The Democratic-controlled New York state Assembly is warning Gov. Andrew Cuomo that its impeachment probe is almost completed, giving him a deadline of Aug. 13 to provide any evidence in his defense against a slew of new sexual harassment charges.
The Assembly’s Judiciary Committee told Mr. Cuomo’s lawyers in a letter that the Assembly “will soon consider potential articles of impeachment against your client.” It said the governor has until 5 p.m. next Friday to produce any “additional evidence.”
Assemblyman Charles Lavine, Nassau Democrat, and his committee started their impeachment investigation in March. The probe picked up steam on Tuesday, when state Attorney General Tish James released a report corroborating allegations of sexual harassment by 11 women against the governor.
The committee is expected to meet on Monday to determine its next steps. The governor has been staying out of the public spotlight since the attorney general’s report was made public, but has so far resisted calls from New York state and national Democrats to resign.
In addition, at least four district attorneys from various New York jurisdictions have asked for information from the attorney general’s investigation, a signal of potential criminal probes against Mr. Cuomo. Ms. James’ investigation was a civil matter and did not involve criminal charges.
Democratic legislators in the Assembly and in the Senate say they are confident they have enough votes to remove Mr. Cuomo from office. The third-term governor has refused calls from multiple officials in both parties to step down.
The Democratic fundraising platform ActBlue removed a donation page that Mr. Cuomo’s campaign committee used to solicit contributions, the company confirmed to Axios.
“You have attempted to make a contribution to a fundraising page that has no active recipients,” an error message on the site now reads. “Either the page’s owner has removed all committees or organizations from the page, or we have concluded processing contributions for these committees or organizations.”
ActBlue is considered the lifeblood of grassroots Democratic fundraising. As of now, Mr. Cuomo still plans to run for reelection in 2022 to win the fourth term that his father, former Gov. Mario Cuomo, never achieved.
The country’s largest LGBTQ rights advocacy group also is in turmoil over their president’s connection to Mr. Cuomo’s scandal. Employees at the Human Rights Campaign criticized President Alphonso David in a contentious staff meeting on Wednesday and repeatedly asked him to resign.
Mr. David served as counsel to Mr. Cuomo from 2015 to 2019. The New York attorney general’s report described Mr. David as playing a significant role in Mr. Cuomo’s efforts to discredit his female accusers.
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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