The stunning admission by Governor Cuomo’s top aide that the government has withheld the death toll from the state nursing home for fear that the devastating numbers would be “ used against us ” by the FBI has sparked two-pronged calls for a thorough investigation – and prosecution of the governor.
“Gov. Cuomo, the governor’s secretary, and his senior team should be immediately prosecuted – both by the Attorney General of New York State and the United States Department of Justice,” Republican Representative Elise Stefanik wrote in a statement.
“This great confession of a cover up and the Secretary’s comments to the Governor indicating his intention to obstruct a federal investigation is an astonishing and criminal abuse of power,” continued Stefanik.
“I have said from the beginning that this is more than a nursing home scandal, this is a massive corruption and cover-up scandal at the highest level of the New York State government involving the Governor, the Secretary to the Governor, the New York State Health Commissioner and Governor’s Staff, ”she wrote.
“The families who have lost loved ones, New Yorkers, and all Americans, deserve a responsibility from the United States Department of Justice, which will be independent and unaffected by the desperate political pressure from Governor Cuomo.”
Minority leader in the New York Senate Rob Ortt, a Republican, said in a tweet: “Governor Cuomo and his administration must be scrutinized top to bottom and he must be stripped of his emergency powers. Justice must be brought to the grieving families who have been ignored to protect Governor Cuomo and his Democratic allies in the legislature. “
In a separate statement, he said: “The news today that Governor Cuomo’s top assistant admitted to willfully withholding information about COVID-19 deaths is the latest in a series of troubling corruption by his government.
“This is clearly a gross hindrance to justice. Rather than apologize or answer the thousands of New York families who lost loved ones, the governor’s administration apologized to politicians behind closed doors for the “political inconvenience” this scandal has caused them.
The comments come after The Post revealed that during a video conference call with Democratic state leaders, Secretary to Governor Melissa DeRosa said the government rejected a legislative request for the census in August because “around the same time, [then-President Donald Trump] turns this into a gigantic political football, ”said an audio recording obtained by The Post.
“He’s starting to tweet that we killed everyone in nursing homes,” DeRosa said. He’s going to the back [New Jersey Gov. Phil] Murphy, get behind [California Gov. Gavin] Newsom, go to the back [Michigan Gov.] Gretchen Whitmer. “
In addition to attacking Cuomo’s fellow Democratic governors, she said Trump “orders the Justice Department to investigate us.”
“And we’re actually frozen,” DeRosa told lawmakers.
“Because then we were in a position where we weren’t sure if what we were going to give to the Justice Department, or what we’re giving you, what we’re starting to say, would be used against us while we were still doing it.” not sure if there was going to be an investigation, ”she added.
State attorney Letitia James recently announced in a damning 76-page report that the nursing home death toll from COVID-19 in the Empire State could be more than 50 percent higher than officials claim, because Cuomo’s administration had not revealed how many of those residents perished in hospitals. .
The explosive findings could push the DOH count from 8,711 deaths to more than 13,000, based on a survey of 62 nursing homes that found the state underestimated the number of fatalities there by an average of 56 percent.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) Said Cuomo “has blood on his hands.”
The Cuomo Coverup led to the unnecessary deaths of New Yorkers everyone knew were in danger. And Fredo and CNN helped him hide it while they laughed about it! ” Greene said in a tweet, using former President Trump’s reference to CNN anchor Chris Cuomo based on Fredo Corleone, the ineffective son of ‘The Godfather’.
House Minority Whip Steve Scalise also responded on Twitter, to write: “There it is. Cuomo’s assistant has just admitted to covering up nursing home records so federal prosecutors can’t find it. Time for federal investigations. Time for prosecution. Time for JUSTICE.”
He added, “The more the truth comes out, the worse it gets for Cuomo.”
Democrats, including public attorney Jumaane Williams, also attacked the governor, tweeting: “To continuing defenders of @NYGovCuomo, how is this okay? How not #Trump?
“And when you are forced into admission, what you will most regret is that we got caught… and not even directly from him or the families. And that while asking NYers to trust your decisions, ”he added.
State Senator Alessandra Biaggi (D-NY) also weighed in, say in a tweet: “You are only sorry that you were all caught. Your decisions killed thousands of people who did not have to die. We are not ‘offended’, Melissa, we are outraged – for an extremely good reason. “
State Senator Andrew Gornardes (D-NY) called it a “betrayal of public confidence”.
“There must be full accountability for what happened, and the legislator must reconsider its broad conferral of emergency powers on the governor”, he said in a tweet
In a prepared statement, Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi said: “ We explained that the Trump administration was in the midst of a politically motivated effort to blame Democratic states for COVID deaths and that we were partnering with federal document production and that was the priority. and now that it’s over, we can appeal to the state legislature. “
That said, we were working at the same time to complete the verification of the information they asked for, ”he added.
The DOJ has declined to comment.