Cuomo? Resign

I supported Cynthia Nixon last time, but realized she was not really a credible actual threat to Andrew Cuomo. The point being, as in many primaries, to put some pressure on the frontrunner. On that front, how much pressure from the left Cuomo received is unclear. One can feel pessimistic. OTOH, Biden has already did various things that shows real respect of the left flank. He has already provided a good amount of good faith to help balance off some cases where I will be disappointed.*

I also was wary of various early criticisms of Gov. Cuomo's response to the Big V. The pressures, especially given the early unknowns and difficulties, as will as his anti-Trump nature in some ways (regular respectable press briefings etc.), were things I factored in. Comparing New York (or New York City for that matter) to smaller states that to me were rather different in various respects came off as bad comparisons.

WATCH THIS: @MehdirHasan cites the @DailyPoster's original reporting on Cuomo and notes that it has now taken center stage in the scandal engulfing Cuomo. Hasan says Cuomo's nursing home immunity law "looks corrupt." Watch NY Democratic @SenatorBiaggi's response. pic.twitter.com/6Mqj9mgZ1d

— The Daily Poster (@dailyposter) February 26, 2021

Things are starting to be much more wary on that front, especially since President Biden no longer allows Cuomo to have a "compare to that guy" vibe. So, even if -- though a few were wary even then -- trusting him with emergency powers was acceptable in June 2020, it's time to take them back now. Even insiders are defending incomplete supply of nursing home death data in "okay, it's wrong, but you got to know what sort of pressure we were under" ways. This sort of "we can't trust them so we need to hide things" rhetoric doesn't come off well, even when you are sympathetic to the people involved.

A second former aide to Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo is accusing him of sexual harassment, saying that he asked her questions about her sex life, whether she was monogamous in her relationships and if she had ever had sex with older men.

The best defense to this appears to be that the "sex pest" (to cite one label in the thread to the article that I'm not a big fan of) is not legally guilty of sexual harassment. I'm wary -- if we are going to get all legal -- about relying on incomplete summaries of what is being alleged. Even there, such "grooming" (to cite what some are calling it, over "mentoring"), is a red flag on a political level. As seen in the impeachment battle, what is "legal" and "politically bad" isn't the same thing.

My state senator is particularly concerned about sexual abuse so one can guess she is particularly on this. As Sen. Biaggi noted in reply to comments that her push for him to resign without further investigation: "I welcome a credible & independent investigation, but as a former Cuomo staffer, legislator, Chair, and generally observant person, I have seen quite enough to know that his resignation is what is best for New York and the earnest staffers who work in public service."

Cuomo's people themselves are already accused of being arseholes in various ways including using sexist language. [This good op-ed on "penis politics" also tosses in my mayor, who has issues too.] Cuomo himself is repeatedly compared to Trump, including him being a bully and going after people. And, again, you have the whole nursing home controversy. He should resign. At some point, this sort of thing has to have consequences:

Stephanie Benton, Director of the Governor’s Offices, told me in an email on December 14, 2016 that the Governor suggested I look up images of Lisa Shields — his rumored former girlfriend — because “we could be sisters” and I was “the better looking sister.” The Governor began calling me “Lisa” in front of colleagues. It was degrading. I had complained to friends that the Governor would go out of his way to touch me on my lower back, arms and legs. His senior staff began keeping tabs on my whereabouts. “He is a sexist pig and you should avoid being alone with him!” my mother texted me on November 4, 2016.

He's up for reelection next year so he might try to eke out the term. But, it isn't even one general problem. It is starting to cascade. The realistic result to seek here is a fully independent investigation(s). That is after all what Biaggi types are there for. To push the median. And, as with the whole Franken thing [still talked about as if it was some tragedy when factoring in everything it was rather understandable, especially at the time], a full investigation very well might actually be the appropriate response. Repeatedly, you have people resign (or settle), and you do not get the full story. So, that can be useful here.

But, it is getting to a "he got to resign" point.

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* I don't think Biden let off the de facto leader of Saudi Arabia. He did not simply get a "pass" for setting up the murder of a legal resident of the United States, a journalist who was far from a radical opponent. It very well might be true more should have been done. But, what has been done so far is far from trivial. And, like moving around a tanker, this does require some care.