{"id":55114,"date":"2021-03-05T18:42:07","date_gmt":"2021-03-05T22:42:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/?p=55114"},"modified":"2021-03-05T18:43:08","modified_gmt":"2021-03-05T22:43:08","slug":"its-the-cuomo-way-aides-describing-the-cult-workplace","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/?p=55114","title":{"rendered":"\u2018It\u2019s the Cuomo way\u2019 &#8212; Aides describing the cult workplace"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>\u2018It\u2019s the Cuomo way\u2019: MORE aides describe \u2018cult\u2019 workplace as top NY Democrat says governor should quit if new accusers speak out<\/h1>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_55115\" style=\"width: 990px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-55115\" class=\"wp-image-55115 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/60424f3385f5405f8b7b3fc4.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"980\" height=\"551\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/60424f3385f5405f8b7b3fc4.jpg 980w, https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/60424f3385f5405f8b7b3fc4-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/60424f3385f5405f8b7b3fc4-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 980px) 100vw, 980px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-55115\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">\u00a9 Seth Wenig\/Pool via REUTERS\/File Photo<\/p><\/div>\n<p>RT.com<\/p>\n<p>Numerous former staffers for Andrew Cuomo have described the toxic and cult-like work environment they worked under amidst the governor\u2019s multiple worsening scandals, including three accusations of sexual harassment.<\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cThere\u2019s no right or wrong way. It\u2019s the Cuomo way,\u201d<\/em>\u00a0one staffer told the Gothamist about a warning she received when interviewing for a job in the Cuomo administration.\u00a0<em>\u201cHe wants people who are literally going to fall on the sword for him, and they all will.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Another described being told to wear stiletto heels because she was blonde and the governor\u00a0<em>\u201clikes blondes\u201d<\/em>\u00a0in stiletto heels. Her desk was put in within the governor\u2019s eyeline the moment she was hired, she said.<\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cI knew by looking cute, and not being obstinate or opinionated, and doing what I was told and looking polished&#8230; That is the only way I would survive there,\u201d<\/em>\u00a0the woman said. She remained anonymous like others who spoke to the Gothamist, citing fear of blowback from the governor, who has been accused in the past of professionally retaliating against those who publicly speak out against him.<\/p>\n<p>Other staffers described an around-the-clock work schedule that blurred professional and personal lines, as well as a demanding boss who would lash out and scream at people under him for anything from the temperature in the room not being to his liking to having shoes that aren\u2019t\u00a0<em>\u201cnice and shiny.\u201d\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p>One former staffer described the environment as a\u00a0<em>\u201ccult,\u201d<\/em>\u00a0saying they have been talking to others who worked in the administration since allegations against Cuomo broke. The administration\u00a0<em>\u201c[pushed] you until you wanted to be there\u201d<\/em>\u00a0with some comparing it to an abusive relationship.<\/p>\n<p>Cuomo is facing a storm of growing controversies. Three women have come forward, including two former aides, to accuse him of sexual harassment, including unwanted touching and kissing. He has also been accused of downplaying and covering up Covid-19 deaths in nursing homes in his state for political purposes.<\/p>\n<p>The governor apologized this week for making women\u00a0<em>\u201cuncomfortable\u201d<\/em>\u00a0in the past, but denied any unwanted touching. On nursing homes, he has claimed his administration simply did not keep up with requests for information.<\/p>\n<p>Despite numerous calls for him to resign, Cuomo has said he will remain in place, and he appears to still have the support of many in his party while an investigation takes place.<\/p>\n<p>While three women have already come forward, New York State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said on Thursday that Cuomo would only lose her support if one more did.<\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cAny further people coming forward, I think it would be time to resign,\u201d<\/em>\u00a0she told \u2018Capitol Tonight\u2019, adding any kind of harassment in the workplace is\u00a0<em>\u201cout of bounds.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>___<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.rt.com\/usa\/517340-cuomo-sexual-harassment-cult\/\">https:\/\/www.rt.com\/usa\/517340-cuomo-sexual-harassment-cult\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u2018It\u2019s the Cuomo way\u2019: MORE aides describe \u2018cult\u2019 workplace as top NY Democrat says governor should quit if new accusers speak out<\/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-55114","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55114","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=55114"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55114\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=55114"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=55114"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=55114"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}