Cuomo refuses to answer questions about scandals

The day before his Thursday press conference, Cuomo announced he would no longer answer questions about issues that are currently under investigation at the state and federal levels, Politico reported.

This means that media must refrain from asking Cuomo questions regarding his involvement in scandals that are currently national headlines; including the Governor’s nursing home death cover-up and sexual harassment allegations.

At this time last year, Cuomo graced the nation’s television screens giving daily coronavirus updates which eventually won him an Emmy-Award. Now the Governor cowardly hides behind his controversies, seeking to stay out of the limelight that he once previously loved. A stark contrast from the year before.

Cuomo publicly briefed press 91 times last March via in-person briefings, remote conference calls or Zooms, and appearances on television or radio programs, Politico reported. He made an average of 32 appearances per month from April 2020 through January 2021.

Although most recently, the governor toned down his media appearances and made only 13 appearances during the first few weeks of February, right as he came under fire for his decisions to cover-up the data involving coronavirus deaths in nursing homes.

A week after the nursing home scandal came to light, the governor promised a press briefing on the day of February 24th, but that was halted due to the first accusation of sexual misconduct resurfacing.

Politico reported that Cuomo has only taken questions from reporters on five occasions since that canceled Feb. 24 press conference and is only doing so off camera.

During a Wednesday conference call, Cuomo prefaced question-and-answer time and acknowledged he wouldn’t talk about the Assembly impeachment investigation or the law firm to lead the probe that has been recently hired by his administration.

"Let the lawyers do their job and let them conduct a review and then we can talk about it when we have facts established or a specific situation relative to the review," said Cuomo. "But other than that I’m going to respect the review and I won’t comment on it or related matters."

Gov. Cuomo who is currently under investigation by New York’s state Assembly and facing impeachment alluded that he will only be taking questions about vaccines and the state’s economic situation.

When a reporter asked the governor a question related to his sexual harassment allegations, Cuomo responded “As I said, the Assembly has a review going on just the questions you asked, and questions like it, and I’m going to respect the review and I won’t comment on issues that are subject to the review.”

During a zoom meeting Thursday, the Governor pinned a message for press that stated "There will be no Q and A today." Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn are investigating the Cuomo administration over protections for nursing homes from lawsuits and criminal prosecution as the coronavirus pandemic first swept through New York City, The Wall Street Journal reported.

According to The Journal, "Nursing homes were included in a provision giving liability immunity to doctors, hospitals and their executives, as well as healthcare workers on the front lines of the coronavirus outbreak last spring, surprising some lawmakers and healthcare officials. The provision’s language originated in Mr. Cuomo’s office and was presented to state lawmakers in final drafts of the state’s $178 billion budget."

Federal Prosecutors are also examining the state’s handling of nursing-home-death data, the scandalous cover-up that prompted Gov. Cuomo to underreport covid-19 deaths from New York nursing homes to the federal government. A move that could have potentially prevented thousands of deaths.