Pelosi calls Andrew Cuomo sexual harassment allegations ‘serious and credible’

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

• House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that the sexual harassment claims made against New York Governor Andrew Cuomo are “serious and credible.”
• Pelosi’s statement comes after a second ex-staffer came forward.
• The Democrat governor is already facing calls for his impeachment due to the alleged cover-up of Covid deaths in nursing homes.

Nancy Pelosi finally spoke about the sexual harassment allegations against New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo. On Sunday, the House Speaker calling the two women’s charges “credible.”

“The women who have come forward with serious and credible charges against Governor Cuomo deserve to be heard and to be treated with dignity,” Pelosi said in a statement given exclusively to Fox News, nearly 24 hours after a second woman surfaced. “The independent investigation must have due process and respect for everyone involved.”

In 2018, Pelosi was very vocal in her opposition of Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court over accusations of sexual assault. But she has not publicly talked about the allegations against Cuomo until reached by Fox News.  

The second former aide, Charlotte Bennett, was a health policy adviser in Cuomo’s administration until November. She told The New York Times the governor subjected her to inappropriate questions about her sex life, including whether she ever had sex with older men.

Lindsey Boylan, the first aide to comes forward, was a former deputy secretary for economic development and special adviser to the governor. She accused Cuomo of kissing her without consent and throwing inappropriate comments at her.

The Democratic governor denied both allegations.

On Saturday, Cuomo described 25-year-old Bennett as a “hardworking and valued member of our team during COVID,” adding that “she has every right to speak out.”

He also said his intention was to be a mentor for Bennett.

“I never made advances toward Ms. Bennett nor did I ever intend to act in any way that was inappropriate,” Cuomo’s said in a statement. “The last thing I would ever have wanted was to make her feel any of the things that are being reported.”

The governor confirmed he had authorized an outside review of Bennett’s allegations.

The sexual harassment allegations were added to Cuomo’s deepening crisis. The governor is also facing allegations that his administration had underreported COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes.

Cuomo was praised and became popular months ago for his leadership during the coronavirus pandemic that devastated his state.

Democratic Assemblyman Ron Kim revealed that Cuomo had threatened to destroy him politically over statements he made in the press, prompting other politicians to share stories about having been bullied by the governor.

Source: Fox News