Former NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio on possible comeback for Andrew Cuomo: "He should get the hell off the stage"
Former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio on Thursday condemned the idea that former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo could make a return to state politics, after multiple outlets have reported that Cuomo may be weighing a comeback.
"He should get the hell off the stage," de Blasio told CBS News' Robert Costa when asked about the idea of Cuomo's return.
"What he did to the women who work for him, what he did to the nursing home residents, there were so many problems," the former mayor said. "There was so much that resulted from his unchecked power and his arrogance."
Cuomo resigned in August 2021 as the state legislature pursued an impeachment inquiry and amid sexual harassment allegations. He had been accused by the state attorney general of sexually harassing 11 women, including staff members of his administration and people who did not work for his administration. Cuomo has denied sexually harassing anyone.
"I think that given the circumstances, the best way I can help now is if I step aside and let government get back to governing," Cuomo said in a speech at the time.
He had spent more than a decade in office, and was known across the country for guiding New York City through the early days of the coronavirus pandemic. In 2020, and into the following year, he made daily televised briefings about COVID-19, which many Americans closely followed.
But an audit published in March 2022 found his administration had underreported nursing home deaths by the thousands, and at some points by up to 50%, CBS New York reported. State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli charged that those in the highest level of government misled the public.
In a statement to CBS News, a spokesperson for the former governor noted that five district attorneys chose not to charge Cuomo after investigating separate allegations against him. He also criticized de Blasio, citing the former mayor's brief 2019 presidential campaign.
"De Blasio was the worst mayor in modern history who cared more about being a national political figure than about doing his job and preferred standing in an empty Iowa cornfield to standing up for New Yorkers — something Governor Cuomo did for 40 years," said Rich Azzopardi, the spokesperson.
In the months since his resignation, Cuomo has slowly reemerged in New York's political scene. CBS New York reported that on March 6, he spoke at a Black church in Brooklyn, telling attendees, "They broke my heart, but they didn't break my spirit. I want to take the energy that could make me bitter and use that energy to make us better."
A poll from Emerson College and The Hill had Cuomo four points behind current Governor Kathy Hochul with likely Democratic primary voters in March, CBS New York reported.
On Thursday, de Blasio said if Cuomo were to stage a comeback, he would bring many of his issues back with him.
"I hope for the good of the Democratic Party, I hope for the good of the people of New York State, he just realizes his time has come and gone," the former mayor said.
De Blasio left office in January after serving two terms. Democrat Eric Adams, a former captain in the New York Police Department and Brooklyn borough president, was elected to run the city.
Caroline Linton and Graham Kates contributed reporting.
