Republicans in the New York State Assembly say impeachment is the answer, if Gov. Andrew Cuomo is not going to resign.
On Monday the conference of legislators announced they would submit a resolution to impeach the Governor in wake of mounting scandals and investigations into his office.
All four of the Legislature’s conference leaders have called on the governor to resign, or consider stepping down from office.
“When you lose trust and credibility, you lose the ability to lead. Gov. Cuomo can no longer effectively govern New York. Yesterday’s statements from the Democratic leaders of the Senate and Assembly illustrate just how severely diminished that trust is,” said Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay (R-Pulaski). “His administration has been found to have willfully manipulated data to avoid a federal investigation. Several women have now come forward with harrowing tales of disturbing behavior from the governor. It will be impossible for Gov. Cuomo to lead our state out of a pandemic—and negotiate one of the most important budgets in our state’s history—with a complete lack of credibility and trust from both the public and Legislature.”
“The more information we receive the more obvious it has become that Andrew Cuomo is not fit to lead New York state. Members of the Legislature on both sides of the aisle have acknowledged he can no longer serve as governor. This impeachment resolution reflects that sentiment and we urge all of our legislative colleagues to support it,” said Assemblyman Ed Ra (R-Franklin Square).
Assembly Democrats have rejected multiple calls to create a bipartisan Impeachment Commission. However, with mounting scandals and recent statements from conference leaders and rank-and-file legislators, the Assembly Republican Conference is now planning to immediately introduce a resolution to remove the governor.
“The accusations against Gov. Cuomo are overwhelming in both number and severity. It is now abundantly clear that this governor can no longer lead our state. His abusive use of power has been evident and the damage these abuses caused have capsized his reputation and the public trust that comes with it. Each further day that Gov. Cuomo spends in office threatens increased harm to our great state – he must be held accountable and I am proud to introduce legislative action to remove him from office,” said Assemblyman Jake Ashby (R-Castleton).
“Clearly, the governor has no plans to resign. It is incumbent on all 213 members of the Legislature to take steps to remove him from office. Every day he remains in office is a distraction and hinders the state’s path to recovery,” Barclay added.
Meanwhile, Assemblyman Brian Manktelow (R-Lyons) agreed, noting it’s time for something to be done.
“It is clear Gov. Cuomo is unwilling to do what is right and resign from his position as governor,” said Manktelow. “Therefore, it is the responsibility of the Legislature to move forward with impeachment. Today’s resolution calls for a simple vote from the Assembly, and if passed, the process would then move to the Senate for an impeachment trial to begin. It is downright shameful for the governor to still be holding his position given the cover-up of his mistake which caused thousands of nursing home deaths, allegations of sexual harassment from five women, and now potential issues with the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge that dates back five years. If he really cares about New York, he will step down, but seeing as he is unwilling to admit defeat, we need to move forward to protect New York by removing him from office,” he said.
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