New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is coming beneath growing strain after two extra ladies publicly accused him of being bodily inappropriate with them.
The claims convey the full of girls who’ve spoken out towards Cuomo to 5, since Lindsey Boylan first accused the 63-year-old of creating a culture of “sexual harassment and bullying” inside his staff.
Cuomo faces an unbiased investigation into the harassment allegations. New York state legal professional basic, Letitia James, will lead the probe into the claims outlined under.
The governor has denied the allegations towards him.
In a press release launched final week Cuomo conceded a few of his phrases could “have been misinterpreted as an unwanted flirtation. To the extent anyone felt that way, I am truly sorry about that.”
Speaking on Wednesday, he stated: “You know, my usual custom is to kiss and to hug and make that gesture. I understand that sensitivities have changed and behavior has changed, and I get it.
“And I’m going to be taught from it. […] It was unintentional, and I really and deeply apologize for it. I really feel terrible about it and, frankly, I’m embarrassed.”
Lindsey Boylan
A former aide to Cuomo, Boylan was the primary lady to come back ahead and publicly accuse the New York Governor of sexual harassment.
“Governor Andrew Cuomo has created a culture within his administration where sexual harassment and bullying is so pervasive that it is not only condoned but expected,” she wrote in a lengthy essay posted on Medium final month.
“His inappropriate behavior toward women was an affirmation that he liked you, that you must be doing something right. He used intimidation to silence his critics. And if you dared to speak up, you would face consequences.”
She recalled her boss had knowledgeable her “the Governor had a ‘crush’ on me” and that he started addressing her as “Lisa” in entrance of colleagues, a reference to Lisa Shields—his rumored former girlfriend.
Mike Coppola/Getty Images for Women’s Forum of New York
Boylan posted a screenshot of an electronic mail from Stephanie Benton, Director of the Governor’s Offices, who stated Cuomo had prompt Boylan and Shields “could be sisters” and the previous was “the better looking sister.”
As time went on, Boylan stated she turned “worried that I would be left alone with the Governor”.
After Boylan’s first criticism about his conduct, the governor stated “it’s just not true,” and his workplace repeated the denial after her publish on Medium.
Charlotte Bennett
A former well being coverage adviser to Cuomo, Bennett claimed the governor repeatedly mentioned her previous experiences with sexual assault and requested if she was “sensitive to intimacy” whereas they labored collectively.
“He asked if I had trouble enjoying being with someone because of my trauma,” Bennett advised CBS Evening News anchor Norah O’Donnell final week.
“The governor asked me if I was sensitive to intimacy, during the workday.”
Jeenah Moon/Getty Images
In a separate interview with The New York Times, Bennett stated that the governor had revealed to her that he wished a girlfriend and “was open to dating a woman” older than 22. At the time, Bennett was 25.
She added: “I understood that the governor wanted to sleep with me. And was wondering how I was going to get out of it.”
After Bennett’s allegations, Cuomo stated in a press release he had by no means made advances in the direction of her “nor did I ever intend to act in any way that was inappropriate.”
Anna Ruch
Ruch advised The New York Times Cuomo had requested her if he might kiss her, when she first met him at a marriage reception in New York City.
“I was so confused and shocked and embarrassed,” stated Ruch, a former member of the Obama administration and the 2020 Biden marketing campaign.
“I turned my head away and didn’t have words in that moment.”
Karen Hinton
Hinton, who was as soon as one in every of Cuomo’s prime aides, stated she was made to really feel uncomfortable when he hugged her in a lodge in California.
“He started asking me personal questions. I was uncomfortable with that conversation, Hinton said of the incident—which allegedly happened 21 years ago when Cuomo was a Cabinet member—during an interview with New York’s NBC affiliate News 4.
“So I stood as much as depart and he walked throughout from his sofa and embraced me intimately. It was not only a hug. It was an intimate embrace. I pulled away. He introduced me again. I pulled away once more and I stated ‘look I would like some sleep, I’m going,'” Hinton told News 4 in her first TV interview about the incident.
“It was inappropriate. We each had been married. I labored for him and it was an excessive amount of to make it so private and intimate.”
Cuomo’s office swiftly dismissed the claims.
“This did not happen,” Peter Ajemian, director of communications for Cuomo, advised Newsweek in an emailed assertion.
“Karen Hinton is a known antagonist of the governor’s who is attempting to take advantage of this moment to score cheap points with made-up allegations from 21 years ago.
“All ladies have the best to come back ahead and inform their story—nevertheless, it is also the accountability of the press to think about self-motivation. This is reckless.”
Meanwhile, in a separate interview with the Washington Post last week, Hinton claimed Cuomo’s behavior was part of a “poisonous tradition”.
In response to the story that appeared in the Post, Rich Azzopardi, a senior adviser to Cuomo, said: “The individuals of this state elected the governor to signify them 4 instances over the past 14 years, and so they know he works day and night time for them.
“There is no secret these are tough jobs, and the work is demanding, but we have a top-tier team with many employees who have been here for years, and many others who have left and returned.”
Ana Liss
The third former Cuomo aide to accuse him of sexual harassment stated she felt decreased to “just a skirt” by the Governor’s alleged conduct.
Liss advised The Wall Street Journal Cuomo inquired if she had a boyfriend, referred to as her a “sweetheart”, touched her decrease again and as soon as kissed her hand.
Liss, who joined Cuomo’s staff in 2013, recalled that what initially appeared “harmless flirtations” swiftly gave technique to a much more uncomfortable actuality.
“It’s not appropriate, really, in any setting,” she stated.
On Saturday, Rich Azzopardi, a senior adviser to Cuomo, added: “Reporters and photographers have covered the governor for 14 years watching him kiss men and women and posing for pictures.
“At the general public open home mansion reception there are a whole lot of individuals and he poses for a whole lot of images. That’s what individuals in politics do.”
Source Link – www.newsweek.com
source https://infomagzine.com/what-andrew-cuomos-five-accusers-have-said-about-his-alleged-sexual-misconduct/
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