ALBANY, N.Y. — Over his long career, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has been known as a brutal political opponent to people who oppose his agenda or challenge him publicly.
That penchant for punching hard at perceived enemies drew fresh condemnations this week in the wake of a tirade against a lawmaker who questioned his handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
A vocal crop of Democrats say the governor relies too often on threats to score wins.
A Cuomo spokesperson says voters know that “this is a governor who works night and day to move the ball down the field for New Yorkers.”
Cuomo faces mounting challenges to his leadership on the coronavirus pandemic as state lawmakers threaten to strip him of the power to issue emergency orders and federal investigators scrutinize his administration’s handling of nursing home data.
The U.S. Justice Department has been examining the governor’s coronavirus task force and trying to determine whether the state intentionally manipulated data regarding deaths in nursing homes.
That's according to two people familiar with the matter who weren’t authorized to discuss the investigation and spoke to The AP on condition of anonymity. A spokesperson for the governor said the administration was cooperating with the investigation.
Republican lawmakers have threatened and formed a committee to look at impeaching Governor Cuomo, although, in reality, it carries more political weight than anything. As the minority party, Republican lawmakers would need to flip a vast amount of Democratic support.