{"id":54560,"date":"2021-03-02T07:41:26","date_gmt":"2021-03-02T11:41:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/?p=54560"},"modified":"2021-03-02T07:41:26","modified_gmt":"2021-03-02T11:41:26","slug":"with-this-damning-pic-theyve-got-cuomo-dead-to-rights","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/?p=54560","title":{"rendered":"With this damning pic, they&#8217;ve got Cuomo dead to rights!"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>Third Woman Accuses Cuomo Of Sexual Harassment &#8212; And There&#8217;s A Picture<\/h1>\n<p><!--more-->ZeroHedge.com<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Update (2005ET):<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0 A\u00a0<em>third<\/em>\u00a0woman, former Obama administration and Biden 2020 campaign member\u00a0<strong>Anna Ruch<\/strong>, has come forward to accuse New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) of sexual harassment at a Sept. 2019 wedding reception, according to the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2021\/03\/01\/nyregion\/cuomo-harassment-anna-ruch.html\"><em>New York Times<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"css-axufdj evys1bk0\"><em>The governor was working the room after toasting the newlyweds, and when he came upon Ms. Ruch, now 33, she thanked him for his kind words about her friends. But what happened next instantly unsettled her: Mr. Cuomo put his hand on Ms. Ruch\u2019s bare lower back, she said in an interview on Monday.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-axufdj evys1bk0\"><em>When she removed his hand with her own, Ms. Ruch recalled, the governor remarked that she seemed \u201caggressive\u201d and placed his hands on her cheeks.\u00a0<strong>He asked if he could kiss her, loudly enough for a friend standing nearby to hear. Ms. Ruch was bewildered by the entreaty, she said, and pulled away as the governor drew closer.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-axufdj evys1bk0\"><em>\u201c<strong>I was so confused and shocked and embarrassed<\/strong>,\u201d said Ms. Ruch, whose recollection was corroborated by the friend, contemporaneous text messages and photographs from the event. \u201cI turned my head away and didn\u2019t have words in that moment.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><em><strong>And there&#8217;s a picture&#8230;\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"Advert_desktop__1J5vD Advert_tablet__3QEBr Advert_mobile__1rlLc Advert_borderTop__2PX5m Advert_placement__1I4yb\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered\"><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-0\" class=\"\" title=\"Twitter Tweet\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?dnt=false&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-0&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=1366553151390814211&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.zerohedge.com%2Fpolitical%2Fcuomo-hires-criminal-defense-attorney-avoids-public-scandals-mount&amp;siteScreenName=zerohedge&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=889aa01%3A1612811843556&amp;width=550px\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-tweet-id=\"1366553151390814211\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p>Ruch said Cuomo&#8217;s touch on her bare skin was uncomfortable, and &#8220;I promptly removed his hand with my hand, which I would have thought was a clear enough indicator that I was not wanting him to touch me.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Cuomo instead called her &#8220;aggressive&#8221; and placed his hands on her cheeks.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;He said, \u2018Can I kiss you?&#8221; claims Ruch. &#8220;I felt so uncomfortable and embarrassed when really he is the one who should have been embarrassed.&#8221;<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"css-axufdj evys1bk0\"><em>Shaken, Ms. Ruch said, she later had to ask a friend if Mr. Cuomo\u2019s lips had made contact with her face as she pulled away. The governor had kissed her cheek, she was told.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-axufdj evys1bk0\"><em>\u201c<strong>It\u2019s the act of impunity that strikes me<\/strong>,\u201d Ms. Ruch said. \u201c<strong>I didn\u2019t have a choice in that matter.\u00a0<u>I didn\u2019t have a choice in his physical dominance over me at that moment.<\/u>\u00a0<\/strong>And that\u2019s what infuriates me. And even with what I could do, removing his hand from my lower back, even doing that was not clear enough.\u201d -NYT<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Several days after the example, Ruch discussed the incident with a friend &#8211; texting the friend &#8220;I&#8217;m so pissed,&#8221; referring to Cuomo as &#8220;this guy,&#8221; with an un-reported epithet.