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New York governor faces impeachment inquiry over harassment claims
NEW YORK, March 12, 2021 (BSS/AFP) – Embattled New York Governor Andrew
Cuomo found himself under increasing risk of impeachment over allegations of
sexual harassment Thursday when the Democratic head of the state assembly —
until now a key ally — greenlighted a formal investigation of the claims.
Since the end of February, the 63-year-old Cuomo, whose third term is due
to expire in 2022, has been under scrutiny after five women accused him of
sexual harassment or inappropriate behavior.
But on Wednesday, the Times Union — a newspaper in the state capital
Albany — reported explosive claims that Cuomo put his hand under the blouse
of a female staffer and touched her “aggressively” at the end of 2020 in his
private residence.
Aides to the powerful governor, who made a name for himself last year as a
straight-talking pragmatist in the first onslaught of the coronavirus
pandemic, were obliged to notify the police of those claims, a spokesman told
AFP.
The allegations prompted 59 Democratic lawmakers from the state assembly —
which has a total of 213 members, most of them from Cuomo’s Democratic Party
— to join dozens of Republicans who have publicly called for his
resignation.
After meeting with lawmakers, Democratic assembly speaker Carl Heastie said
Thursday he was “authorizing the Assembly Judiciary Committee to begin an
impeachment investigation” — the first step towards an eventual impeachment.
“The reports of accusations concerning the governor are serious,” Heastie
said in a statement. “The committee will have the authority to interview
witnesses, subpoena documents and evaluate evidence.”
That investigation will run alongside another probe already announced by
New York state Attorney General Letitia James.
The governor did not immediately react to Heastie’s announcement.
He has so far ruled out resignation and insisted that he never touched
anyone inappropriately, though he apologized if he “hurt” any of his
accusers.
Impeachment by the New York state assembly requires a simple majority in
the lower house and two-thirds in the upper house. The last time it happened
was in 1913.
BSS/AP/GMR/0845 hrs