Finally commenting about 63-year-old New York Gov. Andrew Cumo’s sexual harassment scandal, 78-year-old President Joe Biden reluctantly weighed in, knowing that people in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones. It wasn’t that long ago when Joe’s 57-year-old former Senate aide Tara Reade accused him May 2, 2020 of sexual assault in the basement of the Senate Office Building in 1993. Reade went into graphic detail of the alleged sexual assault, coming forward with corroborating evidence, including an anonymous call by Reade’s mother, Jeanette Altimus, to the Larry King show in 1993 describing the assault. Biden denied the charge, saying publicly that Reade had a right to tell her story, even though it didn’t happen. Now Biden tells the media that everyone should reserve judgment about the seven women claiming Cuomo harassed them, asking inappropriate questions, some touching them without consent.
Biden hesitated to respond to the raging controversy that’s dominating the headlines, since Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand called for Cuomo’s resignation. “I think the investigation is underway and we should see what it brings us,” Biden said, knowing that Schumer and Gillibrand have the same facts as New York Atty. Gen. Letitia James. Biden knows perfectly well that Schumer and Gillibrand have all the testimony from seven different women, all claiming essentially the same things about Cuomo. Cuomo keeps saying he never inappropriately “touched” anyone but knows that the allegations are largely about sexual harassment, not the charge Reade made against Joe. Reade said Biden forced his hand up her panties into her private parts back in 1993. By Cuomo’s standards, he’s right to say he never did anything like that.
Schumer and Gillibrand have all the witness statements from seven different women, all of whom have essentially the same stories about Cuom asking inappropriate questions and whether they’re open to having sex with an older man. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) stopped short of calling for Cuomo’s resignation, saying the allegations were “credible and serious,” but, like Joe, wanted to wait until James finished her investigation. Since James just has to take witness statements from the seven women, the investigation should go quickly. “People have to look inside themselves and say—and Gov. Cumo also, are they—how effective is their leadership in leading the state under the circumstances that are there?” Pelosi asked. Pelosi said there can be “no tolerance” for sexual harassment but wanted to wait until James finished her investigation before asking Andrew to resign.
Cuomo seems befuddled why everyone is calling for his head, saying it would set a dangerous precedent should he reign. Refusing to resign, Cuomo said he wouldn’t bow to “cancel culture,” taking an odd quote from Trump, that he won’t be railroaded out of office due to inconsequential acts. Based on a comparison between Reade’s allegation against Biden, it’s no wonder Cuomo refuses to knuckle under. “Hopefully, this result will be soon, and what I’m saying is the governor should look inside his heart—he loves New York—to see if he can govern effectively,” Pelosi said, stating the obvious that of course he can no longer govern the 19.45 million New Yorkers. When asked why she didn’t call for Cuomo’s to resign but Schumer did, she gave a cute response. “He’s a New Yorker and I’m not,” Pelosi said. But Pelosi all but called for Cuomo to step down based on the controversy engulfing him.
Apart from sexual harassment allegations, Cuomo faces charges about sending Covid-19 seniors into nursing homes, causing some 15,000 deaths, then under-reporting the findings. Many state officials feel his Covid-19 decisions were far more egregious than the recent sexual or workplace harassment allegations. Whatever happened with the seven women now complaining, it’s clear that Cuomo crossed the line when it came to New York laws governing a safe workplace. When you look at the seven women’s complaints against Cuomo, they’re all very similar, asking questions about sex live and hypothetical interest in having sex with an older man. Many of the women Cuomo engaged were in their early 20s at the time. Watching a mature governor proposition or discuss inappropriate topics with subordinate employees shows a colossal disregard for New York state and federal labor laws.
Cuomo’s refusal to resign stems from the fact that he doesn’t think he did anything wrong engaging young female employees in discussions about the sex lives. “I am not going to resign,” Cuomo said, insisting no one knows the facts until the James finished her investigation. But even if James concludes that there’s no technical evidence of “sexual harassment,” there’s certainly evidence of workplace harassment, something that doesn’t require explicit sexual propositions or actual touching. Comparing the allegations against Tara Reade, Cuomo’s right, they’re harmless by comparison. But as Pelosi said there’s “zero tolerance” when it comes to workplace harassment, whether or not it rises to the level of sexual harassment. Schumer said New York State requires “sure and steady leadership” in the time of Covid-19, something that prevents Cuomo from continuing to lead the state.
llet and Operation Charisma.
