United States President Joe Biden has sidestepped questions on whether New York Governor Andrew Cuomo should resign over allegations of sexual misconduct.

US: Prez Biden sidesteps questions calling over New York Governor's resignation

Last spring, when the coronavirus outbreak was surging in New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s daily briefings became appointment television for many, as he authoritatively ticked through the latest statistics on infections, hospital beds and deaths.

Behind the scenes, Cuomo was often obsessed with another set of numbers: his ratings. He would sometimes quiz aides as soon as he ended a broadcast about which networks carried him live and exactly when they cut away — data they were expected to have at their fingertips.

For an image-obsessed politician who has long devoured almost everything written about him, it was an intoxicating amount of attention as Cuomo transformed almost overnight into a national leader of the Democratic Party and a foil for President Donald Trump. “To the 59 million viewers who shared in these daily briefings,” Cuomo said on his 111th and final daily update, “thank you.”

That June day Cuomo gathered his team in the backyard of the governor’s mansion in Albany for a mostly maskless celebration — an aide said attendees took COVID tests — toasting their accomplishments with beer and wine. For some allies of Cuomo, that period was the apex of an Icarus-like arc for a leader convinced of his own hype and indestructibility.

Less than a year later, Cuomo’s governorship is imperiled, as he faces allegations of groping, sexual harassment and inappropriate behavior made by six women; an independent investigation into those accusations; an impeachment inquiry by state legislators; a federal investigation into his handling of nursing homes during the pandemic; and collapsing support from leaders in his own party.

Yet for all of that, Cuomo is now furiously plotting a path to salvage his job, his legacy and even a potential fourth-term reelection run in 2022, according to Democrats familiar with his thinking. In defiant remarks on Friday, Cuomo accused Democratic leaders of “playing politics” by calling for him to resign and demanded they wait for the “facts” as he impugned the motives of the women who have come forward.

“A lot of people allege a lot of things for a lot of reasons,” Cuomo said, denying he ever sexually harassed anyone.

​Be it his self-regard, his disdain for fellow Democrats or his imperious demeanor, Cuomo alienated allies and enemies alike on his way up in politics, and now finds himself sliding from hero-level worship to pariah-like status with the kind of astonishing speed that only the friendless suffer. It is a downfall foretold in a decadelong reign of ruthlessness and governance by brute force, according to interviews with more than two dozen lawmakers, elected officials, current and past Cuomo administration officials, political activists and strategists in the state.

For Cuomo, politics has always been a zero-sum game: For him to win, someone else must lose, whether it is the legislator whose idea he is taking credit for, or Mayor Bill de Blasio, whose initiatives he routinely stomped. The same domineering approach that won plaudits in the depths of the coronavirus crisis has bruised a generation of Cuomo’s peers, such that many were ready to turn on him once vulnerable.

“The problem with Cuomo is no one has ever liked him,” said Richard Ravitch, a former Democratic lieutenant governor. “He’s not a nice person and he doesn’t have any real friends. If you don’t have a base of support and you get into trouble, you’re dead meat.”

New York’s two Democratic senators, Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, have now abandoned him, along with most of the state’s congressional delegation. A majority of the state Legislature, whose members he has long treated dismissively, have called on him to resign, including more than 40% of his fellow Democrats.

“I have not met a person yet in New York politics who has a good relationship with Andrew Cuomo,” said state Sen. Alessandra Biaggi, a Democrat and outspoken critic of the governor who also once worked in his administration. “And I’m not saying ‘close relationship,’ I’m saying ‘good relationship.’ Even people who are close to him I cannot say in good faith have a good relationship with him.”

As one Cuomo adviser put it, the governor has burned so many bridges that he has left himself with virtually no path forward. Yet those who have been close to Cuomo say they cannot imagine him resigning, not least because it would leave him short of matching the three full terms of his father, Gov. Mario Cuomo, let alone topping him with a fourth by running in 2022.

The elder Cuomo, who died in 2015, looms large in almost any discussion of the Andrew Cuomo’s ambitions to stay in the governorship. At Andrew’s third inaugural address, the one in which he equaled his father, he wore a pair of Mario’s shoes, according to a person familiar with his wardrobe.

Even in his current diminished state, Cuomo maintains some formidable political strengths, including a nearly $17 million war chest. His top government aides have been tweeting about his polling numbers and Cuomo believes the impression he made in those virus briefings will outlast any short-term damage, according to people familiar with his thinking. “New Yorkers know me,” as Cuomo said on Friday.

And if there is a modern playbook for surviving scandal, it begins with one clear rule: Don’t quit.

Trump ignored calls to step down as the Republican nominee in 2016 after a tape emerged of him bragging about grabbing women’s private parts. Former Gov. Mark Sanford of South Carolina, a Republican, finished his term after lying about his adulterous “Appalachian Trail” trip. And Gov. Ralph Northam of Virginia, a Democrat, survived widespread resignation calls over a photo that appeared to show him in blackface.

Cuomo’s advisers have been reaching out to labor and business leaders. And he has been maneuvering to consolidate and burnish support in the Black community, especially after the Legislature’s two top Democrats, both of whom are Black, have taken steps to push him out. His appearance last week flanked by Black clergy leaders, ostensibly to promote vaccine efforts in New York City, struck many as an especially brazen example of constituency politics.

And he is demanding that the attorney general’s investigation proceed, clinging to a possible 2022 run as a bargaining chip to avert resignation or impeachment. His endgame is unclear. More than anything, Andrew Cuomo is now trying to buy himself time.

Holding tight to his identity

The governor’s mansion in Albany is steeped in history: It is the former home of Nelson Rockefeller, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt and, of course, Mario Cuomo. And since Andrew Cuomo’s split with his longtime girlfriend, the television personality Sandra Lee, and her sale of their Westchester home, Cuomo has lived in the mansion full time.

The 63-year-old Democrat owns no other property. He rents no second apartment that anyone in his orbit seemed to be aware of.

Everything about Cuomo — his home, his legacy, his identity — is wrapped up in a governorship now under siege. On Friday he was seen striding the mansion’s grounds, draped in a blanket, his cellphone pressed to his ear.

Being governor, in other words, is his oxygen.

Last year, he produced a giant foam mountain to memorialize the state’s declining virus caseload, and proudly posed before it. He commissioned a self-referential poster, complete with a picture of Cuomo in a muscle car and images of his advisers (“Magnificent Melissa” for his top aide, Melissa DeRosa). And he cast aside caution to write a self-congratulatory book of “leadership lessons” that published mid-pandemic, winning himself a reported seven-figure advance.

“There’s been no one around the governor to save him from himself,” said Mitchell Moss, a professor of urban policy at New York University whom Cuomo appointed to a transit advisory council in 2017. “He may intimidate even the people who should be giving advice.”

Cuomo has always kept his own counsel and his inner circle has shrunk over the years as waves of advisers have tired of his unrelenting and mercurial demands. Among those still providing advice, beyond his senior government staff, are Steven M. Cohen and William Mulrow, two former top officials in the governor’s office; Jefrey Pollock, his pollster; Charlie King, a longtime ally; and Jay Jacobs, the state Democratic Party chairman.

His loyalists felt his wrath especially during the last year when he would lash out if other politicians, especially de Blasio, received credit for virus-battling successes or initiatives.

When de Blasio at one point made an announcement of a shipment of supplies, including ambulances, from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Cuomo berated the regional FEMA administrator, Thomas Von Essen, in unusually blunt fashion for not delivering supplies through the state, according to a person familiar with the call. Von Essen declined to comment.

In another episode, Cuomo and de Blasio greeted the arriving USNS Comfort, the military hospital ship, from separate piers. Cuomo pulled out of what had been planned as a potential joint appearance, according to people involved in the planning.

The governor scheduled his event an hour earlier than de Blasio’s — seemingly unwilling to share the spotlight. A spokesman for Cuomo denied there had been a planned joint event with de Blasio, that he had berated Von Essen or lashed out at aides when de Blasio would receive credit for antivirus initiatives.

Cuomo’s bullying — a long-known aspect of his style — has been cast by his allies as simply his way of getting things done. He has strong-armed legislators and anyone else who dared cross him in a decadelong run of productivity that included legalizing same-sex marriage, passing stronger gun control measures, raising the minimum wage and beginning numerous major infrastructure projects.

But those tactics are now being seen in a different light, helping create an office culture that could be toxic, particularly for young women.

Ever since Cuomo broke onto the political scene he has carved a reputation as a brash hard-charger. As executive director for his father’s transition team, after the 1982 victory in the governor’s race, the younger Cuomo kicked his feet up on a desk during an interview with The New York Times, lit a cigarette and declared, “I’ve become very popular lately.”

Norman Adler, a senior aide on that 1982 campaign, said the current stories of an abusive culture in the younger Cuomo’s office today rang familiar.

“Left to his devices, that would have been the atmosphere during the Mario Cuomo campaign,” Adler said. “Bullying, yelling, putting people down. He was, like — the path was muddy so he took your coat so he wouldn’t get his boots dirty.”

During Mario Cuomo’s governorship, his son was known as the enforcer.

“Mario got to be the nice guy, and when it was time for someone not to be the nice guy, it was Andrew’s job,” said Assemblyman Richard Gottfried, a Democrat who has served for 50 years. “He was very good at it.”

Cuomo would join an American political dynasty in 1990, marrying Kerry Kennedy. The union was deemed “Cuomolot.”

And he rose in national politics, becoming housing secretary in President Bill Clinton’s second term.

In 2002, Andrew Cuomo sought to avenge his father’s loss eight years earlier to George Pataki, a Republican. But Cuomo never made it that far, withdrawing from a Democratic primary he was losing. Kennedy asked to separate soon after, according to Cuomo’s biographer, representing the low point of Cuomo’s personal and professional life.

He rehabilitated his image with a 2006 run for attorney general and served one term before running for governor in 2010, a pathway cleared by the resignation of Gov. Eliot Spitzer and a scandal that forced Spitzer’s successor, Gov. David Paterson, to exit the race. Then, it was Cuomo doing the investigating; now he is the one being investigated.

History repeats itself

What has struck veteran New York political watchers is just how similar the arc of Cuomo’s downfall has felt to Spitzer’s collapse. Both rose to the top with sharp elbows and then found precious few friends in their hours of need.

Soon after taking office, Spitzer famously raged that he was a “steamroller,” threatening to crush a state legislator. This year, Cuomo’s run of negative press intensified after he berated Assemblyman Ron Kim, a Democrat, who said the governor had threatened to “destroy” him. The conversation felt so familiar to those who have worked with Cuomo that his office’s denial was largely dismissed.

“They’re cut from the same cloth,” said state Sen. James Tedisco, the Republican that Spitzer cursed at, referring to Spitzer and Cuomo. “They’ll do just about anything they can to get their way and try to destroy you.”

This week, Tedisco said, “Andrew Cuomo is the steamroller that has run out of gas.”

But for more than a decade, Cuomo divided and conquered Albany in singular fashion, intimidating rivals, dominating the terms of debate and helping enable Republican control of the state Senate, for a period, through a renegade faction of Democrats, known as the Independent Democratic Conference.

As a result, the mainline Democratic leader, state Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins, was thwarted in her bid to become the first Black woman to lead a legislative chamber. In one tense 2017 meeting, Cuomo dismissed her understanding of suburban politics. Stewart-Cousins accused him of seeing only “my Black skin and a woman.”

The next year, a group of progressive challengers, including Biaggi, ousted a half-dozen IDC senators. With Democrats in full control after 2018, Cuomo could no longer situate himself at the political midpoint of every deal.

The landscape in Albany has quickly shifted. Nearly half the state Senate is new since 2018. And there is now a supermajority of 43 Democrats among whom Cuomo counts virtually no durable allies, according to multiple legislators. In a move that many on the left saw as poetic justice for his role in keeping her out of power, Stewart-Cousins was among the first prominent Democrats to call for Cuomo’s resignation.

The Democrats who led the charge for Cuomo to resign are more politically progressive than he is. The three-term governor has improbably tried to portray himself as an outsider by dismissively saying of his fellow party officials on Friday, “I’m not part of the political club.”

In the short-term, Cuomo’s fate rests in the state Assembly, where impeachment begins and where he has more of a political foothold; 23 women in that chamber pushed back this past week on calls for his immediate resignation, asking for Attorney General Letitia James to complete her investigation first.

Cuomo is said to see James as his most formidable potential primary challenger should he survive and run again next year. For now, the biggest destabilizing force for Cuomo is the uncertainty of what new allegations each day will bring. His treatment of others, over so many years, makes it impossible to predict what lies ahead.

Last spring, when the coronavirus outbreak was surging in New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s daily briefings became appointment television for many, as he authoritatively ticked through the latest statistics on infections, hospital beds and deaths.

