicago teachers union voted to work remotely due to what they say is a lack of safety protocols amid the COVID-19 surge, the school system canceled classes on Wednesday, citing harm that remote learning has done to the city's children. Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, joined Cheddar to discuss the issues surrounding the latest dispute between educators and schools. She said that the return to in-person learning would likely be halted until more COVID tests could be provided for districts. "This is a terrible situation for everybody, and we need the testing, and we need the masks," she said. "It's the omicron surge that has created this disruption, and we are trying to do the best we can. And this is the only school district that has this kind of action right now." The teachers might not be returning to their schools for at least two weeks amid the ongoing tensions.
Illinois State Senator Robert Martwick joins Cheddar News to discuss the new bill he co-sponsored allowing students in the state to take 5 mental health days without a doctor's note.
On Monday, President Biden announced his new plan to take on inflation by taking down the big meat monopolies - turning to the federal government's antitrust authorities to investigate the major meatpackers that control a significant share of the market. The White House plans to devote one billion dollars to aiding independent meat and poultry producers in an effort to undercut the few powerful meat producers that have control of the sector. Austin Frerick, deputy director of Thurman Arnold Project at Yale, joins Cheddar News to discuss.
As the pandemic drags on, so does the widespread great resignation. In November alone, 4.5 million Americans quit their jobs, marking a new record high, and showing a 9 percent jump from the month prior. On the flip side, the number of people filing tax paperwork to start new businesses is surging, with over 430,000 new businesses launching in November. Rhett Buttle, the founder of Public Private Strategies and national business advisor to the Biden for President campaign, joined Wake Up with Cheddar to discuss.
New York Attorney General Letitia James is ramping up a civil investigation into The Trump Organization. The AG's office has subpoenaed Ivanka Trump and Donald Trump Jr. They have refused to comply with the subpoenas. Bradley Moss, national security attorney, joins Cheddar News to discuss the next steps in this investigation.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis has officially reduced the 110-year prison sentence of truck driver Rogel Aguilera-Mederos to 10 years, calling the initial lengthy sentence “unjust.” Dan Gilleon, constitutional attorney at Gilleon Law Firm APC, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Former Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams was sworn in as the newest Mayor of New York City. Adams is now expected to work on a number of issues such as crime and coronavirus. Erin Durkin,, reporter at PoliticoNY, joins Cheddar News to discuss more.
California's new composting law will affect what residents do in their kitchens. As of this week, Californians will have to recycle excess food in an effort to reduce emissions caused by food waste. Cities and counties will turn recycled food into compost or use it as a renewable energy source. California's new law is the largest mandatory residential food waste recycling program in the country. Rachel Wagoner, Director of the California Department of Resources, Recycling and Recovery called the law 'the biggest change to trash' since recycling started in the 1980s. She joined Cheddar Climate to discuss.
