Multiple sources report New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has resigned. He faced multiple charges of sexually harassing at least 11 women, although as yet no charges of rape.
Perhaps Cuomo’s most serious offense was requiring nursing homes to accept Covid-19 infected patients, which is widely alleged to have resulted in the deaths of thousands of elderly residents. These deaths certainly occurred.
Both these negligence claims and Cuomo’s counterclaims were likely overstated. The nursing home minimum wage caretakers would have brought the virus into these residences anyway, eventually. And many of those who died would have died of other causes within weeks or months.
Still, it is clear what brought about his resignation was the sexual harassment accusations documented by the the state’s Attorney General. Considering Cuomo won an Emmy for his Covid-19 press conferences and a $5 million book contract - both within the last two years - his resignation marks a spectacularly vertiginous career conclusion.
One has to wonder how long it will take CNN to decide to rid itself of the embarrassment that is his kid brother Chris Cuomo. Will it be days or weeks?
Afterthought … It is curious how, in our nation, great houses tend to burn out after a couple of generations. Jeb Bush couldn’t win the GOP nomination, the latter Kennedys haven’t amounted to much. I don’t expect another generation of Cuomos on the public stage. Perhaps this tendency is a part of American greatness - pedigree being less critical than performance.
