By: Jared Evan
Having been embroiled in giant scandals surrounding the intentional fudging of death statistics in New York area nursing homes and multiple sexual harassment claims, it appears that Andrew Mark Cuomo is politically vulnerable. Because of these revelations, it also appears that the 2022 gubernatorial race looks to be wide open.
The once untouchable governor who captivated a terrified public’s attention in March thru May of last year at the height of the pandemic, with dramatic COVID hearings, even earning himself an EMMY and a million-dollar book deal; has seen his reputation collapse and the public turn firmly against him.
The COVID pandemic superstar has seen a crash, which is unparalleled in modern politics.
New Yorkers sat enraptured in front of the TV screen, hanging on to Cuomo’s every word, as he rattled off grim statistics, imposed lockdown rules and discussed eating Sunday meatball dinners with his family, every morning on national TV. For a brief moment in time, the Governor became a sex symbol among lonely and scared women.
2021, is quite different for the son of a NY Governor and brother of a CNN news entertainer, as people now sit enraptured by the scandals as they dominate headlines one after another, and Cuomo himself has vanished from television.
All that remains to be seen is will he step down and if he doesn’t, how can one govern after his “brand” has been damaged to such a degree?
NBC News New York reported that legislators from New York’s Assembly and state Senate struck a deal Tuesday to strip Gov. Andrew Cuomo of his pandemic-linked emergency powers and return matters like lockdowns to local control. The deal would reverse emergency powers granted to Cuomo exactly a year ago, in the early days of the COVID pandemic, that gave him free rein to order measures like quarantines.
Assembly member Carrie Woerner tweeted the outlines of the widely reported deal Tuesday afternoon, saying it would: 1. repeal the extraordinary powers granted to the Governor last year, 2. provide for an orderly transition through the end of the disaster period, 3. Limit any further modifications to directives to that which is necessary to reduce the spread or increase vaccinations,4. Restore the right of counties and municipalities to issue executive orders without seeking state approval” Woerner said she understood a bill would be passed as early as this Friday.
Meanwhile, Republican Long Island Congressman Lee Zeldin may challenge Gov. Andrew Cuomo for the state’s top office in 2022, he announced Tuesday amid the multiple scandals engulfing the three-term Democratic incumbent, NY Post reported
After your many messages of encouragement and after discussing it at length with my wife and daughters, I just announced that I am actively exploring a run for Governor of New York against Andrew Cuomo in 2022,” Zeldin said in a message posted Tuesday on Facebook.
