Ana Liss, one of more than half a dozen women who accuse New York Governor Andrew Cuomo of sexual misconduct, said in a statement on Thursday that she sat for two hours with the state attorney general, who is investigating the charges.
She said she told Attorney General Letitia James about “cases of unsolicited attention” she received from the governor, as well as “the sexually hostile work environment perpetuated by him and senior officials”.
“During my time on the Executive Board, it was a toxic, verbally abusive and retaliatory workplace, especially for young women like me,” she said. “Sexual harassment on behalf of the governor is a significant part of the investigation, but he is not and was not the only person … responsible for offensive conduct.”
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Examples of this alleged conduct, she said, range from “eschatological curses to the total objectification of women’s bodies”.
Liss worked as an adviser to Cuomo between 2013 and 2015 – and she said she was excited from the start with the prospect of getting a coveted scholarship from the governor’s office.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo speaks to people at the vaccination site on March 8, 2021, in New York.
(Photo by Seth Wenig / Pool / AFP via Getty Images)
She accused him of touching her back and kissing her hand at different times, calling her “boyfriend” at work, asking about her personal life and other allegedly inappropriate actions.
In a tweet on Thursday, she explained that she had a framed photo of the governor and her previous support for him.
“I am proud to have worked there and survived,” she wrote. “He is easier to tolerate when he is not your boss. Besides, it didn’t even cross my mind until days ago that I could or should speak without fear of retaliation.”
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But, as she told WNYC on Wednesday, it was not what it looked like when standards demanded to wear “high heels” and look and act “in a certain way” when the governor was around.
“I hope to continue to cooperate with this effort and support others who want to perform,” she concluded.
Cuomo’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
But the governor is facing an increasing reaction from both parties, by refusing resignations surrounded by accusations of sexual misconduct and a scandal about the underreporting of coronavirus deaths in nursing homes by his government.
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Democratic state deputy Ron Kim, who has emerged as one of the main critics of Cuomo’s actions since the details of the alleged cover-up for the nursing home emerged, linked the entire controversy to an issue on Thursday.
“Abuse of power is about doing what you want,” Kim tweeted. “Hide the death toll, sexually harass women, exact retribution on your victims, reward loyalists with chancelleries and vaccines, hold press conferences without the press, share just what you want and use your office to bury the rest.”