New York Governor Andrew Cuomo says he is “not aware” of a claim from a sixth woman accusing him of misconduct.
The embattled Democrat made the comments on a conference call Tuesday afternoon after the Times Union reported an unidentified woman accused Cuomo of inappropriately touching her at the executive mansion.
"I'm not aware of any other claim," Cuomo said. "As I said last week, this is very simple. I never touched anyone inappropriately. As I said last week, I never made any inappropriate advances. As I said last week, no one ever told me at the time that I made them feel uncomfortable."
Cuomo was also asked why he called for then-Attorney General Eric Schneiderman to resign in 2018 but isn’t holding himself to the same standard now. He says there are different levels of allegations, alluding to the fact that Schneiderman was accused of physical abuse, and repeated that he has never touched anyone inappropriately.
"These obviously allegations and then there are allegations, right? And there's a spectrum of allegations. There's capital crimes, there's physical violence, down to more minor allegations," Cuomo said.
Asked whether he is still planning to run for a fourth term next year, Cuomo said it is a not a day for politics, and he’s focused on the state budget and the pandemic. With a growing number of state lawmakers calling on him to resign, Cuomo says independent investigators appointed by the state attorney general must be allowed to complete their report.
New York’s Lieutenant Governor, next in line if Cuomo leaves office, says she is “confident everyone’s voice will be heard and taken seriously” during the investigation. Fellow Democrat Kathy Hochul says in a statement that she expects the investigation led by attorneys Joon Kim and Anne Clark to be “completed as thoroughly and expeditiously as possible.” AG Tish James named the independent investigators on Monday.