Last spring, when the coronavirus outbreak was surging in New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s daily briefings became appointment television for many, as he authoritatively ticked through the latest statistics on infections, hospital beds and deaths. Behind the scenes, Cuomo was often obsessed with another set of numbers: his ratings. He would sometimes quiz aides as soon as he ended a broadcast about which networks carried him live and exactly when they cut away — data they were expected to have at their fingertips. For an image-obsessed politician who has long devoured almost everything written about him, it was an intoxicating amount of attention as Cuomo transformed almost overnight into a national leader of the Democratic Party and a foil for President Donald Trump. “To the 59 million viewers who shared in these daily briefings,” Cuomo said on his 111th and final daily update, “thank you.” That June day Cuomo gathered his team in the backyard of the governor’s mansion in Albany for a mostly maskless celebration — an aide said attendees took COVID tests — toasting their accomplishments with beer and wine. For some allies of Cuomo, that period was the apex of an Icarus-like arc for a leader convinced of his own hype and indestructibility. Less than a year later, Cuomo’s governorship is imperiled, as he faces allegations of groping, sexual harassment and inappropriate behavior made by six women; an independent investigation into those accusations; an impeachment inquiry by state legislators; a federal investigation into his handling of nursing homes during the pandemic; and collapsing support from leaders in his own party. Yet for all of that, Cuomo is now furiously plotting a path to salvage his job, his legacy and even a potential fourth-term reelection run in 2022, according to Democrats familiar with his thinking. In defiant remarks on Friday, Cuomo accused Democratic leaders of “playing politics” by calling for him to resign and demanded they wait for the “facts” as he impugned the motives of the women who have come forward. “A lot of people allege a lot of things for a lot of reasons,” Cuomo said, denying he ever sexually harassed anyone. Be it his self-regard, his disdain for fellow Democrats or his imperious demeanor, Cuomo alienated allies and enemies alike on his way up in politics, and now finds himself sliding from hero-level worship to pariah-like status with the kind of astonishing speed that only the friendless suffer. It is a downfall foretold in a decadelong reign of ruthlessness and governance by brute force, according to interviews with more than two dozen lawmakers, elected officials, current and past Cuomo administration officials, political activists and strategists in the state. For Cuomo, politics has always been a zero-sum game: For him to win, someone else must lose, whether it is the legislator whose idea he is taking credit for, or Mayor Bill de Blasio, whose initiatives he routinely stomped. The same domineering approach that won plaudits in the depths of the coronavirus crisis has bruised a generation of Cuomo’s peers, such that many were ready to turn on him once vulnerable. “The problem with Cuomo is no one has ever liked him,” said Richard Ravitch, a former Democratic lieutenant governor. “He’s not a nice person and he doesn’t have any real friends. If you don’t have a base of support and you get into trouble, you’re dead meat.” New York’s two Democratic senators, Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, have now abandoned him, along with most of the state’s congressional delegation. A majority of the state Legislature, whose members he has long treated dismissively, have called on him to resign, including more than 40% of his fellow Democrats. “I have not met a person yet in New York politics who has a good relationship with Andrew Cuomo,” said state Sen. Alessandra Biaggi, a Democrat and outspoken critic of the governor who also once worked in his administration. “And I’m not saying ‘close relationship,’ I’m saying ‘good relationship.’ Even people who are close to him I cannot say in good faith have a good relationship with him.” As one Cuomo adviser put it, the governor has burned so many bridges that he has left himself with virtually no path forward. Yet those who have been close to Cuomo say they cannot imagine him resigning, not least because it would leave him short of matching the three full terms of his father, Gov. Mario Cuomo, let alone topping him with a fourth by running in 2022. The elder Cuomo, who died in 2015, looms large in almost any discussion of the Andrew Cuomo’s ambitions to stay in the governorship. At Andrew’s third inaugural address, the one in which he equaled his father, he wore a pair of Mario’s shoes, according to a person familiar with his wardrobe. Even in his current diminished state, Cuomo maintains some formidable political strengths, including a nearly $17 million war chest. His top government aides have been tweeting about his polling numbers and Cuomo believes the impression he made in those virus briefings will outlast any short-term damage, according to people familiar with his thinking. “New Yorkers know me,” as Cuomo said on Friday. And if there is a modern playbook for surviving scandal, it begins with one clear rule: Don’t quit. Trump ignored calls to step down as the Republican nominee in 2016 after a tape emerged of him bragging about grabbing women’s private parts. Former Gov. Mark Sanford of South Carolina, a Republican, finished his term after lying about his adulterous “Appalachian Trail” trip. And Gov. Ralph Northam of Virginia, a Democrat, survived widespread resignation calls over a photo that appeared to show him in blackface. Cuomo’s advisers have been reaching out to labor and business leaders. And he has been maneuvering to consolidate and burnish support in the Black community, especially after the Legislature’s two top Democrats, both of whom are Black, have taken steps to push him out. His appearance last week flanked by Black clergy leaders, ostensibly to promote vaccine efforts in New York City, struck many as an especially brazen example of constituency politics. And he is demanding that the attorney general’s investigation proceed, clinging to a possible 2022 run as a bargaining chip to avert resignation or impeachment. His endgame is unclear. More than anything, Andrew Cuomo is now trying to buy himself time. Holding tight to his identity The governor’s mansion in Albany is steeped in history: It is the former home of Nelson Rockefeller, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt and, of course, Mario Cuomo. And since Andrew Cuomo’s split with his longtime girlfriend, the television personality Sandra Lee, and her sale of their Westchester home, Cuomo has lived in the mansion full time. The 63-year-old Democrat owns no other property. He rents no second apartment that anyone in his orbit seemed to be aware of. Everything about Cuomo — his home, his legacy, his identity — is wrapped up in a governorship now under siege. On Friday he was seen striding the mansion’s grounds, draped in a blanket, his cellphone pressed to his ear. Being governor, in other words, is his oxygen. Last year, he produced a giant foam mountain to memorialize the state’s declining virus caseload, and proudly posed before it. He commissioned a self-referential poster, complete with a picture of Cuomo in a muscle car and images of his advisers (“Magnificent Melissa” for his top aide, Melissa DeRosa). And he cast aside caution to write a self-congratulatory book of “leadership lessons” that published mid-pandemic, winning himself a reported seven-figure advance. “There’s been no one around the governor to save him from himself,” said Mitchell Moss, a professor of urban policy at New York University whom Cuomo appointed to a transit advisory council in 2017. “He may intimidate even the people who should be giving advice.” Cuomo has always kept his own counsel and his inner circle has shrunk over the years as waves of advisers have tired of his unrelenting and mercurial demands. Among those still providing advice, beyond his senior government staff, are Steven M. Cohen and William Mulrow, two former top officials in the governor’s office; Jefrey Pollock, his pollster; Charlie King, a longtime ally; and Jay Jacobs, the state Democratic Party chairman. His loyalists felt his wrath especially during the last year when he would lash out if other politicians, especially de Blasio, received credit for virus-battling successes or initiatives. When de Blasio at one point made an announcement of a shipment of supplies, including ambulances, from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Cuomo berated the regional FEMA administrator, Thomas Von Essen, in unusually blunt fashion for not delivering supplies through the state, according to a person familiar with the call. Von Essen declined to comment. In another episode, Cuomo and de Blasio greeted the arriving USNS Comfort, the military hospital ship, from separate piers. Cuomo pulled out of what had been planned as a potential joint appearance, according to people involved in the planning. The governor scheduled his event an hour earlier than de Blasio’s — seemingly unwilling to share the spotlight. A spokesman for Cuomo denied there had been a planned joint event with de Blasio, that he had berated Von Essen or lashed out at aides when de Blasio would receive credit for antivirus initiatives. Cuomo’s bullying — a long-known aspect of his style — has been cast by his allies as simply his way of getting things done. He has strong-armed legislators and anyone else who dared cross him in a decadelong run of productivity that included legalizing same-sex marriage, passing stronger gun control measures, raising the minimum wage and beginning numerous major infrastructure projects. But those tactics are now being seen in a different light, helping create an office culture that could be toxic, particularly for young women. Ever since Cuomo broke onto the political scene he has carved a reputation as a brash hard-charger. As executive director for his father’s transition team, after the 1982 victory in the governor’s race, the younger Cuomo kicked his feet up on a desk during an interview with The New York Times, lit a cigarette and declared, “I’ve become very popular lately.” Norman Adler, a senior aide on that 1982 campaign, said the current stories of an abusive culture in the younger Cuomo’s office today rang familiar. “Left to his devices, that would have been the atmosphere during the Mario Cuomo campaign,” Adler said. “Bullying, yelling, putting people down. He was, like — the path was muddy so he took your coat so he wouldn’t get his boots dirty.” During Mario Cuomo’s governorship, his son was known as the enforcer. “Mario got to be the nice guy, and when it was time for someone not to be the nice guy, it was Andrew’s job,” said Assemblyman Richard Gottfried, a Democrat who has served for 50 years. “He was very good at it.” Cuomo would join an American political dynasty in 1990, marrying Kerry Kennedy. The union was deemed “Cuomolot.” And he rose in national politics, becoming housing secretary in President Bill Clinton’s second term. In 2002, Andrew Cuomo sought to avenge his father’s loss eight years earlier to George Pataki, a Republican. But Cuomo never made it that far, withdrawing from a Democratic primary he was losing. Kennedy asked to separate soon after, according to Cuomo’s biographer, representing the low point of Cuomo’s personal and professional life. He rehabilitated his image with a 2006 run for attorney general and served one term before running for governor in 2010, a pathway cleared by the resignation of Gov. Eliot Spitzer and a scandal that forced Spitzer’s successor, Gov. David Paterson, to exit the race. Then, it was Cuomo doing the investigating; now he is the one being investigated. History repeats itself What has struck veteran New York political watchers is just how similar the arc of Cuomo’s downfall has felt to Spitzer’s collapse. Both rose to the top with sharp elbows and then found precious few friends in their hours of need. Soon after taking office, Spitzer famously raged that he was a “steamroller,” threatening to crush a state legislator. This year, Cuomo’s run of negative press intensified after he berated Assemblyman Ron Kim, a Democrat, who said the governor had threatened to “destroy” him. The conversation felt so familiar to those who have worked with Cuomo that his office’s denial was largely dismissed. “They’re cut from the same cloth,” said state Sen. James Tedisco, the Republican that Spitzer cursed at, referring to Spitzer and Cuomo. “They’ll do just about anything they can to get their way and try to destroy you.” This week, Tedisco said, “Andrew Cuomo is the steamroller that has run out of gas.” But for more than a decade, Cuomo divided and conquered Albany in singular fashion, intimidating rivals, dominating the terms of debate and helping enable Republican control of the state Senate, for a period, through a renegade faction of Democrats, known as the Independent Democratic Conference. As a result, the mainline Democratic leader, state Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins, was thwarted in her bid to become the first Black woman to lead a legislative chamber. In one tense 2017 meeting, Cuomo dismissed her understanding of suburban politics. Stewart-Cousins accused him of seeing only “my Black skin and a woman.” The next year, a group of progressive challengers, including Biaggi, ousted a half-dozen IDC senators. With Democrats in full control after 2018, Cuomo could no longer situate himself at the political midpoint of every deal. The landscape in Albany has quickly shifted. Nearly half the state Senate is new since 2018. And there is now a supermajority of 43 Democrats among whom Cuomo counts virtually no durable allies, according to multiple legislators. In a move that many on the left saw as poetic justice for his role in keeping her out of power, Stewart-Cousins was among the first prominent Democrats to call for Cuomo’s resignation. The Democrats who led the charge for Cuomo to resign are more politically progressive than he is. The three-term governor has improbably tried to portray himself as an outsider by dismissively saying of his fellow party officials on Friday, “I’m not part of the political club.” In the short-term, Cuomo’s fate rests in the state Assembly, where impeachment begins and where he has more of a political foothold; 23 women in that chamber pushed back this past week on calls for his immediate resignation, asking for Attorney General Letitia James to complete her investigation first. Cuomo is said to see James as his most formidable potential primary challenger should he survive and run again next year. For now, the biggest destabilizing force for Cuomo is the uncertainty of what new allegations each day will bring. His treatment of others, over so many years, makes it impossible to predict what lies ahead.

The imperious rise and accelerating fall of Andrew Cuomo

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo again insisted on Friday (March 12) he would not resign while allegations of his sexual misconduct are investigated, pushing back against a chorus of fellow Democrats, including more than a dozen U.S. Representatives, who have said he should step down.

Cuomo rejects more calls for his resignation as 7th woman accuses him of misconduct

Two senators from New York joined in calls within Democrats demanding the resignation of Governor Andrew Cuomo after another woman came forward, accusing him of sexual misconduct.

So far, seven women have come out to speak against Cuomo’s actions. Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, who has been at the forefront of the #MeToo movement recently spoke in support of Cuomo’s resignation.

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/another-women-accuses-andrew-cuomo-of-sexual-harassment-sixth-woman-to-come-forward-369307/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

They joined many other senators including US representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to call out Cuomo - the 63-year-old father of three daughters - who are all in their 20s. Cuomo has repeatedly denied the allegations. Additionally, he pointed how “reckless and dangerous” it is for politicians to not wait for all the factors to weigh in.

"Women have a right to come forward and be heard, and I encourage that fully. But I also want to be clear: there is still a question of the truth. I did not do what has been alleged, period," Cuomo was cited as saying by Reuters.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/sixth-woman-accuses-new-york-governor-cuomo-of-harassment-369231" hreflang="en">Sixth woman accuses New York governor Cuomo of harassment</a>

“Wait for the facts. An opinion without facts is irresponsible," he said.

Cuomo also recently said that he did not intend to make anybody feel uncomfortable, and apologised if he ever did the same.

