The Cuomo family will suffer another humiliation this month after the disgraced former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, D-N.Y., was ordered by an ethics committee to return millions of dollars from his book on his handling of Covid-19 proceeds to the state attorney general’s office.
A New York Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) ruled 12-1 that the former governor violated a state requirement dictating that public officials cannot use state resources, property, and personnel to publish a book in exchange for royalties and compensation.
Cuomo has 30 days to relinquish all of the $5.1 million he earned from his book, “American Crisis: Leadership Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic,” according to the ruling.
Cuomo and JCOPE signed a publishing contract last summer where the governor agreed not to tap into the state’s resources to increase his book revenue.
However, David McNamara, the committee member who drafted the resolution against Cuomo, said the former governor “lacked the legal authority to engage in outside activity and receive compensation in regard to the book,” according to the New York Post.
Cuomo’s book deal is also being investigated by the state attorney general, the FBI, and the Brooklyn U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Cuomo and his attorneys have vowed to fight the order, calling it “unconstitutional.”
Cuomo resigned as governor in August after 11 women accused him of sexual misconduct. He cited that his resignation would “let government get back to governing,” instead of “wasting energy on distractions.”
Days before his resignation, New York Attorney General Letitia James reported that Cuomo “engaged in conduct constituting sexual harassment under federal and New York State law.” Cuomo has denied any wrongdoing.
The disgraced former governor’s self-praising book about his leadership during the pandemic has been widely criticized for its premature release last October while Covid-19 cases soared across New York.
He has also been blamed for the deaths of 15,000 nursing home patients who died after he forced New York nursing homes to take in sick Covid-19 patients.
Cuomo received constant praise from the mainstream media and the Biden administration for his “gold standard” leadership, even receiving an Emmy Award, despite his leadership reportedly leading to the deaths of thousands.
Attorney General James reported that the governor covered up the total nursing home death count, saying that his Health Department undercounted the Covid-19 nursing home deaths by 50 percent.
Andrew Cuomo is not the only unemployed member of his family to face humiliation this month. Chris Cuomo, his brother and former CNN anchor, was fired from the liberal news company last week after it was discovered that he used his network’s resources to help his brother respond to his sexual misconduct scandal, a violation of company standards.
Chris Cuomo also allegedly aided his brothers staff in trying to discredit the governor’s political opponents, including Janice Dean, Fox News’ senior meteorologist whose in-laws reportedly died in a nursing home after then-Gov. Cuomo ordered nursing homes to take in Covid-19 patients.
Dean has been an avid critic of Gov. Cuomo, telling Fox & Friends that “he needs to go to jail.”
According to a report from Attorney General James, Chris Cuomo allegedly texted members of his brother’s staff asking how he could go after “this Fox weather b*tch,” seeking ways to discredit her as a “far right crazy.”
The FBI reported in March 2021 that an investigation into Cuomo’s Covid-19 nursing home deaths was underway.