Lawmakers to release report on Cuomo impeachment inquiry after all

Turning the tide, the New York State Assembly will continue its broad inquiry into Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and issue a report with his findings, lawmakers said on Monday, following a violent bipartisan backlash to the decision to suspend the investigation.

Speaker Carl E. Heastie announced on Friday that lawmakers would close their investigation of Cuomo and no longer attempt to impeach him, despite the discovery of “credible evidence” regarding the allegations against him. Mr Heastie, a Democrat, made the announcement days after Mr Cuomo announced he would be stepping down, citing constitutional concerns over the impeachment of a departing governor.

Monday’s overthrow doesn’t mean lawmakers are set to impeach Mr. Cuomo; Mr Heastie had cited a six-page legal note on Friday saying lawmakers lacked the constitutional power to remove a public servant who was not in office. Indeed, there is no precedent in New York for removing a former governor.

Last week’s announcement sparked an uproar from Republican and Democratic lawmakers, who said the Assembly had a duty, at the very least, to make the findings of the taxpayer-funded inquiry public, which started in March. Some lawmakers, especially Republicans and a small group of left-wing Democrats, have spoken out in favor of continuing impeachment efforts, even with Mr. Cuomo out of office.

On Monday, Mr Heastie and Charles Lavine, the chairman of the judiciary commission, which is leading the investigation, released a statement saying it would continue. “The Assembly Judiciary Committee will continue to review the evidence and issue a final report on its investigation into Governor Cuomo,” they said.

Faced with the imminent threat of impeachment, Mr. Cuomo, a Democrat for a third term, announced last week that he would resign, following a report by the New York state attorney general revealing that he sexually harassed several women, including nine government employees.

The Assembly inquiry, which is being conducted by an outside law firm, examines several issues related to Mr. Cuomo’s potential abuse of power.

Investigators are investigating allegations of sexual harassment, which at least five local prosecutors are also investigating; Mr. Cuomo’s management of nursing homes during the pandemic, which federal prosecutors are also investigating; and Mr. Cuomo’s use of state resources to write a memoir on the pandemic that won him a $ 5.1 million contract, which the state attorney general is also reviewing.

Monday’s statement said the committee “will take all appropriate steps to ensure this effort does not interfere with the various ongoing investigations.” However, it was not yet clear when the Assembly would complete the investigation and issue a public report.

Mr Heastie said last week that lawmakers had found credible evidence against Mr Cuomo that they said “likely could have resulted in articles of impeachment had he not resigned.”

Even so, Mr Heastie had said, the Assembly would turn the evidence over to other authorities investigating Mr Cuomo and drop the impeachment inquiry since its primary objective had been to determine whether Mr Cuomo should be removed from office. functions.

The move was quickly criticized by some of Mr. Cuomo’s accusers and lawmakers across the aisle, who argued that the Assembly should either proceed with impeachment, despite constitutional uncertainty, or, minimum, complete the investigation and publish its findings.

“After spending millions of taxpayer dollars and issuing lofty statements, he hasn’t lifted a finger to make it clear that New York is rejecting Cuomo’s behavior,” Charlotte Bennett, a former assistant to Mr. Cuomo who said he sexually harassed her. , referring to Mr. Heastie. “By using a lazy legal argument and proposing a poorly reasoned note, the President has chosen the cowardly path. “

Many Democrats, however, have expressed concerns about the continued impeachment following Mr Cuomo’s resignation, saying it could turn into a months-long distraction for the party that will only benefit Republicans and almost lead. certainly to a protracted litigation.