Andrew Cuomo: The Rise and Fall
A year ago, when COVID first hit the United States, lockdowns, misinformation and panic coursed through this country, not unlike an infection. As citizens and as humans, we searched for leadership and direction. For hope and comfort. For facts and a path forward. And we were found wanting.
Usually, during times of crisis, Americans have a go-to leader, the president of the United States.
In 1941 when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, the U.S. hung onto every word as FDR declared “December 17th 1941 – a date that will live in infamy,” and then led us into war against our aggressor.
In 1962, when Soviet nuclear missiles were discovered in Cuba, President Kennedy declared to the world, “And one path we shall never choose, and that is the path of surrender or submission. Our goal is not the victory of might, but the vindication of right- -not peace at the expense of freedom, but both peace and freedom, here in this hemisphere, and, we hope, around the world.” Kennedy drew a line in the sand and stood by it, a stance that Americans took pride in supporting.
In 2001 in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, with the U.S. rightfully terrified, George W. Bush rose to the moment. He gave Americans hope and courage during his famous bullhorn speech standing in the rubble of the world trade center, “I can hear you! The rest of the world hears you. And the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon.”
Unlike every crisis before, when COVID first ravaged our nation, the president was not a leader we could rally to. Donald Trump had proved himself incapable of compassion, unable to govern and unworthy of the office he held long before COVID became a pandemic. In the face of a true crisis, Trump abdicated from the role he had been elected to. He failed to lead.
So, we as citizens kept searching. Desperate for leadership and comfort. Eventually, we found our knight in shining armor, who would boldly lead us out of the black depths back into the light. We found Andrew Cuomo.
Governor Andrew Cuomo delivers his daily press briefing on COVID-19 on April 24, 2020 in Albany.
We tuned in everyday to watch his press briefings and, akin to the leaders of the U.S. during times of crisis, he recognized and stated the reality of the pandemic while giving us compassion and direction. He consoled us and gave us the courage to face what was coming. In short, he provided exactly what Americans have come to expect from our leaders. “The rescue mission is to save lives and as hard as we work, we're not going to be able to save everyone. And what's even more cruel is this enemy doesn't attack the strongest of us. It attacks the weakest of us. I promise you I will not ask you to do anything that I will not do myself. And the same is true here. We're going to do this and we're going to do this together.”
We reveled in his perceived success at getting the virus under control through tough decision making. Perhaps second only to Dr. Fauci, Gov. Cuomo was the best the U.S. offered to a nation and a world in crisis. A calming voice amidst a storm.
Personally, I considered Cuomo a favorite for the 2024 or 2028 Democrat Presidential Nomination. My mom was gifted an Andrew Cuomo coffee mug by my brother for her birthday. Petitions for Cuomo to become Biden’s Vice President emerged. A political star had been born.
Today, it may not surprise you that my opinion has drastically changed. I now view his impeachment as far more likely than him ever running for president. The coffee mug has been discarded. Kamala Harris is the Vice President.
Cuomo has proved himself to be unworthy of the laurel of national leadership we bestowed upon him. He committed two impeachable offenses: a coverup of the deaths caused by his COVID policies in nursing homes and the many accounts (seven at the time of this writing) of sexual harassment from young women. Deplorable actions, the former demonstrating an inability to speak candidly about his failures and an instinct to hide from the people he represents. The latter a culmination of decades of abusive and inappropriate behavior. Taken in totality they are almost definitely the end of his political career. Today the question is not whether he can revive himself, but does he want to drag his political carcass to an impeachment trial and/or brutal primary race or will he retire in relative peace?
Analysis of Cuomo’s last year reveals significant recent changes to our political sphere. First, it demonstrates that Democrats hold their leaders to vastly different standards than Republicans. For example, Donald Trump was elected president despite and remained president through 25 accusations of sexual assault and rape. Andrew Cuomo has not been accused of violent crimes against women, but almost all relevant Democrats are calling for his resignation for sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment. Another insight that we can garner from Cuomo’s demise is that the Me Too movement has enduring strength. The allegations of sexual harassment have impacted Gov. Cuomo’s career and public perception even more than the nursing home scandal. After the breakout year of 2017, there have been questions about what exactly the long term influence of the Me Too movement will be. If Cuomo resigns, loses in a 2022 primary, the 2022 general election or gets impeached then the public will, at the very least, have answered whether or not the Me Too movement will have a lasting impact on our political landscape.
In 2021, Cuomo’s rapid ascent and demise may seem normal, in part because our world and our politics have been so abnormal for so long. However, among the chaos and endless onslaught of news that has occurred in the last year, we bore witness to a politician’s meteoric rise to a de facto presidential level and also his fall into disgrace in very short succession. In addition to what his rise and fall can tell us about the American political landscape, the incredible speed of his oscillation through national politics is remarkable in and of itself.
As the politics of our nation become increasingly volatile, Andrew Cuomo’s rapid rise and fall clearly demonstrate what it is like to be on both the right and the wrong side of American history.
