North Shore weighs in on Cuomo allegations

State Attorney General Letitia James released the findings of her office’s inquiry into the sexual harassment claims against Gov. Andrew Cuomo that surfaced last December. The report, released from James’s office Tuesday, found Cuomo sexually harassed multiple women, including current and former government workers, breaking state and federal laws and engaging in a pattern of unwanted touching and inappropriate comments.

Local reaction was swift and uncompromising against the Democratic governor.

“The governor needs to resign immediately — he should have months ago, after the nursing home scandal, but clearly he cares about his pride more than what is right for our state,” said Assemblyman Michael Montesano, a Republican who represents the 15th District.

Montesano, of Glen Head, a member of the Assembly Judiciary Committee, said, “We most likely will have to go the impeachment route, and the attorney general confirming the sexual harassment claims is a vital step in that process. I hope we can swiftly move forward and remove the governor from office so we can put someone in power who has New York's best interests in mind.”

The call to remove Cuomo from office comes not only from elected leaders, but also many other New Yorkers. “I truly hope to see New York pull together and remove Cuomo from office, permanently. Simply put, no one is above the law, and Cuomo must face the consequences of his hurtful actions,” Courtney Citko, of Sea Cliff, said. “If he were to remain in power, further mental and emotional pain and suffering will be forced upon his victims, as they are essentially told that the harassment and violations they endured do not matter because the man who committed them is more powerful than they are.”

“I think he should’ve been gone a long time ago,” Mary Gasparri, of Glen Head, said. “I’m in full agreement with what they’re doing. I don’t have proof of what happened — none of us do — but he never seemed like a stand-up guy to begin with, that’s how I feel.”

“I give a round of applause to Attorney General James for conducting the interviews,” Roni Jenkins, of Glen Cove, said. “Justice needs to be served, and he needs to step down. It’s harassment in the workplace, and women are not going to stand for it anymore.”

The attorney general’s 168-page report said Cuomo and his aides cultivated a toxic work culture in his office that was riddled with fear and intimidation, and helped enable harassment to occur and created a hostile work environment.

“The attorney general’s findings of sexual harassment and violations of New York state’s sexual harassment policy are credible and deeply troubling,” said State Sen. Jim Gaughran, a Democrat who represents the 5th District, which includes, Glen Cove, Sea Cliff, Glen Head and Oyster Bay. “I thank the women who bravely spoke out about the governor’s reprehensible conduct.”

After a number of public accusations poured in early this year, Cuomo succumbed to public pressure and asked James for a formal referral to create a special counsel to investigate the claims against him on Feb 28.

During the five-month inquiry, investigators found that Cuomo had sexually harassed at least 11 women, including two previously unreported allegations from women who accused Cuomo of improperly touching them — an unnamed female state trooper and an employee of an energy company. The report also highlighted at least one instance in which Cuomo and his aides retaliated against one of the women who made her allegations public.

“I believe women, and I believe these 11 women,” James said at the conclusion of a nearly hour-long news conference Tuesday.

After reading the findings in James’s report, members of Cuomo’s party openly turned on him, calling on him to resign immediately. His administration was already under investigation by the State Assembly for his handling of nursing home deaths during the pandemic.