"Due to the multiple, credible sexual harassment and misconduct allegations, it is clear that Governor Cuomo has lost the confidence of his governing partners and the people of New York," Schumer and Gillibrand, the two senators said in a collaborative statement.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/protesters-demand-new-york-governor-cuomos-resignation-over-sexual-harassment-allegation-367582" hreflang="en">Protesters demand New York governor Cuomo's resignation over sexual harassment allegation</a>

Multiple women have now accused Cuomo of sexual misconduct, ranging from flirting with them, to groping. By Friday, over 55 Democratic New York lawmakers were urging Cuomo to resign. In addition, the state legislature intends to begin an impeachment investigation keeping in mind the allegations.

Two senators from New York joined in calls within Democrats demanding the resignation of Governor Andrew Cuomo after another woman came forward, accusing him of sexual misconduct.

Two senators from New York joined in calls within Democrats demanding the resignation of Governor Andrew Cuomo after another woman came forward, accusing him of sexual misconduct. So far, seven women have come out to speak against Cuomo’s actions. Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, who has been at the forefront of the #MeToo movement recently spoke in support of Cuomo’s resignation. They joined many other senators including US representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to call out Cuomo - the 63-year-old father of three daughters - who are all in their 20s. Cuomo has repeatedly denied the allegations. Additionally, he pointed how “reckless and dangerous” it is for politicians to not wait for all the factors to weigh in. "Women have a right to come forward and be heard, and I encourage that fully. But I also want to be clear: there is still a question of the truth. I did not do what has been alleged, period," Cuomo was cited as saying by Reuters. Also read: Sixth woman accuses New York governor Cuomo of harassment “Wait for the facts. An opinion without facts is irresponsible," he said. Cuomo also recently said that he did not intend to make anybody feel uncomfortable, and apologised if he ever did the same. "Due to the multiple, credible sexual harassment and misconduct allegations, it is clear that Governor Cuomo has lost the confidence of his governing partners and the people of New York," Schumer and Gillibrand, the two senators said in a collaborative statement. Also read: Protesters demand New York governor Cuomo's resignation over sexual harassment allegation Multiple women have now accused Cuomo of sexual misconduct, ranging from flirting with them, to groping. By Friday, over 55 Democratic New York lawmakers were urging Cuomo to resign. In addition, the state legislature intends to begin an impeachment investigation keeping in mind the allegations.

Two New York senators join calls for Cuomo's resignation amid allegations of sexual misconduct

The Democratic head of the state assembly in New York has greenlighted a formal investigation of the sexual harassment claims against embattled governor Andrew Cuomo -- increasing the chances of his impeachment.

Impeachment by the New York state assembly requires a simple majority in the lower house and two-thirds in the upper house. The last time it happened was in 1913.

Since the end of February, the 63-year-old Cuomo, whose third term is due to expire in 2022, has been under scrutiny after several women accused him of sexual harassment or inappropriate behavior.

Additionally, on Wednesday, a newspaper in the state capital Albany reported explosive claims that Cuomo put his hand under the blouse of a female staffer and touched her "aggressively" at the end of 2020 in his private residence.

The allegations prompted 59 Democratic lawmakers from the state assembly -- which has a total of 213 members, most of them from Cuomo's Democratic Party -- to join dozens of Republicans who have publically called for his resignation.

After meeting with lawmakers, Democratic assembly speaker Carl Heastie said Thursday he was "authorising the Assembly Judiciary Committee to begin an impeachment investigation" -- the first step towards an eventual impeachment.

"The reports of accusations concerning the governor are serious," Heastie said in a statement. "The committee will have the authority to interview witnesses, subpoena documents and evaluate evidence."

That investigation will run alongside another probe already announced by New York state Attorney General Letitia James.&nbsp;

The governor, meanwhile, has so far ruled out resignation and insisted that he never touched anyone inappropriately, though he apologised if he "hurt" any of his accusers.

The Democratic head of the state assembly in New York has greenlighted a formal investigation of the sexual harassment claims against embattled governor Andrew Cuomo -- increasing the chances of his impeachment.

The Democratic head of the state assembly in New York has greenlighted a formal investigation of the sexual harassment claims against embattled governor Andrew Cuomo -- increasing the chances of his impeachment. Impeachment by the New York state assembly requires a simple majority in the lower house and two-thirds in the upper house. The last time it happened was in 1913. Since the end of February, the 63-year-old Cuomo, whose third term is due to expire in 2022, has been under scrutiny after several women accused him of sexual harassment or inappropriate behavior. Additionally, on Wednesday, a newspaper in the state capital Albany reported explosive claims that Cuomo put his hand under the blouse of a female staffer and touched her "aggressively" at the end of 2020 in his private residence. The allegations prompted 59 Democratic lawmakers from the state assembly -- which has a total of 213 members, most of them from Cuomo's Democratic Party -- to join dozens of Republicans who have publically called for his resignation. After meeting with lawmakers, Democratic assembly speaker Carl Heastie said Thursday he was "authorising the Assembly Judiciary Committee to begin an impeachment investigation" -- the first step towards an eventual impeachment. "The reports of accusations concerning the governor are serious," Heastie said in a statement. "The committee will have the authority to interview witnesses, subpoena documents and evaluate evidence." That investigation will run alongside another probe already announced by New York state Attorney General Letitia James. The governor, meanwhile, has so far ruled out resignation and insisted that he never touched anyone inappropriately, though he apologised if he "hurt" any of his accusers.

New York governor faces impeachment inquiry over sexual harassment claims

New York governor Andrew Cuomo, already under investigation for sexual harassment, is facing more serious allegations of groping a female employee.

This female employee was the sixth woman to have accused Cuomo of harassment.

But on Wednesday, it reported new details of the unnamed woman's encounter with the governor, citing a person with "direct knowledge" of her claims.

According to the newspaper, the woman had been called to Cuomo's governor's mansion in Albany last year on the "apparent pretext" of helping him with a problem with his phone.

"They were&nbsp;alone in Cuomo's private residence&nbsp;on the second floor when he closed the door and allegedly reached under her blouse and began to fondle her, according to the source," the newspaper wrote.

The employee also said the powerful Democratic governor touched her inappropriately on other occasions, according to the newspaper.&nbsp;

And the daily reported that her story first came out when she, along with other staff members, watched Cuomo give a press conference on March 3 denying earlier allegations. She became emotional before telling a female supervisor what had happened.&nbsp;She hasn't registered a formal complaint as of now.

Cuomo denied the new allegation, which he told the newspaper was "gut-wrenching." He has repeatedly denied all the claims against him and said that he would await the results of an independent investigation into the allegations, overseen by the state attorney general Letitia James.&nbsp;

Previous accusers have referred to sexual harassment or inappropriate gestures. One former aide, Lindsey Boylan, has alleged that the governor gave her an unsolicited kiss on the lips and suggested that they play strip poker, allegations Cuomo has denied.&nbsp;

Cuomo, initially praised for his state's handling of the pandemic, has suffered a spectacular fall from grace, with Republicans and his accusers also calling for his resignation. The new claim further weakens the position of the governor, who has been in power for 10 years and whose term expires in 2022.&nbsp;

New York governor Andrew Cuomo, already under investigation for sexual harassment, is facing more serious allegations of groping a female employee. This female employee was the sixth woman to have accused Cuomo of harassment.

New York governor Andrew Cuomo, already under investigation for sexual harassment, is facing more serious allegations of groping a female employee. This female employee was the sixth woman to have accused Cuomo of harassment. But on Wednesday, it reported new details of the unnamed woman's encounter with the governor, citing a person with "direct knowledge" of her claims. According to the newspaper, the woman had been called to Cuomo's governor's mansion in Albany last year on the "apparent pretext" of helping him with a problem with his phone. "They were alone in Cuomo's private residence on the second floor when he closed the door and allegedly reached under her blouse and began to fondle her, according to the source," the newspaper wrote. The employee also said the powerful Democratic governor touched her inappropriately on other occasions, according to the newspaper. And the daily reported that her story first came out when she, along with other staff members, watched Cuomo give a press conference on March 3 denying earlier allegations. She became emotional before telling a female supervisor what had happened. She hasn't registered a formal complaint as of now. Cuomo denied the new allegation, which he told the newspaper was "gut-wrenching." He has repeatedly denied all the claims against him and said that he would await the results of an independent investigation into the allegations, overseen by the state attorney general Letitia James. Previous accusers have referred to sexual harassment or inappropriate gestures. One former aide, Lindsey Boylan, has alleged that the governor gave her an unsolicited kiss on the lips and suggested that they play strip poker, allegations Cuomo has denied. Cuomo, initially praised for his state's handling of the pandemic, has suffered a spectacular fall from grace, with Republicans and his accusers also calling for his resignation. The new claim further weakens the position of the governor, who has been in power for 10 years and whose term expires in 2022.

New York governor faces more serious accusation from the sixth woman

Another woman has accused New York City Governor Andrew Cuomo of sexual harassment. The unknown staffer is the sixth women to accuse Cuomo of the wrongdoing.

Another women accuses Andrew Cuomo of sexual harassment, sixth woman to come forward

The Governor of New York has decided not to step down even after serious allegations against him. The decision remains the same even after top US officials demand his resignation.

New York: Andrew Cuomo continues to stay defiant

Another woman has come forward accusing the New York Governor Andrew Cuomo of making her uncomfortable through his inappropriate behaviour.

Recounting several unwanted advances at the workplace, a former aide of Cuomo has alleged him of making her feel uncomfortable in the starting years of her time at their offices in Albany.

Ana Liss, Cuomo's policy and operations aide, has accused him of awkwardly asking her if she had a boyfriend, calling her 'sweetheart' without permission and inappropriately touching her on her lower back at a reception.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/new-york-andrew-cuomo-apologizes-but-refuses-to-resign-367922">WATCH |</a>

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/new-york-andrew-cuomo-apologizes-but-refuses-to-resign-367922/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

She has also alleged that once kissed her hand when she got up from her desk. Liss claims that while she tried to dismiss these actions as harmless flirtation in the start, she later started viewing them as patronising and diminishing over time.

All of this happened in the starting years of her time at Cuomo's offices in the state capital Albany where she worked from 2013 to 2015. His actions were "not appropriate, really, in any setting," she said.

"Reporters and photographers have covered the governor for 14 years watching him kiss men and women and posing for pictures," Cuomo's senior adviser Rich Azzopardi said in response to the allegation which was first reported in the Wall Street Journal.

"At the public open-house mansion reception, there are hundreds of people, and he poses for hundreds of pictures," he said, adding, "That's what people in politics do."

This has come after Cuomo issued a public apology but refused to resign from his post over the allegations. He had also called for an outside review following a report of sexual misconduct allegations after two other former aides had accused him of the same.

Another woman has come forward accusing the New York Governor Andrew Cuomo of making her uncomfortable through his inappropriate behaviour. Recounting several unwanted advances at the workplace, a former aide of Cuomo has alleged him of making her feel uncomfortable in the starting years of her time at their offices in Albany.

Another woman has come forward accusing the New York Governor Andrew Cuomo of making her uncomfortable through his inappropriate behaviour. Recounting several unwanted advances at the workplace, a former aide of Cuomo has alleged him of making her feel uncomfortable in the starting years of her time at their offices in Albany. Ana Liss, Cuomo's policy and operations aide, has accused him of awkwardly asking her if she had a boyfriend, calling her 'sweetheart' without permission and inappropriately touching her on her lower back at a reception. WATCH | She has also alleged that once kissed her hand when she got up from her desk. Liss claims that while she tried to dismiss these actions as harmless flirtation in the start, she later started viewing them as patronising and diminishing over time. All of this happened in the starting years of her time at Cuomo's offices in the state capital Albany where she worked from 2013 to 2015. His actions were "not appropriate, really, in any setting," she said. "Reporters and photographers have covered the governor for 14 years watching him kiss men and women and posing for pictures," Cuomo's senior adviser Rich Azzopardi said in response to the allegation which was first reported in the Wall Street Journal. "At the public open-house mansion reception, there are hundreds of people, and he poses for hundreds of pictures," he said, adding, "That's what people in politics do." This has come after Cuomo issued a public apology but refused to resign from his post over the allegations. He had also called for an outside review following a report of sexual misconduct allegations after two other former aides had accused him of the same.

Another ex-aide accuses Andrew Cuomo of sexual misconduct

When Gov. Andrew Cuomo came under fire just a few weeks ago over his handling of nursing home deaths in the pandemic, he and his top advisers followed their usual playbook to stem the fallout: They worked the phones, pressing his case in private calls to legislators and other New York Democrats.

Then came a crisis that Cuomo’s signature blend of threats, flattery and browbeating could not mitigate. And he seemed to know it.

As three women stepped forward with claims of sexual harassment and other unwanted advances by Cuomo, the most visible governor in America effectively went dark.

After one of the women detailed her accusations against the governor in a Medium post, state Sen. Liz Krueger, a Manhattan Democrat, decided that she would come out with a statement calling for an independent investigation — an implicit rebuke of Cuomo. She reached out to the governor’s team to alert them, aware of the typical angry response.

No call came, she said.

“None of my colleagues have said they have heard from the governor on this,” Krueger said of the harassment accusations.

At the greatest moment of political peril for Cuomo in his decade in power, interviews with nearly two dozen Democratic lawmakers, strategists and Albany veterans paint a portrait of a governor who is increasingly isolated.