<\/p>\n<div class=\"Advert_desktop__1J5vD Advert_borderTop__2PX5m Advert_placement__1I4yb\"><\/div>\n<p>As the\u00a0<em>Times<\/em>\u00a0notes, &#8220;Ms. Ruch\u2019s example is distinct from those of the former aides: A former member of the Obama administration and the 2020 Biden campaign,<strong>\u00a0Ms. Ruch has never been employed by the governor or the state<\/strong>. But her experience reinforces the escalating concerns and accusations about Mr. Cuomo\u2019s personal conduct \u2014 a pattern of words and actions that have, at minimum, made three women who are decades his junior feel deeply uncomfortable, in their collective telling.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Has anyone heard from Women&#8217;s March of late?<\/p>\n<p>And will this young hotdog swallowing reporter come forward with her #MeToo moment before this is over?<\/p>\n<div class=\"twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered\"><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-1\" class=\"\" title=\"Twitter Tweet\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?dnt=false&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-1&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=1366493472732110851&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.zerohedge.com%2Fpolitical%2Fcuomo-hires-criminal-defense-attorney-avoids-public-scandals-mount&amp;siteScreenName=zerohedge&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=889aa01%3A1612811843556&amp;width=550px\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-tweet-id=\"1366493472732110851\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<div class=\"twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered\"><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-2\" class=\"\" title=\"Twitter Tweet\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?dnt=false&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-2&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=1366562539937558528&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.zerohedge.com%2Fpolitical%2Fcuomo-hires-criminal-defense-attorney-avoids-public-scandals-mount&amp;siteScreenName=zerohedge&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=889aa01%3A1612811843556&amp;width=550px\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-tweet-id=\"1366562539937558528\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<div class=\"twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered\"><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-3\" class=\"\" title=\"Twitter Tweet\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?dnt=false&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-3&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=1366561811500302341&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.zerohedge.com%2Fpolitical%2Fcuomo-hires-criminal-defense-attorney-avoids-public-scandals-mount&amp;siteScreenName=zerohedge&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=889aa01%3A1612811843556&amp;width=550px\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-tweet-id=\"1366561811500302341\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p><strong><em>Update (1755ET):\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>New York Democrats are calling for Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) to resign following two sexual misconduct allegations which followed a bombshell COVID-19 nursing home scandal, according to\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/homenews\/state-watch\/541075-ny-democrats-pressure-cuomo-as-investigation-kicks-off\"><em>The Hill<\/em><\/a>. A growing number of\u00a0<strong>legislators and journalists<\/strong>, meanwhile, have come forward to accuse Cuomo of various bullying tactics.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.zerohedge.com\/s3\/files\/inline-images\/Andrew-Cuomo-Albany-NYS-2-1.jpg?itok=dTYUIo1-\" data-image-external-href=\"\" data-image-href=\"\/s3\/files\/inline-images\/Andrew-Cuomo-Albany-NYS-2-1.jpg?itok=dTYUIo1-\" data-link-option=\"0\"><picture><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/zh-prod-1cc738ca-7d3b-4a72-b792-20bd8d8fa069.storage.googleapis.com\/s3fs-public\/styles\/inline_image_mobile\/public\/inline-images\/Andrew-Cuomo-Albany-NYS-2-1.jpg?itok=dTYUIo1-\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" data-entity-type=\"file\" data-entity-uuid=\"ebe0c064-1acc-4ab7-8e09-69777a6d85b4\" data-responsive-image-style=\"inline_images\" \/><\/picture><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;There\u2019s an ongoing pattern here of abuse of power. It\u2019s making the working relationship with the governor a real distraction from the work we have to do for the people,&#8221; said state Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara (D). &#8220;<strong>I firmly believe that the governor\u2019s resignation is for the good of the state at this point.