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Opponents pounce on conviction of Gov. Andrew Cuomo's right-hand man

The verdict came at a bad time for Cuomo, who is seeking a third term this year against candidates eager to use Percoco's corruption conviction against him.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Wednesday called the conviction of his longtime aide and right-hand man an "aberration."

His political opponents see it as an opportunity.

Cuomo, a Democrat, addressed the corruption conviction of Joseph Percoco for the first time in public Wednesday, saying his longtime aide and close personal friend's conduct "violates everything my administration is about."

Percoco, 48, was convicted of three felonies Tuesday in connection with a scheme that saw him collect more than $300,000 in payments from companies who leaned on him to take state actions that benefitted their projects.

The verdict came at a bad time for Cuomo, who is seeking a third term this year against a handful of Republican and Democratic candidates eager to use Percoco's corruption conviction against him.

"We strive for total integrity and this is a total aberration from the people who work in the administration," Cuomo told reporters in Manhattan after attending a National Walkout Day event.

More: Joe Percoco, ex-aide to Cuomo, guilty of 3 felonies in bribery case

Cuomo says conviction of ex-aide an 'aberration'

Percoco, of South Salem, Westchester County, spent two decades as Cuomo's closest confidant and enforcer. He was convicted Tuesday of two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of solicitation of bribes or gratuities.

He took in more than $300,000 in payments from 2012 through 2015 from Maryland-based energy company Competitive Power Ventures and Syracuse-area developer COR Development, both of which had significant business before the state and leaned on Percoco to take actions beneficial to them.

The Democratic governor repeatedly refused to address any evidence or accusations raised at trial while the court proceedings were ongoing, including testimony that showed Percoco repeatedly used the governor's state offices in New York City while he was supposedly off the government payroll and running Cuomo's 2014 re-election campaign.

On Wednesday, Cuomo told reporters he thought Percoco was doing "transition work" in the office at that time, meaning he was helping to ensure there was a smooth transition to the state workers who picked up his duties.

But Cuomo acknowledged the testimony and evidence at trial suggested otherwise.

"(Percoco) was there for a very long time, he was an important position, and he would come back and he was handling the transition, which is fine," Cuomo said. "But there should be no other work done from a government office besides that transition work. And in the trial there was a suggestion that there was, and that's a violation of the rules."

Cuomo's Republican foes said Cuomo's comments were unconvincing.

Dutchess County Marc Molinaro, who has positioned himself as the favorite for the GOP's gubernatorial nomination, said the Percoco trial proved that "bribery, political fundraising and campaigning were all going on literally steps from the governor's personal office."

Molinaro has called for state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman to investigate possible violations of the state Public Officers Law that came up during testimony.

"The only 'aberration' is that Governor Cuomo thinks this is somehow isolated, when in fact his administration is shrouded in a cloud of corruption," Molinaro said in a statement.

State Sen. John DeFrancisco, R-DeWitt, Onondaga County, called Cuomo's explanation of Percoco's work "preposterous" and an "insult to the intelligence of New Yorkers."

DeFrancisco noted evidence at trial showed Percoco made more than 800 phone calls over more than 60 days he spent in the office when he was managing Cuomo's campaign and off the government payroll.

"To call that 'transition' work is simply not credible," DeFrancisco said.

Along with a Republican challenger in November, Cuomo is likely to face a Democratic primary in September.

Sex and the City actress and activist Cynthia Nixon has been weighing a challenge to Cuomo, as has Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner.

Former state Sen. Terry Gipson, D-Rhinebeck, Dutchess County, has announced a run.

Cuomo and his supporters noted the governor was not accused of any legal wrongdoing as part of the trial or investigation.

Asked about Republicans' efforts to personally tie him to the verdict, Cuomo chalked it up to the "political silly season."

"There was absolutely no suggestion ever made that I had anything to do with anything," Cuomo said.

"It was an exhaustive investigation, an exhaustive trial and there was never any suggestion about any involvement by me."

Irene Stein, the Tompkins County Democratic chair and longtime head of the Democratic Rural Conference, emphasized that Cuomo wasn't accused of wrongdoing.

The Democratic Rural Conference, a collection of upstate county Democratic operations, has supported Cuomo back to his first, failed run for governor in 2002.

"That kind of occurrence with a close aide obviously doesn't help him, but we have to keep in mind he wasn't involved in it," Stein said. "From what I know of the governor, had he known anything about this, I think it would have come to an immediate stop."

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