New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in his farewell address Monday harshly criticized the investigation of sexual misconduct allegations against him carried out by fellow Democrat state Attorney General Letitia James and said he was confident that the truth would come out in time, The Hill reported.
"There will be another time to talk about the truth and ethics of the recent situation involving me, but let me say now when government politicizes allegations and the headlines condemn without facts, you undermine the justice system and that doesn't serve men and that doesn't serve men or society," Cuomo said in a pre-taped address.
"The attorney general's report was designed to be a political firecracker on an explosive topic and it worked. There was a political and media stampede," he added.
Cuomo's speech came hours before he was set to formally resign as governor. He announced his plan to step down earlier this month after James' office issued a report alleging that Cuomo sexually harassed numerous women and threatened to retaliate against one who spoke out.
Democrat Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul is set to take over for Cuomo at midnight, becoming the state's first female governor.
Cuomo said in his remarks that he believed Hochul will “step up to the challenge” and that “we all wish her success,” CNBC reported.
The New York State Assembly announced last week that it plans to release its final report from its own probe.
"The Assembly Judiciary Committee will continue to review evidence and issue a final report on its investigation of Governor Cuomo," Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Assembly Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Lavine, both Democrats, said in a joint statement.
"In doing so, the committee will take all appropriate steps to ensure that this effort does not interfere with various ongoing investigations by the United States Attorney concerning nursing home data; the attorney general concerning the governor's memoir; and local law enforcement authorities in five jurisdictions – Manhattan, Albany, Westchester, Nassau and Oswego – regarding possible criminal incidents of sexual misconduct," they said.
Cuomo said in his address that his decision to resign was an act of service, declaring that “prolonging the situation would only cause governmental paralysis."
Despite rumors that Cuomo would try to run for office again, his spokeswoman Melissa DeRosa said in a statement on Monday that “he is exploring a number of options, but has no interest in running for office again."
Brian Freeman ✉
Brian Freeman, a Newsmax writer based in Israel, has more than three decades writing and editing about culture and politics for newspapers, online and television.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.