From Peacock To Feather Duster
Former NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo Ordered To Turn Over $5.1 Million From Book Deal
It gives me no joy to write this, but former NY Governor Andrew Cuomo has gone from peacock to feather duster in less than two years. As The NY Times Reports, the New York Joint Committee on Public Ethics ordered Cuomo to forfeit the $5.1 million he made from his 2020 book “American Crisis: Leadership Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic.” This Order comes only a few months after Cuomo resigned under fire in the wake of a NY Attorney General report concluding that he had sexually harassed numerous women.
In 2019-20, Andrew Cuomo was widely celebrated. His daily briefings on Covid-19 were carried live nationally on MSNBC. Many women, including Chelsea Handler, declared themselves “Cuomosexual”. There was even a brief boom of Cuomo 2020 White House talk.
Now, Cuomo is out of office, in disgrace, and fighting to hold on to his book revenues His attorney has already denounced the Ethics Order as “unconstitutional” and vowed a lengthy court fight. Moreover, it is not clear that he could forfeit all of the money, even if he wanted to. Cuomo placed $1 million in trusts for his daughters and donated another $500k to charities.
The Board order concludes that Cuomo violated the agreement by which Cuomo received Board approval to publish the book. Specifically, Cuomo’s application stated that he would not utilize any New York State government resources in writing the book, but the Board concluded that Cuomo extensively used staff and other resources in researching and writing the book.
I close with lyrics from Kenny Rogers’ The Gambler:
You never count your money
When you’re sitting at the table.
There’ll be time enough for counting
When the dealings done.
IMPORTANT EDIT: On August 16, 2022, Justice Denise Hartman of the New York State Supreme Court for Albany County (which is the trial level court, despite the name) ruled that former Governor Cuomo could keep the $5.1 million from his book. This ruling helps former Governor Cuomo’s bank account, but does not restore his reputation. Despite rumors that he would launch a comeback in 2022, he declined to run for any office and has kept a low profile.