Cuomo faces a federal inquiry into his administration’s handling of nursing home deaths during the pandemic and an independent investigation into the harassment allegations, making his political path forward more challenging by the day.

On Friday, the state Legislature, which is controlled by Democrats, passed legislation to significantly curtail Cuomo’s vast emergency powers. When the governor appeared to suggest that he had played a role in the bill’s formulation, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie — not prone to criticizing Cuomo — immediately shot that down, pointedly saying in a statement that “we did not negotiate this bill with the governor.”

Other lawmakers on Friday escalated their calls to reprimand the governor, demanding investigations, impeachment proceedings and even resignations, after The New York Times reported that his administration had rewritten a report to obscure the full extent of nursing home deaths.

“If true, everyone involved in lying to the public and to the Legislature must resign immediately,” said state Sen. Rachel May, a Democrat from Syracuse. “And that includes the governor.”

It is an extraordinary turnaround for the man who was former President Donald Trump’s most prominent foil in the early months of the pandemic and whose power in New York appeared nearly unassailable as 2021 began.

Some people who have spoken to Cuomo in recent days have described him as shaken by the speed with which the political fallout arrived, with dueling scandals and reports of his bullying behavior all converging, very publicly, at once. Others have questioned whether he grasped the gravity of his circumstances.

But the rapidly unfurling crises, they said, have been especially challenging for a governor who has always sought to be in control. Now he is at the whims of often-fickle public opinion, fuming legislators and investigations.

Amid mounting scrutiny and nine days without a news conference, Cuomo picked Wednesday to emerge, one week after Lindsey Boylan, one of two former aides to speak out, detailed her accusations — which the governor has strenuously denied.

His appearance followed strategy sessions with a small circle of trusted loyalists at the governor’s mansion, amid internal deliberations about both the substance of his remarks and how to manage the delivery and tone on a sensitive subject, according to people who have been in touch with the team.

Longtime advisers and allies have helped the governor navigate the series of crises. They include two former top aides, Steven Cohen, the former secretary to the governor, and William Mulrow, another former secretary to the governor who now works at the private equity firm Blackstone; Melissa DeRosa, the governor’s top aide; Cuomo’s pollster, Jefrey Pollock; and Beth Garvey, special counsel to the governor.

The result Wednesday was an uncharacteristically rattled chief executive who delivered an emotional apology for his conduct but insisted that he had never “touched anyone inappropriately” and that he did not intend to resign.

“Palace intrigue aside, there’s a job to be done, and New Yorkers elected the governor to do it,” a spokesperson for the governor, Richard Azzopardi, said in a statement. “Which is why he has been focused on getting as many shots in arms as possible, making sure New York is getting its fair share in Washington’s COVID relief package and working on a state budget that is due in three weeks.”

People who have been in touch with Cuomo’s team described some staff members — in particular, younger ones — as demoralized and exhausted as a series of controversies play out on top of a year of navigating COVID-19 in an exceptionally demanding environment.

Several staff members have departed his office in recent days, citing a variety of reasons. Among those who have left are Gareth Rhodes, who served as a member of the state coronavirus task force and was a frequent guest star during Cuomo’s news briefings, and members of his press team.

As the Legislature heads into high-stakes budget negotiations, even Cuomo’s traditional allies acknowledge that his influence has taken a hit.

“It’s made his job more difficult,” said Jay Jacobs, the New York State Democratic Party chair, who said he had spoken with Cuomo on Thursday. “When you’re under this kind of pressure, that’s going to influence the amount of, the degree of, your political strength.”

Jacobs seems to be the relatively rare political figure who has discussed the accusations with Cuomo directly. As the allegations unfolded, Cuomo’s team denied wrongdoing and issued statements, but a number of leading lawmakers in Albany and Washington did not hear from the governor on the matter.

Donors, some of whom embrace Cuomo as a moderating force in the party, began to worry about his future. And a person close to Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul described an uptick in outreach to her office from political figures around the state — an unmistakable sign of uncertainty around Cuomo.

At least for now, many Democratic voters appear to see the dynamics concerning the governor differently, a reminder that the political impact of the controversies is fluid and unpredictable. A Quinnipiac University poll out Thursday showed that Democrats overwhelmingly did not believe that he should resign, and half of those Democrats surveyed supported his running for reelection next year.

But if Democratic voters are reserving some judgment on Cuomo, he has faced a staggering backlash from politicians in his party, many of whom have traditionally been reluctant to publicly challenge him — in some cases, for fear of retribution.

Overlaying all of the turmoil is a sense of great uncertainty around whether additional women will raise allegations.

“Any further people coming forward, I would think it would be time for him to resign,” the state Senate majority leader, Andrea Stewart-Cousins, said on Spectrum News’ “Capital Tonight” Thursday.

Indeed, the public outcry and the dearth of vocal defenders illustrate both the complexities of the problems Cuomo faces and how little he has invested in building mutually respectful relationships in politics. As with other New York politicians in times of extreme crisis, it is a dynamic that is haunting him now.

“The governor is in trouble because he’s a very tough guy and there are many people who don’t like him,” said George Arzt, a veteran New York political consultant who has known Cuomo for years. “He doesn’t have that reservoir of friends and good feeling to sort of push back. At this point, you don’t see many surrogates out there, and that’s a problem.”

Asked to point a reporter to surrogates for the governor, spokespeople for Cuomo did not respond.

In interviews over the past week, observers of Cuomo discussed political comparisons to former Gov. Eliot Spitzer, who resigned abruptly after revelations of his involvement with a prostitution ring. In both cases, critics saw the men as domineering personalities who made enemies in political circles — leaving few people willing to go to bat for them when scandal hit.

“Spitzer at one point thought that he could fight it, and that was quickly given up when he realized that his allies were not saying a word,” Arzt recalled.

Certainly, he suggested, Cuomo “has his own inner circle that is still ready to go to war with him” — not to mention a long list of accomplishments in office and, Arzt said, “tremendous skill as a tactician.”

“I do believe if anyone can get out of this, he can,” Arzt said, “if no other shoe drops.”

And as Hank Sheinkopf, another longtime Democratic strategist, put it, “Eliot Spitzer had no friends. Andrew Cuomo has some friends.”

This week, Hazel Dukes, president of the NAACP New York State Conference, said of Cuomo that it was “ridiculous to ask him to resign.” And while few prominent New York politicians have rushed to defend him, many have also held their fire regarding the question of resignation, deferring first to the independent investigation.

For now, Cuomo continues to occupy a prominent space on the national stage. As the chair of the National Governors Association, he kicked off a meeting with President Joe Biden and other governors during the last week of February. Cuomo and Biden have had a strong political alliance in the past, but the two have not otherwise spoken since the harassment allegations broke, a Biden adviser said. The White House has indicated that it supports the independent investigation of the accusations of harassment against the governor.

“When the investigation concludes, Democrats, I believe, will coalesce around doing the right thing,” Jacobs said. “We have to let the chips fall where they may, but I don’t see the value in a rush to judgment. I only see the potential cost.”

In the meantime, Cuomo’s allies have quietly conducted outreach to figures including the Rev. Al Sharpton, the civil rights leader.

“I feel that a woman’s statements have to be taken seriously but that he deserves a full, fair investigation,” Sharpton said. “So I’m not calling, as of yet, for his resignation. But I’m also not attacking the women.”

The question for Cuomo is whether Democratic leaders are willing to wait for that investigation to play out or if other developments force a reassessment of their posture before that happens. There are also many people in New York politics who have accumulated a list of grievances toward Cuomo that span decades. Some of them may relish the chance to break from him if they sense enough weakness — as they did with one of his predecessors.

“I distinctly remember with Spitzer, watching it all go down and saying at the time to myself, if he just had a few more friends who were willing to stand by him, I bet he could get past this,” Krueger said. “But it was all really rapid, and there wasn’t anybody coming forward.”

When Gov. Andrew Cuomo came under fire just a few weeks ago over his handling of nursing home deaths in the pandemic, he and his top advisers followed their usual playbook to stem the fallout: They worked the phones, pressing his case in private calls to legislators and other New York Democrats.

When Gov. Andrew Cuomo came under fire just a few weeks ago over his handling of nursing home deaths in the pandemic, he and his top advisers followed their usual playbook to stem the fallout: They worked the phones, pressing his case in private calls to legislators and other New York Democrats. Then came a crisis that Cuomo’s signature blend of threats, flattery and browbeating could not mitigate. And he seemed to know it. As three women stepped forward with claims of sexual harassment and other unwanted advances by Cuomo, the most visible governor in America effectively went dark. After one of the women detailed her accusations against the governor in a Medium post, state Sen. Liz Krueger, a Manhattan Democrat, decided that she would come out with a statement calling for an independent investigation — an implicit rebuke of Cuomo. She reached out to the governor’s team to alert them, aware of the typical angry response. No call came, she said. “None of my colleagues have said they have heard from the governor on this,” Krueger said of the harassment accusations. At the greatest moment of political peril for Cuomo in his decade in power, interviews with nearly two dozen Democratic lawmakers, strategists and Albany veterans paint a portrait of a governor who is increasingly isolated. Cuomo faces a federal inquiry into his administration’s handling of nursing home deaths during the pandemic and an independent investigation into the harassment allegations, making his political path forward more challenging by the day. On Friday, the state Legislature, which is controlled by Democrats, passed legislation to significantly curtail Cuomo’s vast emergency powers. When the governor appeared to suggest that he had played a role in the bill’s formulation, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie — not prone to criticizing Cuomo — immediately shot that down, pointedly saying in a statement that “we did not negotiate this bill with the governor.” Other lawmakers on Friday escalated their calls to reprimand the governor, demanding investigations, impeachment proceedings and even resignations, after The New York Times reported that his administration had rewritten a report to obscure the full extent of nursing home deaths. “If true, everyone involved in lying to the public and to the Legislature must resign immediately,” said state Sen. Rachel May, a Democrat from Syracuse. “And that includes the governor.” It is an extraordinary turnaround for the man who was former President Donald Trump’s most prominent foil in the early months of the pandemic and whose power in New York appeared nearly unassailable as 2021 began. Some people who have spoken to Cuomo in recent days have described him as shaken by the speed with which the political fallout arrived, with dueling scandals and reports of his bullying behavior all converging, very publicly, at once. Others have questioned whether he grasped the gravity of his circumstances. But the rapidly unfurling crises, they said, have been especially challenging for a governor who has always sought to be in control. Now he is at the whims of often-fickle public opinion, fuming legislators and investigations. Amid mounting scrutiny and nine days without a news conference, Cuomo picked Wednesday to emerge, one week after Lindsey Boylan, one of two former aides to speak out, detailed her accusations — which the governor has strenuously denied. His appearance followed strategy sessions with a small circle of trusted loyalists at the governor’s mansion, amid internal deliberations about both the substance of his remarks and how to manage the delivery and tone on a sensitive subject, according to people who have been in touch with the team. Longtime advisers and allies have helped the governor navigate the series of crises. They include two former top aides, Steven Cohen, the former secretary to the governor, and William Mulrow, another former secretary to the governor who now works at the private equity firm Blackstone; Melissa DeRosa, the governor’s top aide; Cuomo’s pollster, Jefrey Pollock; and Beth Garvey, special counsel to the governor. The result Wednesday was an uncharacteristically rattled chief executive who delivered an emotional apology for his conduct but insisted that he had never “touched anyone inappropriately” and that he did not intend to resign. “Palace intrigue aside, there’s a job to be done, and New Yorkers elected the governor to do it,” a spokesperson for the governor, Richard Azzopardi, said in a statement. “Which is why he has been focused on getting as many shots in arms as possible, making sure New York is getting its fair share in Washington’s COVID relief package and working on a state budget that is due in three weeks.” People who have been in touch with Cuomo’s team described some staff members — in particular, younger ones — as demoralized and exhausted as a series of controversies play out on top of a year of navigating COVID-19 in an exceptionally demanding environment. Several staff members have departed his office in recent days, citing a variety of reasons. Among those who have left are Gareth Rhodes, who served as a member of the state coronavirus task force and was a frequent guest star during Cuomo’s news briefings, and members of his press team. As the Legislature heads into high-stakes budget negotiations, even Cuomo’s traditional allies acknowledge that his influence has taken a hit. “It’s made his job more difficult,” said Jay Jacobs, the New York State Democratic Party chair, who said he had spoken with Cuomo on Thursday. “When you’re under this kind of pressure, that’s going to influence the amount of, the degree of, your political strength.” Jacobs seems to be the relatively rare political figure who has discussed the accusations with Cuomo directly. As the allegations unfolded, Cuomo’s team denied wrongdoing and issued statements, but a number of leading lawmakers in Albany and Washington did not hear from the governor on the matter. Donors, some of whom embrace Cuomo as a moderating force in the party, began to worry about his future. And a person close to Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul described an uptick in outreach to her office from political figures around the state — an unmistakable sign of uncertainty around Cuomo. At least for now, many Democratic voters appear to see the dynamics concerning the governor differently, a reminder that the political impact of the controversies is fluid and unpredictable. A Quinnipiac University poll out Thursday showed that Democrats overwhelmingly did not believe that he should resign, and half of those Democrats surveyed supported his running for reelection next year. But if Democratic voters are reserving some judgment on Cuomo, he has faced a staggering backlash from politicians in his party, many of whom have traditionally been reluctant to publicly challenge him — in some cases, for fear of retribution. Overlaying all of the turmoil is a sense of great uncertainty around whether additional women will raise allegations. “Any further people coming forward, I would think it would be time for him to resign,” the state Senate majority leader, Andrea Stewart-Cousins, said on Spectrum News’ “Capital Tonight” Thursday. Indeed, the public outcry and the dearth of vocal defenders illustrate both the complexities of the problems Cuomo faces and how little he has invested in building mutually respectful relationships in politics. As with other New York politicians in times of extreme crisis, it is a dynamic that is haunting him now. “The governor is in trouble because he’s a very tough guy and there are many people who don’t like him,” said George Arzt, a veteran New York political consultant who has known Cuomo for years. “He doesn’t have that reservoir of friends and good feeling to sort of push back. At this point, you don’t see many surrogates out there, and that’s a problem.” Asked to point a reporter to surrogates for the governor, spokespeople for Cuomo did not respond. In interviews over the past week, observers of Cuomo discussed political comparisons to former Gov. Eliot Spitzer, who resigned abruptly after revelations of his involvement with a prostitution ring. In both cases, critics saw the men as domineering personalities who made enemies in political circles — leaving few people willing to go to bat for them when scandal hit. “Spitzer at one point thought that he could fight it, and that was quickly given up when he realized that his allies were not saying a word,” Arzt recalled. Certainly, he suggested, Cuomo “has his own inner circle that is still ready to go to war with him” — not to mention a long list of accomplishments in office and, Arzt said, “tremendous skill as a tactician.” “I do believe if anyone can get out of this, he can,” Arzt said, “if no other shoe drops.” And as Hank Sheinkopf, another longtime Democratic strategist, put it, “Eliot Spitzer had no friends. Andrew Cuomo has some friends.” This week, Hazel Dukes, president of the NAACP New York State Conference, said of Cuomo that it was “ridiculous to ask him to resign.” And while few prominent New York politicians have rushed to defend him, many have also held their fire regarding the question of resignation, deferring first to the independent investigation. For now, Cuomo continues to occupy a prominent space on the national stage. As the chair of the National Governors Association, he kicked off a meeting with President Joe Biden and other governors during the last week of February. Cuomo and Biden have had a strong political alliance in the past, but the two have not otherwise spoken since the harassment allegations broke, a Biden adviser said. The White House has indicated that it supports the independent investigation of the accusations of harassment against the governor. “When the investigation concludes, Democrats, I believe, will coalesce around doing the right thing,” Jacobs said. “We have to let the chips fall where they may, but I don’t see the value in a rush to judgment. I only see the potential cost.” In the meantime, Cuomo’s allies have quietly conducted outreach to figures including the Rev. Al Sharpton, the civil rights leader. “I feel that a woman’s statements have to be taken seriously but that he deserves a full, fair investigation,” Sharpton said. “So I’m not calling, as of yet, for his resignation. But I’m also not attacking the women.” The question for Cuomo is whether Democratic leaders are willing to wait for that investigation to play out or if other developments force a reassessment of their posture before that happens. There are also many people in New York politics who have accumulated a list of grievances toward Cuomo that span decades. Some of them may relish the chance to break from him if they sense enough weakness — as they did with one of his predecessors. “I distinctly remember with Spitzer, watching it all go down and saying at the time to myself, if he just had a few more friends who were willing to stand by him, I bet he could get past this,” Krueger said. “But it was all really rapid, and there wasn’t anybody coming forward.”

