As Cynthia racks up major progressive, grassroots endorsements, the Governor stumbles with new revelations about his corruption, his mismanagement of the subways, and his out of touch statements on women

NEW YORK, NY – Governor Cuomo stumbled badly this week as his corrupt administration sunk to previously unthought of lows, and he was called out by his own MTA Board for his mismanagement of the subways. Additionally, the Governor once again showed his inability to speak to and about women as he made a series out of touch statements and faced criticism for his failure to improve state sexual harassment policy. To cap it all off, the Governor came face to face with the reality of how truly unpopular he is, with a new poll of 2020 presidential contenders that showed him with “the lowest favorability rating among Democratic presidential hopefuls.”

In contrast, Cynthia spent the week ramping up her grassroots, progressive campaign as she renewed her call for single-payer healthcare in New York and rolled out her bold justice reform plan. Cynthia also gave an in depth interview on HOT 97 and addressed 700 hundred Indivisible members in Westchester for nearly an hour, while the Governor couldn’t even bother to show up to this event in his own backyard. Cynthia also received the endorsement of NYC-DSA, Jumaane Williams, Brooklyn Young Democrats, and the Muslim Democratic Club of New York.

Andrew Cuomo’s Bad Week of Corruption Revelations….
New York Post: “Cuomo’s re-election campaign has kept at least $27,000 in illegal funds from corporate donors, state filings show...Cuomo accepted $15,000 from Saratoga Gaming and Raceway, now called Saratoga Casino and Raceway, in April 2016. In January 2017, his campaign got $10,000 from the Coalition for Ticket Fairness Inc. The guv also received $7,000 from Sea Crest Construction Corp. this year. Additionally, his campaign took two donations of $5,000 each this month from the Northeastern Line Constructors Chapter of the National Electrical Contractors Association.” [New York Post, 7/28/18]

Albany Times Union Headline: Emails, records raise questions on Cuomo donations, donor’s dividends
“In the fall of 2011, Crystal Run’s CEO was facing what’s often a lengthy, bureaucratic process. His path, however, smoothed out considerably after the CEO wrote a $25,000 check — drawn from Crystal Run’s corporate funds — to Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s re-election campaign. Teitelbaum soon had a direct line to one of New York’s most powerful people, top Cuomo aide Joe Percoco, who according to emails obtained by the Times Union quickly helped solve the problem.”

“The Times Union has learned that the ongoing criminal investigation is examining whether Crystal Run officials were reimbursed by company bonuses for a flurry of $25,000 donations they made to Cuomo’s campaign in 2013. A civil lawsuit filed last December by six Crystal Run doctors, which the company quickly settled, made reference to that type of use of company funds. If that kind of transaction did occur, it would raise serious legal questions: New York election law requires political donations to be given in the “true name” of a donor so that campaign donation limits can’t be circumvented through the use of so-called “straw donors.” A Crystal Run spokesman, Loren Riegelhaupt, declined to comment on whether Crystal Run had reimbursed employees for their donations to Cuomo. He also declined to discuss whether such a tactic would be legal.”

“According to Maloney’s office, Crystal Run officials told the congressman’s office that the donations had been “incorrectly attributed.” Maloney’s spokeswoman did not have further information about what, exactly, that phrase meant. “When we heard there might be a problem from Crystal Run, we voluntarily gave the money to the Treasury Department rather than keep any questionable donations,” she said. A Cuomo campaign spokeswoman, Abbey Collins, refused to answer questions about whether Crystal Run had similarly approached the Cuomo campaign concerning problematic donations.” [Albany Times Union, 7/28/18]

New York Post Editorial: Cuomo seems ready to double down on another white elephant
“As the Investigative Post reports, state officials are considering a second phase of a project launched with Albany Molecular Research Inc., a drug R&D company, as part of Cuomo’s Buffalo Billion program. The new deal is likely to include more state cash for yet another vow of jobs. Yet five years after Phase One, which cost the state a cool $50 million, most of the 250 promised positions have yet to materialize. Though AMRI met its goal of 55 workers, the spinoff companies that were to gin up another 195 jobs appear to have created just a few dozen. (The state says it doesn’t track spinoff jobs — so why promise them in the first place?) At the time, then-Buffalo Billion chief Alain Kaloyeros, who was just convicted of bid-rigging, bragged that the $50 million would lead to more than 500 high-tech jobs. Even if that had proved true, the state’s cost per job would’ve still been 40-plus times Erie County’s $2,300 average for such projects. And Cuomo’s $50 million for AMRI’s 55 jobs comes to $909,000 each — nearly 400 times the county average. So why on Earth even consider handing over yet more money for Phase Two?”  [New York Post, 7/24/18]

Read Sludge Headline: Cuomo Campaign Bolstered by Puerto Rico Bondholders Causing Austerity in the Territory
“As New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo makes his fifth trip to Puerto Rico since Hurricane Maria devastated the island in September 2017, he is running a reelection campaign that has accepted large donations from billionaire financial executives whose firms are heavily invested in Puerto Rican bonds and are imposing stiff austerity measures there. Since 2015, the Cuomo campaign has accepted close to $235,000 from several fund managers who currently hold or formerly held Puerto Rican bonds, and from their spouses, according to Sludge’s analysis. While that total is a small fraction of the roughly $35.1 million raised by the campaign during this election cycle, critics say it represents a conflict of interest for a governor who claims to have Puerto Rico’s best interests in mind.” [Read Sludge, 7/24/18]

