As Cuomo Exits, Hochul to Take Office Minus ‘Distractions’

August 23, 2021by Marina Villeneuve, Associated Press
As Cuomo Exits, Hochul to Take Office Minus ‘Distractions’
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo prepares to board a helicopter after announcing his resignation, Tuesday, Aug. 10, 2021, in New York. Cuomo will resign in disgrace this week. His departure comes after a state investigation found he sexually harassed 11 women. It's a stunning reversal for a powerful politician who not that long ago was considered a possible contender for the White House. Observers and people who know Cuomo say his drive to dominate made him an effective governor. He passed landmark legislation and built new train stations, airports and bridges. But his accusers say the same habits also made him a bully who used his power to get what he wanted. They say he thought he could intimidate them into silence. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Andrew Cuomo neared the end of his decade as New York’s governor Monday, as he prepared to relinquish his tight grip on government to Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul in a midnight power transfer that will break another glass ceiling for women in state politics.

Cuomo, a Democrat, was set to end his term at 11:59 p.m., just under two weeks after he announced he would resign rather than face a likely impeachment battle over sexual harassment allegations.

Hochul was scheduled be sworn in as New York’s first female governor just after midnight in a brief, private ceremony overseen by the state’s chief judge, Janet DiFiore.

The  switch in leadership was happening in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Henri, which narrowly missed Long Island on Sunday but was dumping potentially dangerous amounts of rain  over parts of the Catskill Mountains and Hudson River Valley, even after it was downgraded to a tropical depression.

The storm drew Cuomo back out into public view over the weekend, albeit briefly. He gave two televised briefings — warning New Yorkers to take the storm seriously with the same mix of scolding and reassurance that once made his daily COVID-19 briefings popular.

Perhaps if the storm had been catastrophic Cuomo might have been tempted to put off his resignation. But as the potential for danger diminished, he said there would be no change in his plans. “My final day is tomorrow,” he said Sunday.

Hochul, also a Democrat, will inherit immense challenges as she takes over an administration facing criticism for inaction in Cuomo’s distracted final months in office.

COVID-19 has refused to abate. Schools are set to reopen in the coming weeks, with big decisions to be made about whether to require masks for students or vaccination for teachers. The state’s economic recovery from the pandemic is still incomplete.

Cuomo’s resignation  comes after an independent investigation overseen by state Attorney General Letitia James concluded there was credible evidence he’d sexually harassed at least 11 women, including an aide who said he groped her breast and has since filed a complaint with the Albany County Sheriff’s Office.

Investigators also said Cuomo’s senior staff retaliated against at least one of those women and worked to undermine the credibility of others.

Cuomo insists he didn’t touch anyone inappropriately and called the allegations “unfair” and “untruthful,” but said he wouldn’t force the state to endure an impeachment trial he couldn’t win.

Separately, Cuomo was facing a legislative investigation into whether he misled the public about COVD-19 deaths in nursing homes to protect his reputation as a pandemic leader and improperly got help from state employees in writing a pandemic book that may net him $5 million.

Cuomo has offered few hints about his plans or where he’ll live after leaving the Executive Mansion. He told New York magazine in a recent interview that he’s “not disappearing.”

In his resignation speech Aug. 10, he spoke with pride about his record of legalizing same-sex marriage, expanding paid family leave and boosting the statewide minimum wage to $15.

Hochul will need to quickly build her own team of advisers who can help steer the administration for at least the next 16 months.

She plans to keep on Cuomo-era employees for 45 days to allow her time to interview new hires, but said she will not keep anyone found to have behaved unethically. At least 35 employees in the governor’s office have left since February, according to staff rosters.

Hochul, who said she didn’t work closely with Cuomo and wasn’t aware of the harassment allegations before they became public, has vowed no one will ever call her workplace “toxic.” 

“I have a different approach to governing,” Hochul said Wednesday in Queens, adding, “I get the job done because I don’t have time for distractions, particularly coming into this position.”

Hochul has already said she plans to run for a full four-year term next year.

She’ll do so as the state Democratic Party grapples with an internal struggle between moderate and liberal New Yorkers.

Hochul, who once represented a conservative Western New York district in Congress for a year and has a reputation as a moderate, is expected to pick a left-leaning state lawmaker from New York City as her lieutenant governor.

State Democratic Party Chair Jay Jacobs praised Hochul as “formidable.”

“She’s very experienced and I think she’ll be a refreshing and exciting new governor,” he said.

A+
a-
  • Andrew Cuomo
  • Kathy Hochul
  • New York State
  • resignation
  • sexual harassment
  • In The News

    Health

    Voting

    In The States

    March 28, 2024
    by Tom Ramstack
    Disney World Settles with Florida After Its Opposition to 'Don’t Say Gay' Law

    ORLANDO — The company that runs Walt Disney World reached a settlement Wednesday with appointees of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis... Read More

    ORLANDO — The company that runs Walt Disney World reached a settlement Wednesday with appointees of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis who were exerting controversial regulatory control over the huge tourism complex. The settlement resolves some of the disputes that arose after Disney officials publicly denounced the... Read More

    March 26, 2024
    by Dan McCue
    Sen. Blumenthal Lauds Expansion of Tax Credit for Offshore Wind Projects

    NEW LONDON, Conn. — Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., visited State Pier in New London, Connecticut, on Monday to tout and... Read More

    NEW LONDON, Conn. — Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., visited State Pier in New London, Connecticut, on Monday to tout and celebrate the Biden administration’s decision to expand eligibility of federal tax credits for offshore wind projects. “This tax credit has been a long time in coming,”... Read More

    Biden and Harris Team Up for Health Care Event in North Carolina

    WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will promote their health care agenda on Tuesday in... Read More

    WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will promote their health care agenda on Tuesday in North Carolina, a battleground state that Democrats hope to flip in their favor after falling short to Donald Trump in the last two presidential elections. Fourteen... Read More

    Cargo Ship Hits Baltimore's Key Bridge, Bringing It Down

    BALTIMORE (AP) — A container ship rammed into a major bridge in Baltimore early Tuesday, causing it to snap and... Read More

    BALTIMORE (AP) — A container ship rammed into a major bridge in Baltimore early Tuesday, causing it to snap and plunge into the river below. Several vehicles fell into the chilly waters, and rescuers searched for survivors. It was also not clear what caused the cargo... Read More

    March 25, 2024
    by Tom Ramstack
    DC Attorney General Warns Sports Teams About Relocating to Virginia

    WASHINGTON — The District of Columbia’s attorney general is invoking a contract provision with local professional sports teams in the... Read More

    WASHINGTON — The District of Columbia’s attorney general is invoking a contract provision with local professional sports teams in the city’s latest bid to keep them from relocating to Northern Virginia. D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb told Monumental Sports and Entertainment in a letter last week... Read More

    March 22, 2024
    by Tom Ramstack
    Judge Upholds DC Law Giving Noncitizens Voting Rights

    WASHINGTON — A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit Thursday against the District of Columbia Board of Elections that sought to... Read More

    WASHINGTON — A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit Thursday against the District of Columbia Board of Elections that sought to invalidate a law giving noncitizens a right to vote in local elections. The Local Resident Voting Rights Amendment Act would allow anyone who is a resident... Read More

    News From The Well
    scroll top