A governor in isolation: How Andrew Cuomo lost his grip on New York

Another woman has come forward accusing the New York Governor Andrew Cuomo of making her uncomfortable through his inappropriate behaviour.

Video: Another ex-aide accuses Andrew Cuomo of sexual misconduct

Democrats are facing increasing challenges in the wake of sexual harassment allegations leveled against New York's governor Andrew Cuomo.

New York: Democrats face increasing challenges in wake of sexual harassment

Andrew Cuomo, governor of New York has refused to resign but have issued an apology for the sexual harassment allegations against him. 3 women had accused him of the charges.

New York: Andrew Cuomo apologizes but refuses to resign

Trouble continues to mount for New York's Governor Andrew Cuomo. Protesters gathered outside Cuomo's office, chanted slogans and also held up placards for the Governor to immediately resign.

Protesters gather outside Andrew Cuomo's office in New York

Demonstrators on Wednesday protested outside the New York administration office demanding governor Andrew <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/another-woman-who-worked-under-new-york-governor-cuomo-accuses-him-of-sexual-harassment-366730">Cuomo's</a> resignation after a third woman came forward accusing the governor of sexual harassment.

Watch:

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/ny-governor-andrew-cuomo-backs-independent-probe-367408/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/after-unused-vaccines-are-thrown-in-trash-cuomo-loosens-rules-356065">Cuomo</a> has been facing heat over alleged underreporting of COVID-19 fatalities in New York nursing homes. The New York governor on Monday had referred himself for investigation over sexual misconduct allegations by two ex-aides.

"I was trying to be a mentor to her. I never made advances toward Ms. Bennett nor did I ever intend to act in any way that was inappropriate," Cuomo said while defending himself against the allegations and called for "a full and thorough outside review".

Another woman, Anna Ruch, came forward to alleged Cuomo attempted to sexually harass her as she pushed away during a wedding in September 2019.&nbsp;

The New York governor had allegedly asked Ruch if he could kiss her.&nbsp;Ruch said the incident left her "confused and shocked and embarrassed."&nbsp;

Democrats and Republicans have called for Cuomo's resignation amid the sexual assault charges.

Cuomo has denied he physically touched anyone while he apologised if any of his remarks or behaviour was interpreted as flirtatious.&nbsp;

Meanwhile, Cuomo has hired a criminal defence lawyer Elkan Abramowitz to represent his office into the state's misreporting of coronavirus deaths among nursing home residents.

Demonstrators on Wednesday protested outside the New York administration office demanding governor Andrew Cuomo's resignation after a third woman came forward accusing the governor of sexual harassment.

Demonstrators on Wednesday protested outside the New York administration office demanding governor Andrew Cuomo's resignation after a third woman came forward accusing the governor of sexual harassment. Watch: Cuomo has been facing heat over alleged underreporting of COVID-19 fatalities in New York nursing homes. The New York governor on Monday had referred himself for investigation over sexual misconduct allegations by two ex-aides. "I was trying to be a mentor to her. I never made advances toward Ms. Bennett nor did I ever intend to act in any way that was inappropriate," Cuomo said while defending himself against the allegations and called for "a full and thorough outside review". Another woman, Anna Ruch, came forward to alleged Cuomo attempted to sexually harass her as she pushed away during a wedding in September 2019. The New York governor had allegedly asked Ruch if he could kiss her. Ruch said the incident left her "confused and shocked and embarrassed." Democrats and Republicans have called for Cuomo's resignation amid the sexual assault charges. Cuomo has denied he physically touched anyone while he apologised if any of his remarks or behaviour was interpreted as flirtatious. Meanwhile, Cuomo has hired a criminal defence lawyer Elkan Abramowitz to represent his office into the state's misreporting of coronavirus deaths among nursing home residents.

Protesters demand New York governor Cuomo's resignation over sexual harassment allegation

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo called on Saturday for an outside review following a report of sexual misconduct allegations against him by a second former aide, compounding problems for one of America's most well-known Democratic politicians.

Cuomo calls for outside review after second former aide alleges sexual misconduct

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo called on Saturday for an outside review following a report of sexual misconduct allegations against him by a second former aide, compounding problems for one of America's most well-known Democratic politicians.

This time the allegations came from 25-year-old former health adviser Charlotte Bennett, who said that Cuomo&nbsp;sexually harassed her in the spring of 2020.&nbsp;

According to Bennett, the 63-year-old politician said in June that he was open to dating women in their 20s, and asked her if she thought age made a difference in romantic relationships.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/former-aide-of-new-york-governor-cuomo-accuses-him-of-sexual-harassment-349811">Former aide of New York Governor Cuomo accuses him of sexual harassment</a>

While&nbsp;Cuomo&nbsp;never tried to touch her, "I understood that the governor wanted to sleep with me, and felt horribly uncomfortable and scared," Bennett told the paper.&nbsp;

She added that she spoke to&nbsp;Cuomo's chief of staff and legal counsel, who transferred her to another post in another building. Bennett was happy with the new job and decided not to insist on an investigation.

"I was trying to be a mentor to her. I never made advances toward Ms. Bennett nor did I ever intend to act in any way that was inappropriate," Cuomo said in a statement on Saturday.

He called for "a full and thorough outside review" led by a former federal judge and said he would have no further comment until it was completed.

Cuomo&nbsp;became a national star last spring with his straight-talking yet empathetic coronavirus briefings that contrasted sharply with then-president Donald Trump's dismissive approach to the pandemic.

But the harassment allegations come as he faces a growing storm over his handling of the coronavirus in nursing homes in his state.

In a statement Saturday,&nbsp;Cuomo&nbsp;said he "never made advances toward Ms Bennett nor did I ever intend to act in any way that was inappropriate."&nbsp;

He said he wanted instead to support Bennett, who had told him that she was a sexual assault survivor.&nbsp;

The governor, whose third term expires at the end of 2022, called for "a full and thorough outside review" of these charges, led by a former federal judge.&nbsp;

"I ask all New Yorkers to await the findings of the review so that they know the facts before making any judgments," he added.&nbsp;

This is the second time in a week that the Democratic governor, who has led New York state for 10 years, has been accused of sexual harassment.

On Wednesday, another ex-adviser, Lindsey Boylan, said in a blog that Cuomo&nbsp;had harassed her when she was working for his administration, from 2015 to 2018.

Boylan, 36, alleged that the governor had given her an unsolicited kiss on the lips, suggested that she play strip poker with him and went "out of his way to touch me on my lower back, arms and legs."&nbsp;

"For those wondering what it's like to work for the&nbsp;Cuomo&nbsp;admin, read @LindseyBoylan's story," Bennett wrote in a re-tweet of Boylan's post.

Cuomo's office said in a statement that Boylan's "claims of inappropriate behaviour are quite simply false."

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio on Thursday joined a growing chorus of politicians calling for an investigation into the allegations made against&nbsp;Cuomo.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo called on Saturday for an outside review following a report of sexual misconduct allegations against him by a second former aide, compounding problems for one of America's most well-known Democratic politicians. This time the allegations came from 25-year-old former health adviser Charlotte Bennett, who said that Cuomo sexually harassed her in the spring of 2020. According to Bennett, the 63-year-old politician said in June that he was open to dating women in their 20s, and asked her if she thought age made a difference in romantic relationships. Also read: Former aide of New York Governor Cuomo accuses him of sexual harassment While Cuomo never tried to touch her, "I understood that the governor wanted to sleep with me, and felt horribly uncomfortable and scared," Bennett told the paper. She added that she spoke to Cuomo's chief of staff and legal counsel, who transferred her to another post in another building. Bennett was happy with the new job and decided not to insist on an investigation. "I was trying to be a mentor to her. I never made advances toward Ms. Bennett nor did I ever intend to act in any way that was inappropriate," Cuomo said in a statement on Saturday. He called for "a full and thorough outside review" led by a former federal judge and said he would have no further comment until it was completed. Cuomo became a national star last spring with his straight-talking yet empathetic coronavirus briefings that contrasted sharply with then-president Donald Trump's dismissive approach to the pandemic. But the harassment allegations come as he faces a growing storm over his handling of the coronavirus in nursing homes in his state. In a statement Saturday, Cuomo said he "never made advances toward Ms Bennett nor did I ever intend to act in any way that was inappropriate." He said he wanted instead to support Bennett, who had told him that she was a sexual assault survivor. The governor, whose third term expires at the end of 2022, called for "a full and thorough outside review" of these charges, led by a former federal judge. "I ask all New Yorkers to await the findings of the review so that they know the facts before making any judgments," he added. This is the second time in a week that the Democratic governor, who has led New York state for 10 years, has been accused of sexual harassment. On Wednesday, another ex-adviser, Lindsey Boylan, said in a blog that Cuomo had harassed her when she was working for his administration, from 2015 to 2018. Boylan, 36, alleged that the governor had given her an unsolicited kiss on the lips, suggested that she play strip poker with him and went "out of his way to touch me on my lower back, arms and legs." "For those wondering what it's like to work for the Cuomo admin, read @LindseyBoylan's story," Bennett wrote in a re-tweet of Boylan's post. Cuomo's office said in a statement that Boylan's "claims of inappropriate behaviour are quite simply false." New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio on Thursday joined a growing chorus of politicians calling for an investigation into the allegations made against Cuomo.

New York Governor calls for outside review after second former aide alleges sexual harassment

A second woman who worked under New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has stepped forward to accuse him of sexually harassing her.&nbsp;

Charlotte Bennett, an executive assistant and health policy of the New York administration until November, told The New York Times that Cuomo harassed her last spring when the coronavirus pandemic was raging in the state.&nbsp;

She said that the New York governor asked her several inappropriate questions related to her personal life, including age differences in romantic relationships.&nbsp;

Watch |&nbsp;

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"I understood that the governor wanted to sleep with me, and felt horribly uncomfortable and scared," Bennett said in the report.&nbsp;

Cuomo agreed for an independent probe, saying it will be headed by a former federal judge.&nbsp;

"I was trying to be a mentor to her. I never made advances toward Ms. Bennett nor did I ever intend to act in any way that was inappropriate," the New York governor said in a statement on Saturday.

