A Republican and other critics in New York State – including former ‘Sex and the City’ star Cynthia Nixon – reacted with mockery on Saturday after a retired judge was appointed to make a “review” of allegations of sexual misconduct harassment against government Andrew Cuomo.
After Cuomo authorized an outside investigation following the latest allegations made by former Assistant Charlotte Bennett, Gov. Beth Garvey’s special deputy governor announced that the investigation would be led by Barbara Jones, a former federal judge.
But Cuomo critics were quick to point out that Jones is a former colleague of Steve Cohen, a former top assistant to Cuomo. They wondered if Jones could bring about the impartiality that would require a review of serious allegations.
NY DEMS JUDGES NEW CUOMO SEXUAL HARASSMENT CLAIMS, CALL FOR HIS OLDING, Independent Sin
“Who asked the judge to review the new allegations?” Ask Nixon. ‘If the Cuomo government itself answers, let it be clear that this is a job inside, NOT an external investigation.
In an earlier report Friday, Nixon mocked a statement Cohen made Thursday, defending Cuomo, his former boss. Cohen’s remarks come after the allegations of Cuomo’s first accuser, Lindsey Boylan, about the sexual harassment.
“I can tell you that I have never worked with the governor, the former attorney general, private citizen Andrew Cuomo, in my time. I have never seen anything like that of what Boylan described,” Cohen said. New York told reporters. Daily news. “His actions have always been in my presence with other staff members, appropriate, not that it’s always fun and a good time, but it’s always appropriate and he pushes to get results.”
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and former primary opponent Cynthia Nixon. (Associated Press)
But Nixon, who in 2018 made an effort to challenge Cuomo for governor, did not buy Cohen’s defense from the Democrat.
“To Steve Cohen who has never seen Cuomo harass women,” Nixon wrote, “if it’s not incredibly obvious, he’s not going to put it that way in front of you.”
Other critics of Jones’ choice of judge for the Cuomo review include Republican Rep. Mike Lawler, who called for Cuomo to resign immediately.
“@NYGovCuomo’s ‘independent’ investigator Barbara Jones once worked with former Gov. Steve Cohen,” Lawler wrote on Twitter. “You know, the man who went on to defend Cuomo’s record the other day. Barbara Jones must resign immediately. ‘
In a subsequent tweet, Lawler called on Cuomo to resign and called on Attorney General Letitia James to “appoint a special prosecutor to investigate all claims against the governor and his accomplices.” ‘.
At least two former Cuomo assistants have accused the governor of sexual harassment in the past week.
First Boylan accused the governor in an essay on the website Medium of unwanted kissing and touching while working in his office. She also alleged that Cuomo had staff members meet with her where he made inappropriate comments.
“Let’s play strip poker,” Boylan said Cuomo remarked on a flight from an event in October 2017.
In a statement from Cuomo’s office, the claims were denied Wednesday.
“As we said earlier, Ms Boylan’s allegations of misconduct are simply false,” said Caitlin Girouard, press secretary.
Then Bennett told The New York Times on Saturday that Cuomo allegedly “asked her questions about her sex life, whether she was monogamous in her relationships and whether she had ever had sex with older men.”
In a news release on Saturday, Cuomo Bennett called a ‘hard-working and valued member of our team during COVID’ who ‘has every right to speak out’.
“When she came to me and opened up about a survivor’s sexual assault and how it shaped her and her ongoing efforts to create an organization that empowers her voice to help other survivors, I tried to be supportive and helpful. , “Cuomo said in a statement. statement, issued to the Times. “Mrs. Bennett’s initial impression was right: I tried to be a mentor to her. I never made progress towards Bennett and also did not intend to act in any way that was inappropriate. The last thing what I would have always wanted was to make her feel something that was being reported. ‘
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Cuomo added that he would “make no further comment” until a full and thorough investigation of Bennett’s claims had been conducted and completed.
The allegations of sexual harassment followed a shower of criticism against Cuomo over his handling of the coronavirus among patients in the state’s nursing homes. The allegations there include the alleged under-reporting of deaths due to the virus after the governor requested patients to enter nursing homes after treatment in hospitals.
Vandana Rambaran and Joseph A. Wulfsohn of Fox News contributed to this story.