As New York Governor Andrew Cuomo faces mounting accusations of sexual misconduct by two female aides, a video has surfaced on social media showing the Democratic governor questioningly pressuring a reporter to eat a whole sausage sandwich in front of him.
The video shows the Democratic governor at the 2016 New York State Fair, challenging NewsChannel 9’s Beth Cefalu to eat an entire Gianelli sausage sandwich.
“I want to see you eat the whole sausage,” Cuomo can be heard saying to Cefalu, while his daughter Michaela sits quietly beside him. A now former Cuomo advisor can be seen delivering a sandwich to Cefalu.
“I don’t know if I should eat the whole sausage in front of you, but I will definitely eat it,” replies Cefalu.
Cuomo then invites Cefalu to sit at his table. Before eating, Cefalu takes a selfie with the governor while holding his food.
“There is a lot of sausage in that photo,” says Cuomo, causing laughter from others at the table.
CUOMO TEAM ACCUSED OF ‘INCESSANT BULLYING’, ‘CONSTANT THREATS’, LOCAL TV REPORTER CLAIMS
Fox News contacted the governor’s office for comments on the video. The four-year-old interaction is providing food for critics who say the most recent accusations against Cuomo follow a pattern of years in which the governor makes inappropriate comments.
Cuomo first acknowledged on Sunday that part of his behavior with women was “misinterpreted as unwanted flirtation” and said he would cooperate with a sexual harassment investigation conducted by the state attorney general.
In a statement released amid mounting criticism from his own party, Cuomo said he never touched or made inappropriate proposals to anyone. But he said he teased people and made jokes about their personal lives in an attempt to be “playful”.
“Now I understand that my interactions may have been insensitive or very personal and that some of my comments, due to my position, made others feel in ways I never intended. I recognize that some of the things I said were misinterpreted as unwanted flirtation. . To the extent that someone felt that way, I’m really sorry for that, “he said.
Charlotte Bennett, a low-level adviser to the governor’s administration until November, told The New York Times that Cuomo was asking inappropriate questions about her sex life, including whether she has ever had sex with older men, and made other comments that she interpreted as measuring your interest in a case.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APPLICATION
Her accusation came days after another former aide, Lindsey Boylan, former deputy secretary for economic development and special governor to the governor, elaborated on the allegations of harassment she first made in December. Boylan said Cuomo subjected her to an unwanted kiss and inappropriate comments about her appearance.
Cuomo, 63, said in a brief statement on Saturday that he intended to mentor Bennett, who is 25. He denied Boylan’s accusations.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.