<\/strong>&#8221;<\/p>\n<figure class=\"caption caption-img\" role=\"group\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/zh-prod-1cc738ca-7d3b-4a72-b792-20bd8d8fa069.storage.googleapis.com\/s3fs-public\/styles\/inline_image_mobile\/public\/inline-images\/ratio3x2_1200.jpg?itok=lltIs5dL\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" data-entity-type=\"file\" data-entity-uuid=\"a0addb2e-0311-4498-a768-b7975ab431e4\" data-responsive-image-style=\"inline_images\" \/><figcaption><em>Angelo Santabarbara<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><em>Most legislators say Cuomo is almost certain to draw a strong primary challenger in 2022, if he decides to seek reelection to an unprecedented fourth term in office. But most also said they did not believe Cuomo would run for another term \u2014 and that if more allegations of improper behavior emerged, even finishing his current term may be a stretch.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><em>\u201c<strong>The governor has had his time. Three terms is long enough<\/strong>,\u201d said Assemblyman Thomas Abinanti (D), who represents Westchester County. \u201c<strong>I believe that the governor should not be seeking a fourth term, and if any more complaints arise, he may not be able to finish this term.<\/strong>\u201d &#8211;<\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/homenews\/state-watch\/541075-ny-democrats-pressure-cuomo-as-investigation-kicks-off\"><em>The Hill<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\">New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Monday that the allegations against Cuomo are &#8220;Just disgusting, creepy,&#8221; adding later in the day &#8220;If someone purposefully tried to use their power to force a woman to have sex with them, of course that\u2019s someone who should no longer be in public service.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Accuser Charlotte Bennett said in a Monday statement that Cuomo\u00a0<strong>has yet to take responsibility for his actions<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">&#8220;It took the governor 24 hours and significant backlash to allow for a truly independent investigation. These are not the actions of someone who simply feels misunderstood; they are the actions of an individual who wields his power to avoid justice,&#8221; said Bennett.<\/p>\n<p>*\u00a0 *\u00a0 *<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Update (1525ET):<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0The\u00a0<em>WSJ\u00a0<\/em>was incorrect in claiming Abramowitz was representing Cuomo&#8217;s office for his sexual harassment scandal, telling\u00a0<em>Bloomberg<\/em>\u00a0that he&#8217;s only representing the nursing home scandal.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;My firm and I are representing the Executive Chamber on the Nursing Home matter. We have not been retained on the sexual harassment matter,&#8221; he said in an email.<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>*\u00a0 *\u00a0 *<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p>New York Governor Andrew Cuomo&#8217;s administration has\u00a0<strong>retained a prominent white-collar defense attorney<\/strong>\u00a0following allegations of\u00a0<strong>sexual harassment and Justice Department inquiries over COVID-19 nursing home deaths<\/strong>, according to the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/cuomo-administration-hires-criminal-defense-lawyer-11614627457\"><em>Wall Street Journal<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.zerohedge.com\/s3\/files\/inline-images\/cuomo%201c.jpg?itok=f2oBhTxx\" data-image-external-href=\"\" data-image-href=\"\/s3\/files\/inline-images\/cuomo%201c.jpg?itok=f2oBhTxx\" data-link-option=\"0\"><picture><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/zh-prod-1cc738ca-7d3b-4a72-b792-20bd8d8fa069.storage.googleapis.com\/s3fs-public\/styles\/inline_image_mobile\/public\/inline-images\/cuomo%201c.jpg?itok=f2oBhTxx\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"335\" data-entity-type=\"file\" data-entity-uuid=\"293277aa-10ae-41ae-ac4f-f4fc2fbd7555\" data-responsive-image-style=\"inline_images\" \/><\/picture><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Attorney Elkan Abramowitz &#8211; a former federal prosecutor &#8211; confirmed with the\u00a0<em>Journal<\/em>\u00a0that he is now representing Cuomo&#8217;s &#8216;executive chamber&#8217;, which includes the governor and his closes aides. Abramowitz is dealing with both scandals<em>\u00a0<\/em>as New York Attorney General Letitia James joins the DOJ in investigating the embattled New York bigwig.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"caption caption-img\" role=\"group\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/zh-prod-1cc738ca-7d3b-4a72-b792-20bd8d8fa069.storage.googleapis.com\/s3fs-public\/styles\/inline_image_mobile\/public\/inline-images\/james_0.jpg?itok=uNrC06Dg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"346\" data-entity-type=\"file\" data-entity-uuid=\"910f823e-c023-472a-8600-3560b014c07f\" data-responsive-image-style=\"inline_images\" \/><figcaption><em>New York Attorney General Letitia James (Photo: Peter Foley, Bloomberg)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<blockquote>\n<div class=\"paywall\">\n<p><em>The Democratic governor faces an investigation overseen by State Attorney General Letitia James into whether he sexually harassed women who previously worked in his administration. Mr. Cuomo acknowledged he had sometimes been overly personal while interacting with staff and\u00a0<a class=\"icon none\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/lawmakers-push-for-new-york-attorney-general-review-of-accusations-against-cuomo-11614523852?mod=article_inline\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">said he was sorry<\/a>\u00a0if anyone mistook it for unwanted flirtation.