Albany, N.Y. — Gov. Andrew Cuomo will not resign, even after a report from the New York attorney general concluded he sexually harassed multiple women in violation of state and federal law.
“My job is not about me, my job is about you,” Cuomo said during a video statement he made online this afternoon. “What matters to me at the end of the day is getting the most done I can for you. I will not be distracted from that job.”
Cuomo spoke after New York Attorney General Letitia James issued a report on multiple sexual harassment allegations against him. The report concluded Cuomo harassed multiple current and former staffers.
James has been investigating Cuomo since March.
Cuomo posted a response to James’ report online from his attorney, Rita Glavin. James’ investigators conducted an “utterly biased investigation” and ignored evidence that didn’t match up with the narrative they wanted to advance, Glavin said in the response.
They also ignored Cuomo’s testimony to them and substantial evidence that corroborated what he told them, she said.
During his statement, Cuomo responded to several of the specific allegations against him, including an accusation from an aide who said the governor reached under blouse and groped her breast at the Executive Mansion in Albany.
Cuomo was shocked by the accusation, Glavin said in the response to James’ report. During his statement, Cuomo said the incident never happened and added he’d welcome a review of the episode by a judge and jury.
“This just did not happen,” he said. “Trial by newspaper or biased reviews are not the way to find the facts.”
He said he never made inappropriate sexual advances or touched anyone inappropriately, despite multiple accounts of inappropriate touching in James’ report.
“That is just not who I am,” he said. “That’s not who I have ever been.”
Cuomo also spent several minutes addressing allegations from Charlotte Bennett, a former aide who said the governor groomed her for a sexual relationship and asked inappropriate questions about the fact that she is a survivor of sexual assault.
She said the governor’s comments led her to believe he wanted to have sex with her.
Cuomo spoke to Bennett directly during his statement and said he was “truly and deeply sorry.” He acknowledged asking her questions about her past sexual assault, but said he had been trying to help the situation.
He said a member of his own family the same age as Bennett was sexually assaulted in high school and he felt his experience could help.
Cuomo said he did ask Bennett about her dating life and said he asked her questions he didn’t normally ask others. The actions were meant to be helpful and supportive, he said.
“I’ve heard Charlotte and her lawyer and I understand what they are saying,” Cuomo said. “But they read into comments that I made and draw inferences that I never meant. They ascribe motives I never had. And simply put, they heard things that I just didn’t say.”
Cuomo suggested other accusations against him involved interactions he has had hundreds or thousands of times with New Yorkers across the state. He said he often kisses people on the forehead or cheek or puts his hands on their faces.
During the statement, he showed multiple photographs of those interactions and said he learned those behaviors from his mother and father. They’re gestures meant to convey warmth, he said.
He also said he sometimes would “slip” and call women sweetheart, honey or darling, another allegation contained in James’ report.
“I do banter with people,” Cuomo said. “I try to put people at ease. I try to make them smile. I try to show my appreciation and friendship.
“I now understand that there are generational or cultural perspectives that frankly, I hadn’t fully appreciated. And I have learned from this.”
Cuomo said he’s hired an expert to design a new state training program to guard against sexual harassment. He said he and his entire team will complete it.
Cuomo also addressed sections of James’ report that detailed a “toxic” work environment in his office. He said his office is demanding and not for everyone.
But he pushed back against allegations of inappropriate interactions between female managers and workers.
He said strong male supervisors would never face accusations of bullying over behavior that was simply demanding.
“It is a double standard,” Cuomo said. “It is sexist and it must be challenged.”
James’ four-month investigation included interviews with 179 people, including New York state troopers and other state workers, James said this morning. The probe began after multiple former staffers went public with their accusations.
Interviews during the investigation, along with 70 subpoenas that produced more than 70,000 documents, unveiled a “deeply disturbing” picture, James said. More than once today she called the governor’s workplace “toxic,” saying that his leadership fostered fear and worries of retribution at work.
The behavior, investigators said, created an overall work culture that included bullying and vindictiveness.
The report found Cuomo touched staffers in an unwanted manner and called them “honey,” “sweetheart,” or “darling.” He kissed women at work, sometimes on the lips.
The report also says Cuomo grabbed the butt of an executive assistant and details the groping incident at the Executive Mansion.
One of the women Cuomo harassed was a state trooper, according to the report. Another was a Syracuse-area National Grid employee, Virginia Limmiatis.
Women said Cuomo’s behavior made the feel humiliated, taken advantage of and “creeped out,” the report says.
READ MORE:
Cuomo ‘sexually harassed’ women, violating law, NY AG says
Syracuse woman among Cuomo accusers: ‘He is lying again. He touched me inappropriately’
Reaction from NY lawmakers: Cuomo must resign or be impeached
Read NY attorney general’s full report on Cuomo sexual harassment allegations
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