Governor Andrew Cuomo’s characterization of the sexual harassment he is accused of inflicting on officials as just “pranksters” and “jokes” did not work on Monday, with one of his accusers and Mayor Bill de Blasio criticizing ” no apology “.
Cuomo, 63, offered the dubious defense on Sunday, the day after Charlotte Bennett became the second former employee in a matter of days to accuse the governor of sexual harassment at work.
“As we know, abusers – especially those with tremendous power – are often repeat offenders who engage in manipulative tactics to lessen charges, blame victims, deny wrongdoing and escape the consequences,” said Bennett, 25, in a blunt statement in the Monday.
“It took the governor 24 hours and a significant reaction to allow for a truly independent investigation, ” Bennett continued. “These are not the actions of someone who simply feels misunderstood; they are the actions of an individual who exercises his power to avoid justice ”.
Bennett told the New York Times in an article published on Saturday that Cuomo last year made a series of unpleasant comments and asked investigative questions about her sex life, leaving her convinced that the divorced father of three “wanted to sleep” with her .
As bipartisan outrage grew, Cuomo issued the prepared statement on Sunday, dismissing his behavior as “jokes” that could be interpreted as “unwanted flirtation” – while denying any unfavorable intentions and claiming that he never touched anyone inappropriately.
On Monday, de Blasio scoffed at the response of his frequent political rival.
“The governor issued a total no apology earlier and, in fact, treated sexual harassment as a kind of laughing matter,” Hizzoner told CNN’s Jake Tapper newspaper. “It is not a joke. It is a very serious thing.
“When I read the account of what Charlotte Bennett went through, I shuddered,” continued de Blasio. “Here is someone who can determine whether she had a job or not, whether she has a career or not, literally suggesting in front of her all kinds of perverse sexual possibilities, and she is alone in a room with him. Think how grotesque this is. “
Asked if he thought Cuomo should resign if the allegations were true, de Blasio said yes.
“If you sexually harassed young women at your job … how can anyone look people in the face after that?” he asked. “If these claims are proven, there is simply no way for him to rule.”
Bennett spoke less than a week after another former aide, Lindsey Boylan, 36, wrote a medium article claiming that Cuomo kissed her on the mouth without warning and suggested that they go on a flight playing strip poker.
State Attorney General Letitia James received a formal green light from the Cuomo government on Monday to launch an independent investigation into the bombing allegations.
“This is not a responsibility that we take lightly, as allegations of sexual harassment must always be taken seriously,” said James. “As the letter states, at the end of the review, the findings will be released in a public report.”
Under state law, James requested a “referral” from the governor’s office on Sunday morning to investigate, just for Beth Garvey, Cuomo’s special adviser, to try to haggle over the process.
Garvey suggested that James could work with state appeals judge Janet DiFiore – one appointed by Cuomo – to agree with an independent investigator.
But, facing intense bipartisan pressure to allow a truly independent investigation to take its course, Garvey relented late Sunday and agreed to grant the recommendation to James.
And Cuomo’s interactions with women underwent further scrutiny on Monday.
“I want to see you eat the whole sausage,” Cuomo told reporter Beth Cefalu during a scary conversation as they ate at the 2016 New York State Fair, whose video resurfaced on Twitter.
Cuomo then invited Cefalu to sit at his table and pose for a selfie, where the scary jokes kept coming.
“There is a lot of sausage in this photo,” said Cuomo, eliciting laughter from others at the table.
Cefalu, however, clarified on Monday that he was not bothered by the exchange.
“I was not pressured / harassed, there are two people enjoying the only event – the NYS fair – that gives them a little more freedom to be informal,” she tweeted. “It is very sad to be being transformed into something more.”
Another former member of the New York press corps, however, stepped forward to say that she left the industry in part because of the “harassing” behavior of the governor’s office.
Lindsay Nielsen, formerly News 10 ABC from Albany, posted on Twitter on Sunday that the governor’s office responded to critical coverage with “relentless intimidation” during his stint on the 2012-2017 season.
“They would make it personal, claiming that I have this personal vendetta against the governor, which is absolutely untrue,” Nielsen told The Post on Monday. “All I was trying to do was to tell the story, to tell the facts.”
Additional reporting by Bruce Golding and Natalie Musumeci