Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo wants to be “a part of it” in the Big Apple—making his return to the spotlight at Wednesday night’s Democrat New York City mayoral debate.
He was joined on the debate stage by eight other mayoral hopefuls.
As he received a barrage of criticism from the other candidates, Cuomo—running as an independent, but still competing in the Democrat primary—repeatedly refused to express regret over his past conduct, including allegations of sexual harassment and mismanagement of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Biggest Political Regret?
Asked to identify his biggest political regret, Cuomo criticized his party instead.
“That the Democratic Party got to a point [where] we allowed Mr. Trump to be elected. That we’ve gotten to a point where rhetoric has no connection with reality,” he said.
Pressed again by a moderator for a personal regret, he reiterated, “I said I regret the state of the Democratic Party.”
The elephant in the room was allegations of sexual harassment in Cuomo’s past. A moderator pressed him on that.
“Let’s just make sure we have the facts,” he replied. “A report was done four years ago, making certain allegations. I said at the time that it was political, and it was false. Five district attorneys … looked at it, all across the state, found absolutely nothing.”
He added: “I said at the time that if I offended anyone, it was unintentional, but I apologize.”
A Bulwark Against Trump
Cuomo attempted throughout the debate to present himself as someone who could fight President Donald Trump’s administration.
Asked how he would respond if the Trump administration threatened to withholding federal funding if New York City provides health care to illegal immigrants, he said he would not give into the president.
“You cannot give in to Mr. Trump and his demands. You cannot,” Cuomo replied. “If you give into him, he is a bully. I know him well. You give in to him today, you’ll be giving him your lunch money for the rest of your life.”
Anti-‘Defund the Police’
Cuomo also sought to present himself as a pro-police candidate, distancing himself from Democrats who have called for defunding of the police in the aftermath of the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests.
“We have to admit what we did wrong,” he said, in response to a question on subway crime.
“The people on this stage, almost without exception, were all ‘defund the police.’ … We wouldn’t need more police if we didn’t defund them in the first place. In my first day, I will take every homeless person off the trains and the subway stations and get them the help they need.”
Cuomo received a quick comeback from former state Assemblyman Michael Blake, who accused him of dishonesty in his claims to not have backed defunding the police.
“We’re going to fact-check that he literally said ‘defund the police’ himself when he was governor, right?” Blake snapped.
“This is the third time he’s literally lied about everyone on stage. Andrew, are you saying you didn’t say ‘defund the police?‘’’ he added.
In 2020, Cuomo said, “When they’re saying ‘defund the police,’ what are they saying? They’re saying we want fundamental, basic change when it comes to policing, and they’re right.”
“I never supported defund the police,” he said at the debate in response to Blake. “I used the words, ‘defund the police.’ I said I don’t support ‘defund the police.’”
Nine Democratic mayoral candidates, including former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (center left), participate in a New York City Democratic mayoral primary debate at NBC studios on Wednesday in New York City. (Yuki Iwamura/Getty Images)