Andrew Cuomo’s Week of Bad Subway Headlines…
New York Post Headline: Cuomo spent $253K on colored pylons that may violate standards
“The new, plastic poles are blue with bands of reflective gold tape, to match the state’s official colors — and the colored tiles that Cuomo used to decorate the tunnels’ walls and ceiling, which sources have said added $20 million to $30 million to the total cost. But unfortunately for the Empire State’s color-conscious governor, the azure uprights — which cost the MTA $253,000 — clash with the Federal Highway Administration’s standards.” [New York Post, 7/24/18]

New York Post Headline: Cuomo had the MTA waste $30M on tunnel vanity project
“Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered the cash-strapped MTA to waste as much as $30 million on his latest vanity project — retiling two city tunnels in the state’s blue-and-gold color scheme — instead of using the dough for desperately needed subway repairs, The Post has learned. The boondoggle began soon after the taxpayer-funded agency ordered white tiles to reline the Brooklyn-Battery and Queens Midtown tunnels after Superstorm Sandy, documents show. The governor got wind of the plan — and insisted that the cash-strapped transit agency add stripes of blue and gold, thinking nothing of the additional $20 million to $30 million cost, according to sources and project documentation. “The white tile had already been ordered, but he insisted that [the walls] be in the state colors,’’ a top construction executive told The Post.” [New York Post, 7/22/18]

New York Daily News: “Ruined commutes have been commonplace in the year since Metropolitan Transportation Authority Chairman Joe Lhota announced the Subway Action Plan. Incidents in which at least 50 trains are held up dropped, but riders were still hit with 71 such disruptions in June, down from 85 in the same month last year. One-third of trains are late to their last stop, with nearly 72,500 delays clocked in June. NYC Transit President Andy Byford aims to cut that number by 10,000 delays each month.” [New York Daily News, 7/23/18]

New York Post Headline: Nixon blasts Cuomo for spending $30M on colored subway tiles
“The governor’s priorities are out of whack because his donors don’t ride the New York City subways, and neither does he,” Nixon said. “Well, I do — everyday. And I know, as every New Yorker who has followed this, exactly what we need to do to make our New York City subways function again.”…Sources have told The Post that Cuomo ordered the purchase and installation of tiles matching the state’s official colors inside the Queens Midtown and Brooklyn-Battery tunnels as part of Hurricane Sandy-related reconstruction efforts.” [New York Post, 7/23/18]

Cuomo’s Out of Touch with New York’s Women….
Albany Times Union Headline: Teachout joins ex-legislative staffers in call for sexual harassment hearings
“Vladimir was joined by three victims of alleged harassment or worse: Elizabeth Crothers, who in 2001 accused Michael Boxley, then chief counsel to ex-Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, of sexual assault (Boxley later pleaded guilty in another case in which he was accused of rape); and Rita Pasarell and Leah Hebert, who both spoke out about the serial harassment of staffers by Assemblyman Vito Lopez, who was forced from the chamber in 2013 and died two years later. They accused Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and legislative leaders of pushing through a series of bills during budget negotiations over their objections. The women have put out a white paper critiquing the bills and offering recommendations for changes to the law.”[Albany Times Union, 7/24/18]

The Cut: Andrew Cuomo Fails to Read the Room, Which Is Full of Women, to His Delight
“New York governor Andrew Cuomo loves nothing more than an opportunity to play the “big tough Italian guy” — a tendency he took way too far when he decided to open a women’s event by, uh, appearing to flirt with the whole room. The governor made the cringy opening remarks at a Brooklyn Women for Cuomo event, where he thanked the predominantly female audience not once, but six times after taking the stage but before failing to read the room. “What a pleasure to be here, one of the few men in a room full of women,” Cuomo said, completely earnestly. “Could be worse, could be worse. Usually, it is worse.” Being patronizing and downright creepy toward women — perhaps not the best way to win their vote!” [The Cut, 7/29/18]

Jon Campbell Tweet: “This is the first thing Andrew Cuomo said at a “Brooklyn Women for Cuomo” event today, per his campaign’s transcript.” [7/28/18]

Ouch
The Hill Headline: Poll: Cuomo has lowest favorability rating among Democratic presidential hopefuls
“New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has the lowest favorability rating among potential Democratic presidential hopefuls, according to a new American Barometer poll. Twenty-three percent of respondents said they had a favorable view of Cuomo, while 29 percent of respondents said they had an unfavorable view of him. Among Democrats surveyed, 33 percent said they had a favorable view of the governor, while 16 percent of Democrats said they held an unfavorable view.” [The Hill,7/27/18]

PIX 11 Headline: Cynthia Nixon calls out Gov. Cuomo for not attending Democratic forum
“Several people showed up to the forum, unaware that Cuomo would not be there. “I hope he doesn’t take the residents of Westchester County for granted by not appearing,” said Kelli Higgs, of White Plains. Jenny Geer, of Mamaroneck, said she understands the governor is busy, but that this was an important event. “I think he’s probably made a mistake not to come,” she said. Indivisible Westchester said it tried to work with the governor’s schedule. “We have been negotiating with the governor’s office for weeks,” co-founder Shannon Powell said. “We offered to have him Skype in, but that didn’t work out.” [PIX 11, 7/26/18]

 

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