Midday News Brief
Written by Dan Fischer on August 4, 2021
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s political future hangs in the balance a day after the state attorney general released a report accusing him of sexually harassing nearly a dozen women. Democratic Albany County District Attorney David Soares says lawmakers will move to quickly finish their impeachment inquiry into the Democrat governor and he’s calling on any additional potential accusers to step forward.
He went on to say Governor Cuomo has lost the confidence of the majority. Even President Biden yesterday called for him to step down. Cuomo maintains he has not acted inappropriately and says he has no plans to resign.
While Governor Cuomo has said he won’t leave office due to sexual harassment allegations, several politicians including President Biden are urging him to go. Biden said the governor should resign, echoing similar calls from Democrat Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Democrat Senator Kirsten Gillibrand.
A poll shows 59-percent of New Yorkers want Governor Andrew Cuomo to resign. The Marist survey conducted last night shows 32-percent think the governor should serve out the rest of his term. The poll was conducted hours after a report by the state attorney general accused the governor of sexually harassing numerous women and creating a toxic work environment. The poll also shows just eleven-percent of New Yorkers think he deserves re-election. The governor says the allegations are false and he called the report biased.
The latest data from New York State shows the spread of the coronavirus is worsening again across Western New York. Right now, the seven-day average infection rate is three-point-three-three percent, an increase from earlier this week and the second highest rate in any area of the state.
Genesee County, meanwhile, is in the Finger Lakes Region.
The county’s positivity rate remains at 1.1 percent, among the lowest in the state.
