In his final remarks as governor, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo maintained his innocence against allegations of sexual harassment by nearly a dozen women while defending his record after more than a decade in office.
Cuomo, who announced his resignation this month, addressed the allegations made against him in a taped address Monday, accusing New York Attorney General Letitia James of politicizing a statewide investigation into the harassment allegations — saying the investigation was "designed to be a political firecracker on an explosive topic."
"A firecracker can start a stampede, but at one point everyone looks around and says, 'Why are we running?' The truth is ultimately always revealed," Cuomo said. "It was a political and media stampede, but the truth will out in time. Of that, I am confident."
In his speech, Cuomo said that while he believes everyone should have the right to speak out when it comes to allegations involving sexual harassment and assault, all claims should be examined closely.
"Of course, everyone has a right to come forward, and we applaud their bravery and courage in doing so. But allegations must still be scrutinized and verified, whether made by a woman or a man. That is our basic justice system," Cuomo said.
Cuomo had been facing growing calls to resign
Cuomo's sudden departure from office represents a whirlwind turn of events from just over a year ago when he was enjoying widespread praise within the Democratic Party for his administration's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
But in the aftermath of the state attorney general's report, the drumbeat of calls for the governor's resignation ultimately proved insurmountable. In a scathing 165-page report released this month, the attorney general's office concluded that the third-term Democrat sexually harassed 11 women, and in one instance, sought to retaliate against one of his accusers who went public with her allegations.
The report followed a months-long investigation into the governor's actions and outlined what James called violations of both state and federal law.
Prosecutors said their findings substantiated allegations from several women — which included unwanted and nonconsensual touching, groping, kissing and sexual comments.
Kathy Hochul steps in as the state's first female governor
Cuomo will leave office at 11:59 p.m. ET Monday. His successor, Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul, will be sworn in during a private ceremony at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday as the state's first female governor.
Hochul, who had served a term in Congress before she became Cuomo's running mate in 2014, said in a statement she agreed with the governor's decision to step down.
"It is the right thing to do and in the best interest of New Yorkers," she said. "As someone who has served at all levels of government and is next in the line of succession, I am prepared to lead as New York state's 57th governor."
Update Per AP News:
New NY governor adds 12,000 deaths to publicized COVID tally
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Delivering another blow to what’s left of former Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s legacy, New York’s new governor acknowledged on her first day in office that the state has had nearly 12,000 more deaths from COVID-19 than Cuomo told the public.
“The public deserves a clear, honest picture of what’s happening. And that’s whether it’s good or bad, they need to know the truth. And that’s how we restore confidence,” Gov. Kathy Hochul said on NPR.
In its first daily update on the outbreak Tuesday evening, Hochul’s office reported that nearly 55,400 people have died of the coronavirus in New York based on death certificate data submitted to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
That’s up from about 43,400 that Cuomo reported to the public as of Monday, his last day in office. The Democrat who was once widely acclaimed for his leadership during the COVID-19 outbreak resigned in the face of an impeachment drive after being accused of sexually harassing at least 11 women, allegations he disputed.
The higher number is not entirely new. Federal health officials and some academic institutions tracking COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. have been using the higher tally for many months because of known gaps in the data Cuomo had been choosing to publicize.
But Hochul, who was lieutenant governor before being propelled to the state’s highest office, said it is vital to be fully transparent about the numbers.
“There’s a lot of things that weren’t happening, and I’m going to make them happen,” she said Wednesday on MSNBC. “Transparency will be the hallmark of my administration.”
Cuomo’s lawyer Rita Glavin and his campaign staff did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Associated Press first reported in July on the large discrepancy between the figures publicized by the Cuomo administration and numbers the state was reporting to the CDC.
The count used by Cuomo in his news media briefings and on the s tate’s COVID-19 fatality tracker included only laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 deaths reported through a state system that collects data from hospitals, nursing homes and adult care facilities.
That meant the tally excluded people who died at home, in hospice, in prisons or at state-run homes for people with disabilities. It also excluded people who probably died of COVID-19 but never got a positive test to confirm the diagnosis.
“There are presumed and confirmed deaths. People should know both,” Hochul said.
By Wednesday, the state’s website included the higher tally.
During the spring of 2020, when New York was the deadliest hot spot in the U.S., Cuomo emerged in the eyes of many Americans as a hero of the pandemic for his daily PowerPoint briefings and stern but reassuring language. He won an international Emmy and wrote a book on leadership in a crisis.
But Cuomo’s critics long charged that he was manipulating coronavirus statics to burnish his image. Months later, it turned out that his administration had minimized the death toll among nursing home residents by excluding several thousand who had succumbed after being transferred to hospitals.
Cuomo used those lower numbers last year to erroneously claim that New York was seeing a much smaller percentage of nursing home residents dying of COVID-19 than other states.
Federal prosecutors have been investigating his administration’s handling of the data. The state Assembly Judiciary committee has also been investigating the matter.
This week, in the wake of the sexual harassment scandal, Cuomo’s Emmy was revoked. And the publisher of his book has said it will no longer print hardcover copies and will not come out with a paperback edition.
