The drip, drip, drip of sexual harassment accusations against Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo continues, and all those accumulated drips are about to flood New York State politics.
Last week, state Republican Chairman Nick Langworthy convened reporters for a downtown news conference to offer a sneak preview of the kind of politics that may lie ahead. The chairman has been relentless in calling for Cuomo’s resignation and even impeachment after six women have now come forward with accusations against the governor. That’s what state GOP chairmen are supposed to do.
But in a crafty move, Langworthy took his attack in a new direction by shining the spotlight on Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul and the women’s issues she has always championed. The state’s number two official and loyal Cuomoite has worked to combat sexual assault on college campuses, he said, but remains largely silent on Cuomo’s alleged escapades – except to support an independent investigation.
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Langworthy said you can’t have it both ways and called on Hochul to say something beyond her stock statement. His trap – er plan – was obvious: Goad her into an independent stand against the governor or acknowledge a role as mere ceremonial functionary.
“She talks about how she’s the governor’s right hand and she’s working directly with Andrew Cuomo to get so many great things done,” he said. “Is she there as a goodwill ambassador or is she there as an actual government official?”
Hochul, however, did not take the bait. She continues to lie low.
A protest outside of Gov. Andrew Cuomo's Manhattan office blocked off traffic, eventually leading to several arrests Wednesday.
But Cuomo has handed the GOP a genuine issue. Langworthy might not have attracted a phalanx of cameras and notebooks last week without stuff like sexual harassment allegations and distorted nursing home data. But the chairman and his Repubs have a new and stronger platform. They’re using it.
Ditto on the homefront. The Erie County GOP is quite proud of its all-female ticket featuring Karen Healy-Case for sheriff and Lynne Dixon for comptroller. Ask them, and they will gladly take a few hours of your life to tell you about it.
Dixon, the former county legislator who waged a strong campaign against incumbent Democrat Mark Poloncarz for county executive in 2019, is now weighing in, too. She sees “a level of hypocrisy” among local Democrats who champion #MeToo women’s issues but fail to more strongly condemn Cuomo.
“I’m not saying he’s guilty, the governor will have his opportunity [to defend himself],” Dixon said. “But if you’re only sometimes outraged, you’re putting politics ahead of people.
”And I don’t see a lot of our local representatives being very vocal about this,” she added.
Indeed, only Assemblyman Pat Burke has so far emerged among local Dems to call for Cuomo’s resignation (Burke’s 142nd District, by the way, voted for Republican Marc Molinaro over Cuomo in 2018, so he has not ventured too far out a limb).
Dixon does not shy away from taking on Hochul either. She questions whether the lieutenant governor’s efforts for women’s causes are genuine or stem from “political convenience.”
Those are questions, by the way, that will ultimately be posed to Hochul if, and when, she begins talking with reporters. For now, she’s not.
Dixon also emphasizes the Erie County GOP’s all-woman ticket this year.
“Women bring different life experiences to the table,” she said, “which can prove valuable.”
Erie County Democratic Chairman Jeremy Zellner isn’t buying it. He uses the H-word (hypocritical), too, when noting Dixon’s support of Donald Trump and the many accusations of sexual impropriety lodged against the former president.
“This is most hypocritical for Lynne Dixon to tout an all-woman slate when she stood by Donald Trump,” he said. “Nobody is buying that.”
But the point of all this is that Cuomo’s problems are now filtering into local politics, too. Expect to hear more from candidates for comptroller or sheriff – maybe even county Legislature. And expect to hear it from women candidates.
