Facing Harassment Claims, Cuomo Being Called On To Resign [POLL]

NEW YORK — Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who one year ago had the nation tuning in every day to his news conferences to hear him talk about the pandemic, continues to have political friends and foes call for him to be investigated or possibly resign.

A lengthy essay by former aide Lindsey Boylan published Feb. 24 claimed Cuomo suggested playing strip poker, and claims published Feb. 27 by another former aide to the governor — Charlotte Bennett — accused Cuomo of sexual harassment.

Accusation No. 3 arrived Tuesday and involved the governor and a woman named Anna Ruch, who said Cuomo made an unwanted advance at a wedding. Plus, the encounter was captured in a photograph.

Not surprisingly, Republicans around the state and nation have called on Cuomo to resign.

Somewhat surprising is that some Democrats have suggested resignation would be best, including Rep. Kathleen Rice, who represents Long Island, Bloomberg reported, and Democratic New York Senators Julia Salazar and Jabari Brisport, who both represent parts of Brooklyn.

State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, D-Westchester County, according to reporting in the New York Post, suggested in a television interview a few hours before Ruch's claims were made public, that if another accusation of sexual harassment was made, Cuomo should resign.

New York Attorney General Letitia James is investigating the sexual harassment allegations against Cuomo, NPR reported.

The probe was authorized by the governor, and James can hire an independent law firm to conduct the inquiry.

In the meantime, the state Senate and Assembly both passed a bill Friday that would repeal Cuomo's expanded emergency executive powers, CNN reported.

The governor can veto it, but there is a veto-proof majority in Albany that can override it.

As if all that weren't enough there is the controversy over Cuomo's handling of nursing home deaths during the early days of the coronavirus pandemic.

James released a report in late January finding that Cuomo's administration had reduced the number of coronavirus nursing home deaths by half by saying they occurred in hospitals, the New York Post said.

Democratic state Senator Joe Addabbo, of Queens, is calling on James to investigate what he said was a coverup by the governor's office.

So now it's your turn to weigh in. Vote in our unscientific poll and tell us what you think in the comments.