Andrew Cuomo - Stay or Go?

I am no real fan of Andrew Cuomo. In the years that I worked in the nonprofit sector in NYS, I saw how he operated. He would create highly complicated systems to replace structures that already existed and may have required some minor tweaking. He would demand public support for his initiatives without opportunities to review and discuss. Many times he would ignore the needs of vulnerable people and the people who supported them. And yes, he was mean spirited, aggressive and vindictive. New York tough as he would say.

Over the past month, allegations have been made about his treatment of women. Some may sound more plausible than others but all should be investigated and taken seriously. Having said that, I think the calls for his immediate resignation or impeachment are premature and not in the best interest of justice or best practice. Due process is important for everyone. The women making the allegations and the Governor all deserve due process and I think the NYS Attorney General is capable of making sure that occurs.

The reality is that Andrew Cuomo has few friends. His tough guy persona, his take no enemies approach, have left him very vulnerable. His lousy relationship with the press, his lack of public accountability certainly don't serve him well in this crisis. But his likability shouldn't really be the issue here. A timely but patient, impartial review of facts should be the path to follow.

Is it possible to keep politics out of all of this? Probably not but we should try. The last thing we need is the hypocrisy of politicians and some members of the press who wouldn't or haven't spoken out about other powerful men and their abusive actions towards women over the past four or five years. Pretend outrage doesn't serve anyone well. Acting as though Democrats are the only people touching women inappropriately is ridiculous at this point in our political history.

So, although I don't agree with him on everything, Andrew Cuomo has done some positive things in his tenure as Governor. He has led well during a number of difficult times. He is flawed like the rest of us but does deserve a process rather than a lynching.