As lawmakers were putting the final touches on the state budget, Governor Andrew Cuomo, a floor below them at the state Capitol, praised the Legislature's work for putting it together amid the pandemic.
"I want to thank the Legislature for getting this budget done in what is a surreal situation," Cuomo said.
But many of the lawmakers Cuomo thanked on Wednesday want him out of office.
The Democratic-led Assembly impeachment investigation is now considering a laundry list of controversies as part of its probe that are now facing governor, including:
- Allegations of sexual harassment
- Nursing homes deaths being under counted
- A lucractive book contract
- Preferential COVID testing
- And the concerns surrounding the Tappan Zee Bridge replacement project.
Cuomo has denied wrongdoing after each shoe has dropped, and this week said he was unaware family members of his received access to COVID-19 tests when supplies were scarce last year.
"I was not involved in the testing program at that intimate level," he said Wednesday. "People I would meet with and I would be in exposure with, I was aware they were being tested."
Polling has shown Cuomo's standing with voters has taken a hit, though his deep well of support among Black voters and Democrats has remained durable during the bipartisan push for his resignation in Albany and beyond.
But those calls for Cuomo's resignation aren't going away as new details emerged this week in the Albany Times Union of allegations of sexual assault at the governor's mansion by an aide still employed in Cuomo's office.
Anti-harassment advoates like Elias Farah of the Sexual Harassment Working Group say the alleged actions conflict with laws Cuomo himself has signed.
"If this was a publicly traded company and he was CEO Andrew Cuomo, I'm sure the board would be forcing him out at this point," Farah said.
The woman who reported the interactions with Cuomo has not been publicly identified, but continues to work for the governor.
"I don't think there's been a more difficult, substantive work in a more difficult, practical environment," Farah said.
Meanwhile, separate investigations by Attorney General Letitia James' office to review the harassment allegations and a probe by the federal government into nursing home death reporting continue.
New investigations could still be launched.
State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli's office on Thursday afternoon released a letter to James's office confirming she does not need a referral from the comptroller to conduct a criminal investigation into the nursing home issue as well.
And while Cuomo faces impeachment, Republicans are already lining up to challenge him for an election more than a year away, including Rep. Lee Zeldin on Thursday. Rep. Elise Stefanik of the North Country has also expressed an interest in running, as has Andrew Giuliani, the son of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
"Nationally, this is going to be an election where Republicans have the wind at our back," said New York Republican Chairman Nick Langworthy.
Langworthy is optimistic the GOP can win statewide despite the enrollment disadvantage.
"I think that there's one-party rule of the Democrat Party in New York and how the extreme left has prevailed in public policy that is going to backfire," Langworthy.
Still, Republican chances to re-capture the governor's office appear slim on paper. Next year will mark 20 years since the last Republican won statewide.
Democrats on Thursday signaled they will return to what has been a tried and true playbook: Tie the GOP to former President Donald Trump.
"New Yorkers will never support the candidacy of someone who endorsed treason when he voted against certifying the results of the Electoral College on January the 6th – right after a Trump incited mob of insurrectionist rioters, intent on stopping that very certification, took over the very Capitol he was elected to serve in. His vote was an endorsement of the actions of that mob – motivated by a lie that he continues to spread," said state Democratic Chairman Jay Jacobs. "Not only will he never serve as our Governor, he doesn’t even deserve to serve in Congress."