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div class=\"twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered\"><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-4\" class=\"\" title=\"Twitter Tweet\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?dnt=false&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-4&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=true&amp;id=1366366102494859266&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.zerohedge.com%2Fpolitical%2Fcuomo-hires-criminal-defense-attorney-avoids-public-scandals-mount&amp;siteScreenName=zerohedge&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=889aa01%3A1612811843556&amp;width=550px\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-tweet-id=\"1366366102494859266\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p>Two women have accused Cuomo of sexual harassment ranging from inappropriate questions, to touching, to forcibly kissing. One accuser says Cuomo clearly wanted to sleep with her.<\/p>\n<p>Over the weekend,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.zerohedge.com\/political\/governor-wanted-sleep-me-cuomo-accused-sexually-harassing-second-former-aide\">Cuomo denied<\/a>\u00a0forcibly kissing former aide Lindsey Boylan, who said the governor would also go out of his way to touch her &#8220;on my lower back, arms and legs.&#8221; He did, however, seemingly admit to using inappropriate language.<\/p>\n<p>Cuomo also said last week that the state is cooperating with\u00a0<strong>three inquiries from the US Attorney&#8217;s Office in the Eastern District of New York<\/strong>\u00a0located in Brooklyn, as well as the DOJ&#8217;s Civil Rights and Civil divisions based in Washington. Brooklyn prosecutors have requested data on the number of people who died in New York nursing homes during the pandemic.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile,\u00a0<strong>the governor has stepped out of the public spotlight<\/strong>\u00a0&#8211; last making a televised pandemic briefing on Feb. 19, while his public schedule remains empty according to\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2021-02-28\/new-york-ag-says-she-s-ready-to-oversee-cuomo-harassment-probe?sref=6uww027M\"><em>Bloomberg<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><em>Cuomo\u2019s uncharacteristic silence comes a day after he agreed to an independent probe by a special investigator after a second former aide accused him of sexual harassment. Cuomo stopped short of having\u00a0<a title=\"Company Overview\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/quote\/STONY1:US\">New York<\/a>\u00a0Attorney General Letitia James lead the probe, a move championed by dozens of other lawmakers.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>&#8230;<\/p>\n<p><em>On Monday, state Senator Todd Kaminsky introduced a bill that would allow the attorney general to conduct a criminal investigation without a referral from the governor, a move he said would strengthen independent oversight of the governor and other state officials.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>&#8220;Clearly where the governor is involved there is a conflict,&#8221; said Kaminsky.<\/p>\n<p>Veteran Democratic consultant Hank Sheinkopf told\u00a0<em>Bloomberg<\/em>: &#8220;The problem is he\u2019s being squeezed on the left and the right, and if there are more accusations of sexual harassment or governmental incompetence or corruption, he\u2019s going to have a very difficult time surviving,&#8221; adding &#8220;<strong>He has very few friends.<\/strong>&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>___<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.zerohedge.com\/political\/cuomo-hires-criminal-defense-attorney-avoids-public-scandals-mount\">https:\/\/www.zerohedge.com\/political\/cuomo-hires-criminal-defense-attorney-avoids-public-scandals-mount<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Third Woman Accuses Cuomo Of Sexual Harassment &#8212; And There&#8217;s A Picture<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-54560","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54560","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=54560"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54560\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=54560"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=54560"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=54560"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}