The latest allegations come after New York City's Mayor Bill de Blasio joined a chorus of political leaders on Thursday demanding an independent investigation into the claims of another Cuomo aide who has also made accusations of sexual harassment.&nbsp;

Also read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/former-aide-of-new-york-governor-cuomo-accuses-him-of-sexual-harassment-349811">Former aide of New York Governor Cuomo accuses him of sexual harassment</a>

"We need a full and independent investigation," said Mayor Bill de Blasio, who is also a Democrat and long-time rival of Cuomo.&nbsp;

Lindsey Boylan, who worked under Cuomo from 2015 to 2018, said the New York governor kissed her on the mouth forcefully and suggested playing strip poker during a flight.

She also said Cuomo went "out of his way to touch me on my lower back, arms and legs."

Boylan made these allegations in a blog post published on Wednesday and she first opened up about her harassment in December last year in which she said Cuomo "sexually harassed" her "for years" in a tweet. 
&nbsp;

A second woman who worked under New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has stepped forward to accuse him of sexually harassing her. Charlotte Bennett, an executive assistant and health policy of the New York administration until November, told The New York Times that Cuomo harassed her last spring when the coronavirus pandemic was raging in the state.

A second woman who worked under New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has stepped forward to accuse him of sexually harassing her. Charlotte Bennett, an executive assistant and health policy of the New York administration until November, told The New York Times that Cuomo harassed her last spring when the coronavirus pandemic was raging in the state. She said that the New York governor asked her several inappropriate questions related to her personal life, including age differences in romantic relationships. Watch | "I understood that the governor wanted to sleep with me, and felt horribly uncomfortable and scared," Bennett said in the report. Cuomo agreed for an independent probe, saying it will be headed by a former federal judge. "I was trying to be a mentor to her. I never made advances toward Ms. Bennett nor did I ever intend to act in any way that was inappropriate," the New York governor said in a statement on Saturday. The latest allegations come after New York City's Mayor Bill de Blasio joined a chorus of political leaders on Thursday demanding an independent investigation into the claims of another Cuomo aide who has also made accusations of sexual harassment. Also read | Former aide of New York Governor Cuomo accuses him of sexual harassment "We need a full and independent investigation," said Mayor Bill de Blasio, who is also a Democrat and long-time rival of Cuomo. Lindsey Boylan, who worked under Cuomo from 2015 to 2018, said the New York governor kissed her on the mouth forcefully and suggested playing strip poker during a flight. She also said Cuomo went "out of his way to touch me on my lower back, arms and legs." Boylan made these allegations in a blog post published on Wednesday and she first opened up about her harassment in December last year in which she said Cuomo "sexually harassed" her "for years" in a tweet.

Another woman who worked under New York Governor Cuomo accuses him of sexual harassment

The top Republicans in the United States are heading out to New York's Governor Andrew Cuomo for undercounting COVID-19 deaths at New York's nursing home.

US: Governor Andrew Cuomo faces flak for undercounting COVID-19 deaths

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who is in the news ever since the coronavirus pandemic began in the United States, finds himself in a new controversy after a former aide claimed that he sexually harassed her.&nbsp;

Lindsey Boylan, who is running for Manhattan borough president, said that Cuomo "sexually harassed" her "for years" in a tweet on Sunday.

"Many saw it, and watched," the tweet further said.

Also read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/in-april-vaccine-will-be-available-to-entire-population-except-new-york-says-trump-while-hitting-out-at-governor-cuomo-343180">In April, vaccine will be available to entire population except New York, says Trump while hitting out at Governor Cuomo</a>

&nbsp;

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Yes, <a href="https://twitter.com/NYGovCuomo?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NYGovCuomo</a> sexually harassed me for years. Many saw it, and watched. 
 
I could never anticipate what to expect: would I be grilled on my work (which was very good) or harassed about my looks. Or would it be both in the same conversation? This was the way for years.
— Lindsey Boylan (@LindseyBoylan) <a href="https://twitter.com/LindseyBoylan/status/1338125549756182529?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 13, 2020</a></blockquote>
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"I could never anticipate what to expect: would I be grilled on my work (which was very good) or harassed about my looks. Or would it be both in the same conversation? This was the way for years."

Reacting on Cuomo being is in the race to become President-elect Joe Biden's Attorney General, Boylan said that it will be " more scary" to give Cuomo "more control" in another tweet.&nbsp;

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I’m angry to be put in this situation at all. That because I am a woman, I can work hard my whole life to better myself and help others and yet still fall victim as countless women over generations have. Mostly silently. 
 
I hate that some men, like <a href="https://twitter.com/NYGovCuomo?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NYGovCuomo</a> abuse their power.
— Lindsey Boylan (@LindseyBoylan) <a href="https://twitter.com/LindseyBoylan/status/1338128200342384641?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 13, 2020</a></blockquote>
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"I saw how he wielded power for years. He takes advantage of people, including me," she said, adding that she hopes Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris don't consider him for the position.&nbsp;

"This right here is one of a million reasons women don’t speak up about sexual harassment. &nbsp;Sexual harassment in the workplace from someone powerful like their boss. The governor," Boylan in another tweet said.

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This right here is one of a million reasons women don’t speak up about sexual harassment. Sexual harassment in the workplace from someone powerful like their boss. The governor.
— Lindsey Boylan (@LindseyBoylan) <a href="https://twitter.com/LindseyBoylan/status/1338111685274505216?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 13, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Cuomo has denied these claims, with his press secretary Caitlin Girouard saying, "There is simply no truth to these claims," as quoted by The Guardian.

 
&nbsp;

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who is in the news ever since the coronavirus pandemic began in the United States, finds himself in a new controversy after a former aide claimed that he sexually harassed her.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who is in the news ever since the coronavirus pandemic began in the United States, finds himself in a new controversy after a former aide claimed that he sexually harassed her. Lindsey Boylan, who is running for Manhattan borough president, said that Cuomo "sexually harassed" her "for years" in a tweet on Sunday. "Many saw it, and watched," the tweet further said. Also read | In April, vaccine will be available to entire population except New York, says Trump while hitting out at Governor Cuomo Yes, @NYGovCuomo sexually harassed me for years. Many saw it, and watched. I could never anticipate what to expect: would I be grilled on my work (which was very good) or harassed about my looks. Or would it be both in the same conversation? This was the way for years. — Lindsey Boylan (@LindseyBoylan) December 13, 2020 × "I could never anticipate what to expect: would I be grilled on my work (which was very good) or harassed about my looks. Or would it be both in the same conversation? This was the way for years." Reacting on Cuomo being is in the race to become President-elect Joe Biden's Attorney General, Boylan said that it will be " more scary" to give Cuomo "more control" in another tweet. I’m angry to be put in this situation at all. That because I am a woman, I can work hard my whole life to better myself and help others and yet still fall victim as countless women over generations have. Mostly silently. I hate that some men, like @NYGovCuomo abuse their power. — Lindsey Boylan (@LindseyBoylan) December 13, 2020 × "I saw how he wielded power for years. He takes advantage of people, including me," she said, adding that she hopes Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris don't consider him for the position. "This right here is one of a million reasons women don’t speak up about sexual harassment. Sexual harassment in the workplace from someone powerful like their boss. The governor," Boylan in another tweet said. This right here is one of a million reasons women don’t speak up about sexual harassment. Sexual harassment in the workplace from someone powerful like their boss. The governor. — Lindsey Boylan (@LindseyBoylan) December 13, 2020 × Cuomo has denied these claims, with his press secretary Caitlin Girouard saying, "There is simply no truth to these claims," as quoted by The Guardian.

Former aide of New York Governor Cuomo accuses him of sexual harassment

US President Donald Trump on Monday announced that his country has inoculated the first person&nbsp;with Pfizer's <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/coronavirus-vaccine">coronavirus vaccine</a>, marking a pivotal turn in its&nbsp;effort to control the deadly virus.

Trump took to Twitter and tweeted: ''First vaccine administered. Congratulations USA! Congratulations world!''

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First Vaccine Administered. Congratulations USA! Congratulations WORLD!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1338490171801661441?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 14, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Trump's tweet came minutes after Sandra Lindsay, an ICU nurse, was given the vaccine at Long Island Jewish Medical Center in Queens, New York, an early epicenter of the country's COVID-19 outbreak, receiving applause on a live stream with New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.

"It didn't feel any different from taking any other vaccine," Lindsay said. "I feel hopeful today, relieved. I feel like healing is coming. I hope this marks the beginning of the end of a very painful time in our history. I want to instill public confidence that the vaccine is safe."

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/us-to-distribute-40-million-vaccine-doses-by-2020-end-349713/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

The coronavirus vaccine, developed by Pfizer and its German partner&nbsp;BioNTech, won emergency-use approval from federal regulators on Friday after it was found to be 95 per cent&nbsp;effective in preventing illness in a large clinical trial.

Governor Andrew Cuomo, watching the landmark moment via video-link, told Lindsay he hoped the vaccine would give her and other frontline health care workers "a sense of security and safety."

"It's going to take months before the vaccine hits critical mass. So, this is the light at the end of the tunnel, but it's a long tunnel," he said, reminding people to keep following social distancing guidelines.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/trump-pence-among-top-us-officials-to-be-offered-covid-19-vaccine-on-priority-report-349600" hreflang="en">Trump, Pence among top US officials to be offered COVID-19 vaccine on priority: Report</a>

The first 2.9 million doses began to be shipped to distribution centers around the country on Sunday, just 11 months after the United States documented its first COVID-19 infections.

As of Monday, the United States had registered 16,286,343 cases and 299,489 deaths from the virus.

Hospitals in Texas, Utah and Minnesota said they also anticipated receiving their first doses of the vaccine at select hospitals on Monday, to be administered right away.

COVID-19 has ravaged the United States. More than 299,000 Americans have been killed by the virus, including over 35,000 residents of New York state.

Logistical challenge

The first US&nbsp;shipments of coronavirus vaccine departed from Pfizer's facility in Kalamazoo, Michigan, on Sunday, packed into trucks with dry-ice to maintain the necessary sub-Arctic temperatures, and then were transported to UPS and FedEx planes waiting at air fields in Lansing and Grand Rapids, kicking off a national immunization endeavor of unprecedented complexity.

<img alt="COVID" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="f8e34e6c-e0e0-4207-b57b-5249daeebf08" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Untitled%20design%20%2837%29_9.jpg" />

In picture:&nbsp;Boxes containing Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine are unloaded from air shipping containers at UPS Worldport, in Louisville, Kentucky/Reuters

The jets delivered the shipments to UPS and FedEx cargo hubs in Louisville and Memphis, respectively, from where they were loaded onto planes and trucks to be distributed to the first 145 of 636 vaccine-staging areas across the country. Second and third waves of vaccine shipments were due to go out to the remaining sites on Tuesday and Wednesday.

"This is the most difficult vaccine rollout in history. There will be hiccups undoubtedly but we've done everything from a federal level and working with partners to make it go as smoothly as possible. Please be patient with us," Surgeon General Jerome Adams told Fox News on Monday, adding that he would get the shot as soon as he can.

The logistical effort is further complicated by the need to transport and store the Pfizer/BioNTech&nbsp;vaccine at minus 70 Celsius (minus 94 Fahrenheit), requiring enormous quantities of dry ice or specialized ultra-cold freezers.

Workers clapped and whistled as the first boxes were loaded onto trucks at the Pfizer factory on Sunday.

"We know we're all suffering, our families are suffering. We're going into the Christmas holiday with shutdowns and people are going to be very impacted by this pandemic. We know how much people are hurting," UPS Healthcare President Wes Wheeler said on Sunday from the company’s command center in Louisville, Kentucky

Healthcare workers and elderly residents of long-term care homes will be first in line to get the inoculations of a two-dose regimen given about three weeks apart.

US President Donald Trump on Monday announced that his country has inoculated the first person with Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine, marking a pivotal turn in its effort to control the deadly virus.

