Former New York governor Andrew Cuomo, 64, just made his first public speech and appearance since resigning from office last summer at the God’s Battalion of Prayer Church in Brooklyn, New York this weekend. Cuomo addressed the congregation and viewers in a video clip, saying he wanted to “tell” his “truth,” according to the New York Times, and naturally, the disgraced politician blamed “cancel culture” for his downfall and continued to deny the many sexual assault allegations against him.
Cuomo, who was once praised by the media for his coronavirus news briefings in 2020, resigned in August 2021 after New York Attorney General Letitia James and a team of attorneys were selected to investigate allegations of sexual harassment made against him. They released a public report of their findings, with James stating that Cuomo “sexually harassed current and former New York state employees” by engaging in “unwelcome and non-consensual touching” and making numerous “offensive comments of a sexually suggestive nature that created a hostile work environment for women.”
View this post on Instagram
During his recent speech, Cuomo recalled the moment he was urged to step down by countless politicians across the nation, and even President Joe Biden after sexual assault allegations were raised against him. “I resigned as governor, the press roasted me, my colleagues were ridiculed, my brother was fired,” the former governor said. “It was probably the toughest time of my life.”
He then mentioned CNN, where his brother, journalist Chris Cuomo, 51, was fired in December following a brief suspension for his extensive involvement in his brother’s political ventures and reportedly attempting to downplay harassment charges. Cuomo said CNN was “in the middle of a merger” and was “afraid of the cancel culture mob,” but didn’t recognize his brother’s obvious conflict of interest.
Cuomo centered his speech around claims that he had been “vindicated” in the months since his resignation, completely denying the reports against him, including those finding that he engaged in “unwanted groping, kisses, hugging, and making inappropriate comments” to employees. “I didn’t appreciate how fast the perspectives changed,” he said, according to the AP. “I’ve learned a powerful lesson and paid a very high price for learning that lesson. God isn’t finished with me yet.”
If you want to cancel something — cancel the federal gridlock, cancel the incompetence, cancel the infighting. Cancel crime, cancel homelessness. Cancel education inequality. Cancel poverty. Cancel racism.
Be outraged, but be outraged at what really matters pic.twitter.com/eyQ0YuV4dN
— Andrew Cuomo (@andrewcuomo) March 6, 2022
In a tweet on Sunday, Cuomo alluded to cancel culture once again. He wrote, “If you want to cancel something, cancel the federal gridlock, cancel the incompetence, cancel the infighting. Cancel crime, cancel homelessness. Cancel education inequality. Cancel poverty. Cancel racism. Be outraged, but be outraged at what really matters.” (Commenters and Twitter users in the thread pointed out something Cuomo left out— that wanting to cancel serial sexual assaulters is important in the fight for social justice, as well.)
James responded to Cuomo’s recent comments, focusing on his location of choice for the speech. “Serial sexual harasser Andrew Cuomo won’t even spare a house of worship from his lies,” James said. She continued, adding that multiple independent investigations found that Cuomo’s accusers were credible and that he “continues to blame everyone but himself.”
Cuomo was seen shaking hands with members of the congregation after his speech ended. A churchgoer asked if he would ever run for office again and he said he was “contemplating” doing so. When reporters asked him the same question, Cuomo replied, “I said what I said.”
