The governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, has again been charged this Saturday for alleged sexual abuse according to the statements of one of his former aides collected in an interview conducted by ‘The Wall Street Journal’.
This former assistant is Ana Liss, 35, who worked for Cuomo between 2013 and 2015. In the interview with ‘The Wall Street Journal’ she said that at first she saw the governor’s actions as harmless flirtations, but that, over time, She came to see him condescendingly and felt professionally diminished. “I felt just a skirt,” she has said.
Liss has said that at a reception where Cuomo was present “he came up to me and said: ‘Hello, darling!'” And then hugged her, kissed her on both cheeks and put his arm around her lower back and grab her by the waist. A photographer captured an image of the scene, according to the newspaper.
“Reporters and photographers have covered the governor for 14 years watching him kiss men and women and pose for photos,” Cuomo’s advisor Rich Azzopardi said in a statement provided to ‘The Wall Street Journal’ and ‘The New York Daily News’.
Liss has also mentioned that she never filed a formal complaint about Cuomo’s behavior, but she did request a transfer to another office.
More than 30 officials who currently work or have worked in Cuomo’s office described a high-pressure work environment, and Liss and other current and former officials said the governor regularly asked women about their love lives, and made comments about their physical appearance, pick up ‘The Hill’.
ACCUSATIONS OF HARASSMENT
These allegations began a few days ago when Lindsey Boylan, who worked as an assistant for Cuomo, published a letter in which she recounted how “bullying” within her administration was “so pervasive” that it was “tolerated” and “expected. “.
Also, Charlotte Bennett, who worked as an assistant health adviser for the New York State Government, and Anna Ruch, who met Cuomo in an assembly hall, have related another series of episodes that do not leave the governor in a good place.
The attorney general of New York, Letitia James, reported last Sunday of the opening of an investigation and that her office will hire a law firm to supervise it. In addition, she assured that she will provide investigators with the ability to call witnesses to testify.
Liss has mentioned in the interview that she decided to report after hearing the accusations of the other former assistants, Charlotte Bennett and Lindsey Boylan.
Before the avalanche of criticism, and the voices that have been demanding his resignation since then, Cuomo came out to apologize for what happened, although, he clarified, that his intentions had been “misinterpreted” and that he “never” touched anyone in a way. “inappropriate”.
Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, a Democrat, mentioned this week that if one more indictment was filed, “it would be time for her to step down.”