US President Donald Trump on Monday announced that his country has inoculated the first person with Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine, marking a pivotal turn in its effort to control the deadly virus. Trump took to Twitter and tweeted: ''First vaccine administered. Congratulations USA! Congratulations world!'' First Vaccine Administered. Congratulations USA! Congratulations WORLD! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 14, 2020 × Trump's tweet came minutes after Sandra Lindsay, an ICU nurse, was given the vaccine at Long Island Jewish Medical Center in Queens, New York, an early epicenter of the country's COVID-19 outbreak, receiving applause on a live stream with New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. "It didn't feel any different from taking any other vaccine," Lindsay said. "I feel hopeful today, relieved. I feel like healing is coming. I hope this marks the beginning of the end of a very painful time in our history. I want to instill public confidence that the vaccine is safe." The coronavirus vaccine, developed by Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech, won emergency-use approval from federal regulators on Friday after it was found to be 95 per cent effective in preventing illness in a large clinical trial. Governor Andrew Cuomo, watching the landmark moment via video-link, told Lindsay he hoped the vaccine would give her and other frontline health care workers "a sense of security and safety." "It's going to take months before the vaccine hits critical mass. So, this is the light at the end of the tunnel, but it's a long tunnel," he said, reminding people to keep following social distancing guidelines. Also read: Trump, Pence among top US officials to be offered COVID-19 vaccine on priority: Report The first 2.9 million doses began to be shipped to distribution centers around the country on Sunday, just 11 months after the United States documented its first COVID-19 infections. As of Monday, the United States had registered 16,286,343 cases and 299,489 deaths from the virus. Hospitals in Texas, Utah and Minnesota said they also anticipated receiving their first doses of the vaccine at select hospitals on Monday, to be administered right away. COVID-19 has ravaged the United States. More than 299,000 Americans have been killed by the virus, including over 35,000 residents of New York state. Logistical challenge The first US shipments of coronavirus vaccine departed from Pfizer's facility in Kalamazoo, Michigan, on Sunday, packed into trucks with dry-ice to maintain the necessary sub-Arctic temperatures, and then were transported to UPS and FedEx planes waiting at air fields in Lansing and Grand Rapids, kicking off a national immunization endeavor of unprecedented complexity. In picture: Boxes containing Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine are unloaded from air shipping containers at UPS Worldport, in Louisville, Kentucky/Reuters The jets delivered the shipments to UPS and FedEx cargo hubs in Louisville and Memphis, respectively, from where they were loaded onto planes and trucks to be distributed to the first 145 of 636 vaccine-staging areas across the country. Second and third waves of vaccine shipments were due to go out to the remaining sites on Tuesday and Wednesday. "This is the most difficult vaccine rollout in history. There will be hiccups undoubtedly but we've done everything from a federal level and working with partners to make it go as smoothly as possible. Please be patient with us," Surgeon General Jerome Adams told Fox News on Monday, adding that he would get the shot as soon as he can. The logistical effort is further complicated by the need to transport and store the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine at minus 70 Celsius (minus 94 Fahrenheit), requiring enormous quantities of dry ice or specialized ultra-cold freezers. Workers clapped and whistled as the first boxes were loaded onto trucks at the Pfizer factory on Sunday. "We know we're all suffering, our families are suffering. We're going into the Christmas holiday with shutdowns and people are going to be very impacted by this pandemic. We know how much people are hurting," UPS Healthcare President Wes Wheeler said on Sunday from the company’s command center in Louisville, Kentucky Healthcare workers and elderly residents of long-term care homes will be first in line to get the inoculations of a two-dose regimen given about three weeks apart.

US administers first coronavirus vaccine; Donald Trump congratulates Americans

New Yorkers who have lost their loved ones to COVID-19, protested against Governor Andrew Cuomo. The protest was against a recently publish book on Leadership during the Pandemic by Governor Cuomo. The protest was held with a silver casket. Susan Tehran brings you more.

Symbolic funeral for New York governor's integrity

The US President Donald Trump has announced plans to cut&nbsp;federal funds for the "lawless" cities, including&nbsp;&nbsp;Seattle, Portland, New York and Washington.

Donald Trump has signed a memo on Wednesday for the same, which was released by the White House.&nbsp;“My Administration will not allow Federal tax dollars to fund cities that allow themselves to deteriorate into lawless zones," Trump said.

As per the memory,&nbsp;Attorney General William Barr has been asked to list out the&nbsp;“anarchist jurisdictions” that “permitted violence and the destruction of property to persist and have refused to undertake reasonable measures.”

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/get-off-twitter-joe-biden-asks-trump-to-do-his-real-job-325008">Also read|&nbsp;'Get off Twitter': Joe Biden asks Trump to do his real job</a>

The five-page long memory had mentioned&nbsp;Bill de Blasio twice by name. Blasio, later, took to Twitter to respond to the memory saying, "While @realDonaldTrump spent this year hiding from COVID-19, New York City led the fight back. Now we’re trying to recover and he’s making unconstitutional, political threats against us. Mr. President, we’ll see you in court. We’ve beaten you there before and we’ll do it again."

Further, the White House Budget Director Russell Vought has been asked to issue guidance within 30 days “to the heads of agencies on restricting eligibility of or otherwise disfavoring, to the maximum extent permitted by law, anarchist jurisdictions in the receipt of Federal grants.”

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My Administration will do everything in its power to prevent weak mayors and lawless cities from taking Federal dollars while they let anarchists harm people, burn buildings, and ruin lives and businesses. We’re putting them on notice today. <a href="https://twitter.com/RussVought45?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RussVought45</a>
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1301315810485579776?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 3, 2020</a></blockquote>
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However, as expected, the decision was not welcomed by few of the Governors who feel that Trump's cut-back comes at a point when the states need more funding due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.&nbsp;

New York&nbsp;Governor Andrew Cuomo said, "President Trump has actively sought to punish NYC since day one. He let COVID ambush New York.&nbsp;He refuses to provide funds that states and cities MUST receive to recover. He is not a king. He cannot "defund" NYC.&nbsp;It's an illegal stunt."

Trump, too, responded through Twitter by attacking Cuomo and alleging him of poor handling of the virus in new York. "Governors Andrew Cuomo of New York has the worst record on death and China Virus. 11,000 people alone died in Nursing Homes because of his incompetence!"

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Governors Andrew Cuomo of New York has the worst record on death and China Virus. 11,000 people alone died in Nursing Homes because of his incompetence!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1301499699069882368?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 3, 2020</a></blockquote>
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"If you didn’t have the law and he could do this by his own discretion, if he was a king, then it would kill New York City. Which is what he’s been trying to do since he was elected. And it’s personal, because New York City knows him for the joke that he is," Cuomo said during a conference call Wednesday evening.

"This is a man who is disrespected by his own family. His own sister, former federal judge, is disgraced by him. What does that say about a person who spends his time trying to destroy a place where he came from ... So actively and continually has this hateful animus towards the place that was his home?"

The US President Donald Trump has announced plans to cut federal funds for the "lawless" cities, including Seattle, Portland, New York and Washington. Donald Trump has signed a memo on Wednesday for the same, which was released by the White House.

The US President Donald Trump has announced plans to cut federal funds for the "lawless" cities, including Seattle, Portland, New York and Washington. Donald Trump has signed a memo on Wednesday for the same, which was released by the White House. “My Administration will not allow Federal tax dollars to fund cities that allow themselves to deteriorate into lawless zones," Trump said. As per the memory, Attorney General William Barr has been asked to list out the “anarchist jurisdictions” that “permitted violence and the destruction of property to persist and have refused to undertake reasonable measures.” Also read| 'Get off Twitter': Joe Biden asks Trump to do his real job The five-page long memory had mentioned Bill de Blasio twice by name. Blasio, later, took to Twitter to respond to the memory saying, "While @realDonaldTrump spent this year hiding from COVID-19, New York City led the fight back. Now we’re trying to recover and he’s making unconstitutional, political threats against us. Mr. President, we’ll see you in court. We’ve beaten you there before and we’ll do it again." Further, the White House Budget Director Russell Vought has been asked to issue guidance within 30 days “to the heads of agencies on restricting eligibility of or otherwise disfavoring, to the maximum extent permitted by law, anarchist jurisdictions in the receipt of Federal grants.” My Administration will do everything in its power to prevent weak mayors and lawless cities from taking Federal dollars while they let anarchists harm people, burn buildings, and ruin lives and businesses. We’re putting them on notice today. @RussVought45 — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 3, 2020 × However, as expected, the decision was not welcomed by few of the Governors who feel that Trump's cut-back comes at a point when the states need more funding due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said, "President Trump has actively sought to punish NYC since day one. He let COVID ambush New York. He refuses to provide funds that states and cities MUST receive to recover. He is not a king. He cannot "defund" NYC. It's an illegal stunt." Trump, too, responded through Twitter by attacking Cuomo and alleging him of poor handling of the virus in new York. "Governors Andrew Cuomo of New York has the worst record on death and China Virus. 11,000 people alone died in Nursing Homes because of his incompetence!" Governors Andrew Cuomo of New York has the worst record on death and China Virus. 11,000 people alone died in Nursing Homes because of his incompetence! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 3, 2020 × "If you didn’t have the law and he could do this by his own discretion, if he was a king, then it would kill New York City. Which is what he’s been trying to do since he was elected. And it’s personal, because New York City knows him for the joke that he is," Cuomo said during a conference call Wednesday evening. "This is a man who is disrespected by his own family. His own sister, former federal judge, is disgraced by him. What does that say about a person who spends his time trying to destroy a place where he came from ... So actively and continually has this hateful animus towards the place that was his home?"

Donald Trump threatens to cut federal funding for 'lawless' cities

As New York City started phase 4 of its reopening Monday (20 JULY 2020), some of the city's most famous tourist attractions opened to visitors for the first time since March. Visitors trickled on to the Statue of Liberty ferry, but most said it seemed a little weird to be doing tourist activities.

Statue of Liberty opens as NYC hits phase 4

New York, New Jersey and Connecticut issued a travel advisory Wednesday that requires people arriving from states with high coronavirus rates to quarantine for 14 days.

The travel advisory applies to anyone coming from a state with a positive test rate higher than 10 per 100,000 residents over a 7-day rolling average or a state with a 10 per cent&nbsp;or higher positivity rate over a seven-day rolling average, according to a joint announcement from the governors of the three states.

"We have to make sure the virus doesn't come in on a plane," said New York Governor&nbsp;Andrew Cuomo.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/covid-19-us-records-highest-single-day-spike-california-texas-among-states-worst-hit-308413">COVID-19: US records highest single day spike; death toll rises to 121,000</a>

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"We worked very hard to get the viral transmission rate down, and we don't want to see it go up," he added.

Currently, those states are&nbsp;Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas&nbsp;and&nbsp;Utah,&nbsp;the governor of New York state Andrew Cuomo told reporters.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/covid-19-who-warns-possible-lack-of-oxygen-as-cases-near-10-million-308449">COVID 19: WHO warns possible lack of oxygen as cases near 10 million</a>

People coming from those states, including returning New York, New Jersey and Connecticut residents, will be asked to quarantine upon arrival for 14 days.

Anyone found breaking the quarantine could face fines of $1,000&nbsp;rising to $5,000 for repeated violations, Cuomo said. He added that US states would be added or taken off the quarantine list depending on the number of new cases per 100,000 people or the rate of positive tests.

New Jersey's Phil Murphy said people in the three states had been "through hell and back" and did not want "another round" of virus infections.

Some southern and western states have been reporting record numbers of cases.

The University of Washington predicts 180,000 US deaths by October&nbsp;or 146,000 if 95 per cent&nbsp;of Americans wear masks.

So far, the US has recorded more than 2.3 million cases of the virus and more than 121,000 deaths. Health officials say the coming weeks will be crucial to stem the outbreaks.

New York, New Jersey and Connecticut issued a travel advisory Wednesday that requires people arriving from states with high coronavirus rates to quarantine for 14 days.

New York, New Jersey and Connecticut issued a travel advisory Wednesday that requires people arriving from states with high coronavirus rates to quarantine for 14 days. The travel advisory applies to anyone coming from a state with a positive test rate higher than 10 per 100,000 residents over a 7-day rolling average or a state with a 10 per cent or higher positivity rate over a seven-day rolling average, according to a joint announcement from the governors of the three states. "We have to make sure the virus doesn't come in on a plane," said New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. Also read: COVID-19: US records highest single day spike; death toll rises to 121,000 "We worked very hard to get the viral transmission rate down, and we don't want to see it go up," he added. Currently, those states are Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas and Utah, the governor of New York state Andrew Cuomo told reporters. Also read: COVID 19: WHO warns possible lack of oxygen as cases near 10 million People coming from those states, including returning New York, New Jersey and Connecticut residents, will be asked to quarantine upon arrival for 14 days. Anyone found breaking the quarantine could face fines of $1,000 rising to $5,000 for repeated violations, Cuomo said. He added that US states would be added or taken off the quarantine list depending on the number of new cases per 100,000 people or the rate of positive tests. New Jersey's Phil Murphy said people in the three states had been "through hell and back" and did not want "another round" of virus infections. Some southern and western states have been reporting record numbers of cases. The University of Washington predicts 180,000 US deaths by October or 146,000 if 95 per cent of Americans wear masks. So far, the US has recorded more than 2.3 million cases of the virus and more than 121,000 deaths. Health officials say the coming weeks will be crucial to stem the outbreaks.

New York imposes quarantine on eight US states with high COVID-19 rates

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo slammed US President Donald Trump on Tuesday. Cuomo said he was "disgusted" by Trump's claim that the 75-year-old man seen in the video "fell harder than he was pushed."

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/amid-protests-george-floyd-to-be-buried-in-houston-on-tuesday-304629" hreflang="en">Amid protests, George Floyd to be buried in Houston on Tuesday</a>

"President Trump did a tweet today that surprises me even after all the tweets he has done," Cuomo said at his daily news briefing.

"You read his tweets, you get to a point where you say, 'Well, nothing could surprise me - I've seen it all,'" Cuomo added. "And then you get surprised again. You get shocked again. You get disgusted again."

Trump suggested that the protestor, Martin Gugino could be "an ANTIFA provocateur" and staged his fall at the hands of an officer.&nbsp;

"I watched, he fell harder than was pushed," the president said on Twitter. "Was aiming scanner. Could be a set up?"

