NEW YORK — The Albany Times Union spoke exclusively with an unnamed female staff member who has accused Andrew Cuomo of groping her after being called to the governor's mansion last December.
The interview with the newspaper was published Wednesday and adds new details to the most serious accusation against Cuomo. He is being investigated after a series of women accused him of sexual harassment and inappropriate behavior.
The woman who spoke anonymously to the newspaper said, "I said to him, I said, 'You're going to get us in trouble,' " she recalled. "I didn't know what else to say. … It was pretty much like, 'What are you doing?' That's when he slammed the door (shut). He said, 'I don't care."
"I remember him slamming (the door) so hard that I remember thinking to myself that I'm sure the staff is, like, 'Is everything OK up there?' He came right back, and he pulled me close, and all I remember is seeing his hand, his big hand. I remember looking down like, 'Holy expletive deleted,' " she continued.
She then spoke of her fear of retaliation, saying, "If I told someone, I'm done. And who do you tell?"
2 On your Side spoke to Republican political analyst Carl Calabrese about what these new details may mean for Governor Cuomo.
"I guess I would say it really doesn't mean too much in terms of the governor's status; he's obviously not resigning," Calabrese said. "If he didn't resign after the first, second, third, fourth all the way up to the ninth accuser, he's not leaving. He's going to wait for the investigation of the attorney general."
The governor's attorney, Rita Glavin, responded to the article with a statement, reiterating the governor's claim that he never touched anyone and that the truth will come from the attorney general's investigation.
“The people of New York know the governor. He has spent 40 years in public service and in the public eye. He has repeatedly made clear that he never made inappropriate advances or inappropriately touched anyone. The attorney general’s review of this claim and others, including evolving details and new public statements by complainants or their surrogates, must be thorough, fair and provide the truth."
Cuomo has also denied touching anyone inappropriately but said he’s sorry if he made anyone uncomfortable.
During a news conference Wednesday before the article was released, Governor Cuomo was asked how the scandals surrounding him impacted the budget process.
"I don't think we have done a better budget than the budget you see before you today" he said. "I think it's been extraordinary."
Assemblymember Karen McMahon of Williamsville, who is on the Assembly Judiciary Committee, told 2 On Your Side the impeachment investigation being done by a private law firm was not stalled due to the budget process, and that it continued uninterrupted.