March 2, 2021
Gov. Andrew Cuomo (click here) and then-girlfriend Sandra Lee in 2018.
The latest Emerson College/WPIX-TV/NewsNation poll of New York voters (click here) finds Governor Andrew Cuomo in a precarious position, with his job approval underwater at 38% approval/48% disapproval. His approval is lowest among those 18-34 (22% approval) and those who are white (26% approval) and highest among Black/African-Americans (62% approval) and those living in NYC (53% approval). Women approve of Cuomo at a higher rate (43% approval/40% disapproval) than men (56% disapproval to 33% approval).
In comparison, President Biden has a 52% approval/33% disapproval job rating, while 15% are unsure.
A majority (64%) of New York voters say that Governor Cuomo should not be reelected for a 4th term in 2022. Even Democrats are split on the issue, with only 52% saying Cuomo should serve another term, and 48% saying that it is time for someone new....
Governor Cuomo needs to be primaried. The unfortunate reports of sexual harassment are good reasons to end a career on a high note.
In New York State women are believed when they come forward to complain. There is definitely a culture surrounding the executive offices that make younger women upset. I am pleased there is an independent investigator (click here) taking on the complaints. I would have preferred a team of investigators, one man, and one woman.
Governor Cuomo is not under siege. He does not have to resign because the DNC is taking up the arguments of the women. I think the DNC demands for resignation are pre-mature. I will go over each of the three cases brought by women before I end this entry.
This was the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in New York. It was the epicenter of the USA and the world. There were no places to put the bodies. The tragedy is yet to be fully understood.
Nothing like some blood sport to oust a New York Governor. But, as to the nursing homes' tragedies. It was horrible even with the numbers reported to the public. "The Count" was astronomical the way it was. The virus was among the people of New York for longer than it should have been before discovery. The virus in New York came from Europe. The virus in Miami came from South America. None of those airports were closed as soon as jets coming from China to the West Coast.
At the time the death count started to escalate in New York there was also an uptick of heart attacks. It was very early on in the pandemic and the dangerous side effects of the virus were completely unknown. I don't know that what Governor Cuomo said to people working with him as proper, but, it was his manners to which people related and maintained a learning curve according to what he was reporting in his news conferences. I reject the idea that the news conferences were for political purposes. The conferences were necessary and quite frankly informative and well done.
Could better decisions have been made? One would think so, but, the information at the time was fogging and uncertain. There was absolutely no real leadership in DC that at one time thought drinking bleach was okay. Cuomo never said drinking bleach was okay. He stuck to the science and that was very good in real attempts to educate the people of this lousy virus now shutting down the country.
The issue with nursing homes was that people who recovered or recovering in hospital stays were "allowed" to return to the nursing home. At some level, there was denial about the danger of being reinfected. The details of the virus were not clear and the knowledge of the flu and America's familiarity with it was more or less driving decision-makers. There was absolutely no honesty coming out of Washington, DC. As a matter of fact, the Woodward interview exposed the facts that Trump knew a great deal about the virus and how dangerous it was, but, he refused to project lives. Actually, Trump was racking up human rights abuses with him cheering on people to not wear masks as a political wedge he believed would get him re-elected. We all know how that turned out.
Hindsight is always better, but, I can't honestly say Governor Cuomo was doing a lot wrong while the cases were skyrocketing. He did bend the curve in New York. He absolutely did and changed the trajectory of the virus and the lives it was destroying with every passing minute. He also bent the curve while Trump was working against him. There should be investigations into all the decision-making and it's process to correct any wayward outcomes and that is important. Until those reviews are complete and we know all the players in what occurred it is too early to say Cuomo is under seige.
Now, as to the ladies.
...Charlotte Bennett, (click here) a 25-year-old former aide to the governor, accused him of sexually harassing her last year, telling The New York Times that Mr. Cuomo, 63, had asked her about her sex life and whether she had ever had sex with older men.
Ms. Bennett, who left the administration in November, described one instance in which, when she was alone with the governor in his State Capitol office, Mr. Cuomo asked her if she thought age made a difference in romantic relationships, remarks she took as overtures to a sexual relationship.
“I understood that the governor wanted to sleep with me, and felt horribly uncomfortable and scared,” Ms. Bennett told The Times. “And was wondering how I was going to get out of it and assumed it was the end of my job.”...
There is no reason for a woman with such responsible work to feel this way. Every working woman wants to be taken seriously and often when women are flirted with it drives them to other employment which in this case did not benefit the people of New York. Ms. Bennett is a professional and brings a great deal of insight to her work. She was doing an important job and Cuomo's flirtations were not appreciated.
Legally. In this case, there is little that can be proven. It is his word against hers. That was not the case with other men that used their power to find satisfaction in their sexual advances. I am sorry Ms. Bennett has a bad experience with the Governor, but, sexual harassment regulations actually do allow for "asking the first time." When the first advance is denied and then the man continues to bring his sexual desires to the woman's attention is it blatant sexual harassment and very different from sexual assault.