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Buffalo protester shoved by Police could be an ANTIFA provocateur. 75 year old Martin Gugino was pushed away after appearing to scan police communications in order to black out the equipment. <a href="https://twitter.com/OANN?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@OANN</a> I watched, he fell harder than was pushed. Was aiming scanner. Could be a set up?
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1270333484528214018?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 9, 2020</a></blockquote>
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The two Buffalo officers who were seen pushing him and were charged with assault on Saturday. Gugino has been hospitalized after the incident.&nbsp;

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo slammed US President Donald Trump on Tuesday. Cuomo said he was "disgusted" by Trump's claim that the 75-year-old man seen in the video "fell harder than he was pushed.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo slammed US President Donald Trump on Tuesday. Cuomo said he was "disgusted" by Trump's claim that the 75-year-old man seen in the video "fell harder than he was pushed." Also read: Amid protests, George Floyd to be buried in Houston on Tuesday "President Trump did a tweet today that surprises me even after all the tweets he has done," Cuomo said at his daily news briefing. "You read his tweets, you get to a point where you say, 'Well, nothing could surprise me - I've seen it all,'" Cuomo added. "And then you get surprised again. You get shocked again. You get disgusted again." Trump suggested that the protestor, Martin Gugino could be "an ANTIFA provocateur" and staged his fall at the hands of an officer. "I watched, he fell harder than was pushed," the president said on Twitter. "Was aiming scanner. Could be a set up?" Buffalo protester shoved by Police could be an ANTIFA provocateur. 75 year old Martin Gugino was pushed away after appearing to scan police communications in order to black out the equipment. @OANN I watched, he fell harder than was pushed. Was aiming scanner. Could be a set up? — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 9, 2020 × The two Buffalo officers who were seen pushing him and were charged with assault on Saturday. Gugino has been hospitalized after the incident.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo slams Trump's claim that protester 'fell harder than was pushed'

&nbsp;It seems like the casting of a possible coronavirus-themed movie has been done! New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has given a green signal to actor Robert De Niro's interest to play him in the movie.

The Hollywood veteran who appeared on a virtual late-night chat show last week, and when put in a hypothetical situation, expressed his wish to play the New York Governor.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/entertainment/queen-elizabeth-to-stay-at-windsor-castle-until-any-further-notice-297982" hreflang="en">Queen Elizabeth to stay at Windsor Castle until any further notice</a>

Host Stephen Colbert through a video chat for 'The Late Show' created a possible situation about a coronavirus-themed movie and asked the 76-year-old actor about his preference for which real-life figure he would like to play.

Referring to the New York Governor, the 'The Irishman' actor said: "Cuomo... he's doing what a president should do." With a background of this conversation, Cuomo who recently was a guest on the show declared that he was an admirer of De Niro.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/entertainment/it-star-bill-skarsgard-to-play-the-notorious-swedish-criminal-clark-olofsson-in-netflix-series-297978" hreflang="en">'It' star Bill Skarsgård to play the notorious Swedish criminal Clark Olofsson in Netflix series</a>

"He is just phenomenal. The breadth of his ability, I mean, just look at all the roles he's played," the news agency&nbsp;quoted Cuomo as saying.

''He can do anything, right? 'Deer Hunter,' 'Cape Fear,' he can do comedy... how 'bout 'Taxi Driver?' the politician added.

Also read:&nbsp;

He mentioned that he would channel the actor's character in 'Taxi Driver' at Cuomo's next news conference.

During the chat show, the governor also gave an impression of De Niro and delivered one of his famous lines from the movie 'You talking to me?"Oh, boy, that'd be a treat, I'm a big De Niro fan. He's a genius," Cumo added.&nbsp;

It seems like the casting of a possible coronavirus-themed movie has been done! New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has given a green signal to actor Robert De Niro's interest to play him in the movie.

It seems like the casting of a possible coronavirus-themed movie has been done! New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has given a green signal to actor Robert De Niro's interest to play him in the movie. The Hollywood veteran who appeared on a virtual late-night chat show last week, and when put in a hypothetical situation, expressed his wish to play the New York Governor. Also read: Queen Elizabeth to stay at Windsor Castle until any further notice Host Stephen Colbert through a video chat for 'The Late Show' created a possible situation about a coronavirus-themed movie and asked the 76-year-old actor about his preference for which real-life figure he would like to play. Referring to the New York Governor, the 'The Irishman' actor said: "Cuomo... he's doing what a president should do." With a background of this conversation, Cuomo who recently was a guest on the show declared that he was an admirer of De Niro. Also read: 'It' star Bill Skarsgård to play the notorious Swedish criminal Clark Olofsson in Netflix series "He is just phenomenal. The breadth of his ability, I mean, just look at all the roles he's played," the news agency quoted Cuomo as saying. ''He can do anything, right? 'Deer Hunter,' 'Cape Fear,' he can do comedy... how 'bout 'Taxi Driver?' the politician added. Also read: He mentioned that he would channel the actor's character in 'Taxi Driver' at Cuomo's next news conference. During the chat show, the governor also gave an impression of De Niro and delivered one of his famous lines from the movie 'You talking to me?"Oh, boy, that'd be a treat, I'm a big De Niro fan. He's a genius," Cumo added.

Andrew Cuomo approves idea of Robert De Niro playing him in possible pandemic themed movie

The New York Governor Andrew Cuomo made a virtual appearance Thursday on CBS’ The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and spoke about Robert De Niro’s wish to play his character in a film made on pandemic based in the city.&nbsp;

Basically, Stephen had asked Robert De Niro who he’d like to portray if a film on pandemic was made, to which he replied, “Andrew Cuomo.” They also spoke about Brad Pitt portraying Dr fauci briefly on NBC’s Saturday Night Live.

So when the question was pointed to Andrew Cuomo, he naturally went with Robert De Niro, he said, "De Niro, I am a big De Niro fan. He is just phenomenal. The breadth of his ability, I mean, just look at all the roles he’s played. He can do anything, right? Deer Hunter, Cape Fear, he can do comedy... how 'bout Taxi Driver?"

"I’m going to do Taxi Driver. The next press conference, when a reporter asks me a question" — and then launched into an impression of De Niro's character Travis Bickle in the 1976 crime drama. "You talkin’ to me?" Cuomo concluded by saying, "Oh, boy, that’d be a treat. I’m a big De Niro fan. He’s a genius."

Robert De Niro and Andrew Cuomo share some similarities including being born and raised in New York City.

The New York Governor Andrew Cuomo made a virtual appearance Thursday on CBS’ The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and spoke about Robert De Niro’s wish to play his character in a film made on pandemic based in the city.

The New York Governor Andrew Cuomo made a virtual appearance Thursday on CBS’ The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and spoke about Robert De Niro’s wish to play his character in a film made on pandemic based in the city. Basically, Stephen had asked Robert De Niro who he’d like to portray if a film on pandemic was made, to which he replied, “Andrew Cuomo.” They also spoke about Brad Pitt portraying Dr fauci briefly on NBC’s Saturday Night Live. So when the question was pointed to Andrew Cuomo, he naturally went with Robert De Niro, he said, "De Niro, I am a big De Niro fan. He is just phenomenal. The breadth of his ability, I mean, just look at all the roles he’s played. He can do anything, right? Deer Hunter, Cape Fear, he can do comedy... how 'bout Taxi Driver?" "I’m going to do Taxi Driver. The next press conference, when a reporter asks me a question" — and then launched into an impression of De Niro's character Travis Bickle in the 1976 crime drama. "You talkin’ to me?" Cuomo concluded by saying, "Oh, boy, that’d be a treat. I’m a big De Niro fan. He’s a genius." Robert De Niro and Andrew Cuomo share some similarities including being born and raised in New York City.

Robert De Niro wants to play NY Governor Andrew Cuomo in a film on pandemic

Dozens of New Yorkers were fined for violating coronavirus social distancing guidelines as they flocked to the city's beaches and parks to enjoy balmy weekend weather, police said Sunday.

NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea told reporters that officers had issued 51 summonses on Saturday, mostly for social distance violations, as temperatures in America's COVID-19 epicenter registered upwards of 70 degrees Fahrenheit.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-will-have-coronavirus-vaccine-by-end-of-year-says-trump-296461" hreflang="en">US will have coronavirus vaccine by end of year, says Trump</a>

Residents of the Big Apple, which has been shut down since mid-March, are allowed outside to exercise providing they maintain six-feet (two&nbsp;meters) of distance and wear a mask when around others.

New Yorkers can be fined up to $1,000 for violating the orders, which many did as they descended on popular spots like Manhattan's Central Park and Rockaway Beach in Queens following a largely rainy week.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-secretary-of-state-pompeo-says-enormous-evidence-virus-came-from-wuhan-lab-296446">Mike Pompeo says 'enormous evidence' virus came from Wuhan lab</a>

Shea said tickets were issued to 43 people in parks and eight others elsewhere as New York leaders warned residents not to spark a second wave of infections.

Governor Andrew Cuomo said he appreciated residents were bored but that they should not take "false comfort" from falling COVID-19 cases or from seeing other states reopen.

He insisted that the outbreak -- which has killed almost 20,000 people statewide -- was far from over.

"How people cannot wear masks is disrespectful. It's disrespectful to the nurses, the doctors, the people who have been frontline workers, the transit workers.

"You wear the mask not for yourself -- you wear the mask for me," he added.

Cuomo reported 280 new deaths from COVID-19 in New York state in the last 24 hours, down from 299 the day before.

Governor Andrew Cuomo said he appreciated residents were bored but that they should not take "false comfort" from falling COVID-19

Dozens of New Yorkers were fined for violating coronavirus social distancing guidelines as they flocked to the city's beaches and parks to enjoy balmy weekend weather, police said Sunday.

Dozens of New Yorkers were fined for violating coronavirus social distancing guidelines as they flocked to the city's beaches and parks to enjoy balmy weekend weather, police said Sunday. NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea told reporters that officers had issued 51 summonses on Saturday, mostly for social distance violations, as temperatures in America's COVID-19 epicenter registered upwards of 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Also read: US will have coronavirus vaccine by end of year, says Trump Residents of the Big Apple, which has been shut down since mid-March, are allowed outside to exercise providing they maintain six-feet (two meters) of distance and wear a mask when around others. New Yorkers can be fined up to $1,000 for violating the orders, which many did as they descended on popular spots like Manhattan's Central Park and Rockaway Beach in Queens following a largely rainy week. Also read: Mike Pompeo says 'enormous evidence' virus came from Wuhan lab Shea said tickets were issued to 43 people in parks and eight others elsewhere as New York leaders warned residents not to spark a second wave of infections. Governor Andrew Cuomo said he appreciated residents were bored but that they should not take "false comfort" from falling COVID-19 cases or from seeing other states reopen. He insisted that the outbreak -- which has killed almost 20,000 people statewide -- was far from over. "How people cannot wear masks is disrespectful. It's disrespectful to the nurses, the doctors, the people who have been frontline workers, the transit workers. "You wear the mask not for yourself -- you wear the mask for me," he added. Cuomo reported 280 new deaths from COVID-19 in New York state in the last 24 hours, down from 299 the day before. Governor Andrew Cuomo said he appreciated residents were bored but that they should not take "false comfort" from falling COVID-19

New Yorkers fined for violating social distancing guidelines

Although the daily death toll fell to its lowest in the past one month, New York officials have decided to keep all state schools shut till the end of the academic year.&nbsp;

The announcement was made by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on Friday. He has also asked all school authorities to come up with plans on how can they keep their school buildings clean and follow the protocols of social distancing.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/business-economy/tweet-once-again-gets-elon-musk-into-trouble-as-tesla-loses-14-billion-296234">Also read:&nbsp;Tweet once again gets Elon Musk into trouble as Tesla loses $14 billion</a>

"To say, 'We're going to figure out that plan and put it in place in the next few weeks' is virtually impossible," Cuomo said. "We don't think it's possible to do that in a way that keeps our children safe."

The schools also face the challenge of managing cafeterias run in schools. New York has&nbsp;more than one million students, and colleges, which makes it difficult to maintain social distancing in schools, especially cafeterias. Cuomo has said they are looking at different plans to fight this issue, and keep children safe.

The Democratic governor said 289 people died from COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, on Thursday (April 30), down from 306 a day earlier. It was the lowest death toll since March 29.&nbsp;

(With inputs from Reuters)

Although the daily death toll fell to its lowest in the past one month, New York officials have decided to keep all state schools shut till the end of the academic year.

Although the daily death toll fell to its lowest in the past one month, New York officials have decided to keep all state schools shut till the end of the academic year. The announcement was made by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on Friday. He has also asked all school authorities to come up with plans on how can they keep their school buildings clean and follow the protocols of social distancing. Also read: Tweet once again gets Elon Musk into trouble as Tesla loses $14 billion "To say, 'We're going to figure out that plan and put it in place in the next few weeks' is virtually impossible," Cuomo said. "We don't think it's possible to do that in a way that keeps our children safe." The schools also face the challenge of managing cafeterias run in schools. New York has more than one million students, and colleges, which makes it difficult to maintain social distancing in schools, especially cafeterias. Cuomo has said they are looking at different plans to fight this issue, and keep children safe. The Democratic governor said 289 people died from COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, on Thursday (April 30), down from 306 a day earlier. It was the lowest death toll since March 29. (With inputs from Reuters)

'We must protect our children': New York governor announces schools to stay closed this year

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