Cuomo steps down even as his aides and allies prepare for battle

new York

The governor has appeared publicly and privately prepared to fight through impeachment. Then on Tuesday he just gave up.

ALBANY, NY – On July 14, Andrew Cuomo’s ethics executive emailed two dozen employees who had expressed interest in working on the re-election of New York governor in 2022.

“At the outset, I want to stress that there is absolutely no obligation for you to volunteer, all volunteering is 100% your choice, and there are no consequences – positive or negative – for volunteering. or not, “read the email, obtained by POLITICO from Julia Pinover Kupiec – Cuomo’s Special Counsel and Ethics Officer.

The subtext was clear: Cuomo’s campaign could not face further allegations of misuse of state resources for personal gain. Kupiec offered two training sessions on how, when the time comes, assistants could “keep all volunteer work strictly out of state affairs.” One of them happened on July 26.

Two weeks later, the dream of an elusive fourth term is all but dead with the announcement of Cuomo’s resignation on Tuesday. It was a quick decision, announced in a live video, that took almost everyone – except a few senior assistants who were briefed on Monday – by surprise.

The late-July campaign strategy shows how prepared the governor was to launch an effort to shake off months of scandal ahead of Attorney General Tish James’ damning report last week corroborating 11 accounts of sexual harassment allegedly committed by the governor.

In the hours and days after the report, Cuomo and his attorneys came out swinging, on the mark, with screams of lies and political postures as his former assistants wondered in bewilderment why he couldn’t see what ‘he had no more options.

Even then, as Cuomo prepared to fight, he remained relatively calm and analytical, focused on his next steps, said a former senior Cuomo official who spoke to him briefly after the report was released. The aide, who wanted to check “on a personal level” with the governor, spoke on condition of anonymity to disclose the private conversation.

Cuomo has remained out of sight, but his personal lawyer, Rita Glavin, has gone to prime-time television news to challenge the integrity of the allegations. And when the State Assembly told Cuomo he would have the opportunity to present additional evidence to support his case against impeachment, his office said he would gladly comply.

Much of New York’s political arena was still preparing for a long and bloody battle before Cuomo relinquished his grip on his decade-long title. It was expected to be weeks before he was removed from office – and even longer before he could be removed from office. What did he really have to lose in battle?

But at this point, alongside most of the States and the National Democratic Party, almost everyone else on the Cuomo team has been injured, suspended, or changed loyalties. His small circle had shrunk to groups in the Executive Mansion with his family, key associates Rich Azzopardi and Melissa DeRosa and a handful of loyal former senior executives, such as Larry Schwartz, said two people familiar with the situation.

Melissa DeRosa, who was the governor’s top assistant, resigned Sunday night after a dazzling description in the James report detailing her role in promoting a culture that has silenced allegations against Cuomo. The governor found himself without his right hand – and no option to replace it.

Finally, on Monday Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie said he was not interested in any political negotiations during the fast-moving impeachment process, removing any chance that the governor – long known for his prowess. to political failures – may negotiate a more gracious exit.

The only benefit of facing impeachment would have been a potential opportunity to correct the record, as Cuomo saw, regarding some of the more egregious allegations against him. But the efforts of his lawyers in this area appeared to be in vain, the former collaborator said.

“The final death knell was for Carl Heastie to declare that there was no agreement,” the person said, based solely on his knowledge of Cuomo’s thought process. “With impeachment he cannot serve his term gracefully, so he was faced with that option – or just to resign. Once those were the only two real choices, he unplugged. “

Although many have advised him to quit for days, several who were previously close advisers and have shown for years their ability to predict Cuomo’s thought processes said they had had little or no prior warning.

“No one I was talking to knew until this morning,” one said.

“I do not have [know] and the people I’m talking to had no idea this was happening a few minutes before it happened, ”said another.

And others who had supported both Cuomo and his father, former Governor Mario Cuomo, during their decades of shared power, discovered him alongside the rest of the country – thanks to the same format that earned him. Cuomo was a brilliant few months of unprecedented national fame before his swift political demise.

“Watching TV,” said a former advisor, “like everyone else. “