We live in a country of fairness and a man or woman can make their intentions known once and only once in hopes the other is as interested as he or she. It is the continued advances and/or escalation of pressure in a hostile work environment that brings into focus "sexual harassment." That is illegal.
Personally, I believe Ms. Bennett.
...Ms. Boylan, (on the left) who worked for the state’s economic development agency from 2015 to 2018, published an essay
on Wednesday in which she detailed several years of uncomfortable interactions with the governor.
Ms. Boylan, who said her boss at the time told her that Mr. Cuomo had a “crush” on her, said the governor went “out of his way to touch me on my lower back, arms and legs.” In October 2017, during a flight back from an event in Western New York, Ms. Boylan said Mr. Cuomo told her they should “play strip poker.” And in 2018, she said Mr. Cuomo gave her an unsolicited kiss after a one-on-one meeting in his Manhattan office.
“As I got up to leave and walk toward an open door, he stepped in front of me and kissed me on the lips,” she wrote. “I was in shock, but I kept walking.”...
The last thing anyone is allowed to do in these cases is to put the responsibility on the woman. Cuomo was her superior and he obviously was attracted to her. I also believe the interactions surrounding sexuality between them were mixed messages. If a man thinks PERHAPS I made an impression on her, he will continue to bring attention to himself to win her approval. It is the way sexual attraction works.
In this case, Cuomo is wrong. New York has explicit laws about touching. It is aggressive to touch someone intentionally through mistaken clues or not as to the promise of a relationship. But, it was his obligation as her superior to put space there and allow her to do her work of which she was paid for by the people of New York.
There would have been nothing wrong if the Governor asked her out on a date. It would have made his intentions clear and would have brought about a clear understanding from her. Once she denied the invitation then it was over. There was no way Cuomo could continue to pursue her especially since she was an employee. Her empowerment to say no and have the understanding no means no is what is at the basis of her complaint about the Governor. She is correct and I believe her. Unfortunately, the Governor was not direct enough in his pursuit of her attentions and he got in trouble for it.
...Anna Ruch, 33, said she encountered Mr. Cuomo at a wedding they attended in September 2019 and they began talking about a toast the governor had given. But Mr. Cuomo then put his hand on her bare lower back, she said.
When she removed his hand with her own, the governor remarked that she seemed “aggressive” and placed his hands on her cheeks and asked if he could kiss her. Ms. Ruch said she pulled away as the governor drew closer.
“I was so confused and shocked and embarrassed,” said Ms. Ruch, whose recollection was corroborated by a friend, contemporaneous text messages and photographs from the event. “I turned my head away and didn’t have words in that moment.”...
This is not a direct work relationship, but, I understand that Ms. Ruch is active in politics and has worked in responsible jobs within the government. The idea Ms. Ruch works closely with political people is why, I believe, the DNC got involved in asking for Cuomo's resignation. This was in a casual setting and he was not there to give a speech. He gave a toast as a means of recognizing the newly married couple. The circumstances in private situations are more physical assault and different from work environments.
A hand on the back, be it bare or not, is not groping. However, there is a pattern not so much as assault, but, more or less of a guy that has little finesse with women his daughter's age. Cuomo could have been drinking as well. Perhaps not but that will come out in the report. The fact that once it was OBVIOUS his advances were not only unwanted but, being photographed he left Mr. Ruch and was not seen again by her.
I think there is a pattern of behavior that the Governor must address. He has a right to be attracted to young women. As a matter of fact, the American male is often known to throw off long-time loving relationships with a spouse his age for someone far younger. So, when it comes to being attracted to young women Cuomo is more normal than not according to acceptable American male standards and behaviors.
What I find unfortunate is that while he is chasing younger women he is missing a woman that might be a real soul mate and a relationship to sustain him in ways a purely physical attraction does not.
Governor Cuomo's behavior with all these women is inappropriate. He needs to address his behavior that seems unwanted on many and not just occasional instances. I think civil suits can be pursued, but, I don't know how successful they will be. MOSTLY, Governor Cuomo needs to take ownership of his actions when he is attracted to a woman and be far more direct than he is today. His lack of directness actually makes him appear to be creepy.
If I were to give him advice, I'd tell him to practice in a mirror his new direct approach of saying, "I would really like your company at dinner tonight," while naming the restaurant and accommodations to safely bring his date to that place of breakfast, lunch or dinner.
Dating should be fun. Don't expect a big payoff in bed after a date unless that is a mutual decision. None of these interactions with the Governor were fun for these women. Adults need to address their sexual life openly so there are no missed or confused signals. Respect is a big part of these actions. The women do not feel respected. There is no worse feeling than to feel as though a man, regardless of how pretty or sexy the dress is, has thought she was an easy target for his affections. The three women were disrespected and made to feel uncomfortable. The Governor is not conducting himself professionally. I don't believe any of his actions were criminal. Unfortunate, but, not criminal.
