New York State Attorney General Letitia James, who in January released a report stating that Governor Andrew Cuomo’s administration dramatically underestimated deaths in COVID-19 nursing homes in the state, will have full control over the sexual harassment investigation that threatens your administration.
James said on Sunday that she hoped to receive a referral that would give her office subpoena power and allow her to replace an outside law firm for “a rigorous and independent investigation”.
Sens. Chuck Schumer and Kristen Gillibrand, both Democrats from New York, asked that investigative power be granted to James “so that she could conduct a transparent and complete investigation with subpoena power”.
Democrat & Chronicle reported that Cuomo – at first – wanted to refer the matter to Barbara Jones, a former US district judge who worked with one of her former advisers.
After that idea was rejected, the newspaper reported that Cuomo wanted James to work with a judge he appointed to help select an appropriate independent lawyer to examine the matter.
For several hours on Sunday, James and other party leaders rejected Cuomo’s proposals on how an investigation could proceed.
The newspaper said that at 5:30 pm on Sunday, the governor agreed to hand over power to James. None of the offices responded immediately to emails from Fox News.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said that President Joe Biden also supported an independent review that “should move forward as quickly as possible”.
Cuomo was accused by a former aide, Lindsey Boylan, of orchestrating a “widespread” culture of “sexual harassment and intimidation”. She posted on Medium that Cuomo once suggested they play strip poker during a flight in October 2017 and said that he once kissed her on the lips.
Boylan, a Democrat running for the Manhattan district presidency, said that during his more than three years in the Democratic government, Cuomo “strove to touch me on the lower back, arms and legs”.
Charlotte Bennett, who is described by The New York Times as “an executive assistant and health policy advisor in the Cuomo government until she left in November”, claims that Cuomo “asked questions about her sex life, whether she was monogamous in her relationships and whether she has had sex with older men. “
Cuomo’s office denied Boylan’s accusations. He said he never moved towards Bennett “nor did I intend to act inappropriately. The last thing I would like was for her to feel any of the things that are being reported.”
Cuomo issued a statement on Sunday to address allegations of sexual harassment, but even the statement was criticized as deaf by critics.
“Sometimes, at work, I think I’m joking and I make jokes that I think are funny. Sometimes, I tease people in a way that I think is humorous, ”explained the governor. “I do it in public and in private. You saw me do it at briefings hundreds of times. I teased people about their personal lives, their relationships, about getting married or not getting married. I don’t want to offend and just try to add a little of levity and playfulness to what is a very serious business. “
Cuomo continued: “Now I understand that my interactions may have been insensitive or very personal and that some of my comments, given my position, made others feel in ways I never intended. I recognize that some of the things I said were misinterpreted as an unwanted flirtation. To the extent that someone felt that way, I’m really sorry about that. “
The scandal is the second that Cuomo faces, and James plays a central role in both.
James said last month that deaths from COVID-19 in nursing homes in New York were underestimated by up to 50%, leading to calls for Cuomo to appear on the House Supervisory Committee. A spokesman for Cuomo called the request an “empty political theater”.
Brooke Singman, Joesph A. Wulfshon and the Fox News Associated Press contributed to this report