The cover-up from Gov. Cuomo’s office about the total and the accurate number of nursing home deaths is nothing short of diabolical and criminal.
Gov. Cuomo and his top aid Melissa DeRosa should go to jail, along with anyone else complicit in the coverup.
Andrew Cuomo covered up the truth about how many deaths he allowed to happen in his state. Not only under his watch, but because of his disastrous policies, more so to save his duff, as well as hide his immeasurable incompetence.
Recall, the Army Corps of Engineers and the National Guard transformed the Javits Center in New York into a 1200 bed emergency hospital to accommodate the surge in Covid 19 patients. As well, Trump sent the Navy’s hospital ship, the Comfort, to dock in Manhattan in March, 2020.
Governor Cuomo was thankful for the help to combat the onslaught of Covid in the City.
But what happened? Cuomo’s assessment of the pandemic decided these measures were no longer needed.
According to an article from the Navy Times, dated April 21, 2020:
“A Navy hospital ship deployed to New York City to help fight the coronavirus outbreak is no longer needed, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Tuesday, expressing confidence that stresses on the hospital system are easing.”
“Cuomo said having the ship had been worthwhile, even as the need for it didn’t reach the levels that had been projected.”
Ironically, the ship only treated approximately 180 patients. And yet, after the bombshell admission from Gov. Cuomo’s top aid, Melissa DeRosa – the number is actually double from what they publicly disclosed.
Get a load of that lie.
My call to Gov. Cuomo’s office was answered, but when I asked for the accurate number of nursing home deaths, a stammering aid said she didn’t have those numbers off the top of her head, but she would check.
Of course, she did. I was put on hold, then mysteriously transferred to several Covid Hot Lines, never to be picked up again. I tried to call the office again, but no one answered. Imagine that.
Obviously, Cuomo’s office attempts total damage control from the fallout of this devastating admission. My reason for calling was to see how they would navigate the inquiry. But, I also wondered if I could get them to actually give me the correct number. Before this admission of deceit, the numbers ranged between 9-11,000 nursing home deaths due to Covid. Today, I’ve seen numbers that would indicate 15,000 deaths. The problem with these numbers is that DeRosa’s admission stated they discounted the true numbers by 50%. I’m not a mathematician, but if 9,000 deaths were accurate, doubled would be 18,000 deaths. If 11,000 was an accurate accounting, then we’re talking 22,000 nursing home deaths due to Covid.
Gov. Cuomo’s failure of leadership is repugnant.
Much like a dead rat in the attic.
Either way, the 15,000 deaths reported after this story broke, seems like the numbers are still shy the accurate total. All of these deaths sit squarely on Cuomo’s lap. His policies put tens of thousands of people at risk, right from the start. And then his policies resulted in their deaths.
Even more preposterous is Cuomo actually HAD the resources given to him. He had a ship for goodness sake. He had the whole Javits Center revamped to accommodate Covid patients. But he didn’t utilize any of them the way they were designed to be utilized in the midst of this pandemic. I guess he was busier preparing for the riveting interview with his brother Chris, star CNN anchor, where an oversized Q-tip prop was brought out to the laughs of the brothers Cuomo.
Imagine the families of the deceased patients watching that nonsense take place on live TV.
Heads are going to start to roll. As they should.
BPR reported on the scandal:
“Nine state Assembly members, all Democrats, are calling on their colleagues in the state legislature to abandon Cuomo as the scrutiny of the scandal intensifies, according to media reports.”
“We implore you to set aside any concerns of loyalty of disloyalty to this Governor, or that this matter is politicized. We must absolutely consider above all the sanctity of the democratic institution that we call the Legislature of the State of New York, and resolutely pursue justice in the face of an executive who we can say without hesitation has engaged in intentional criminal wrongdoing.”
Read that again: “Engaged in intentional criminal wrongdoing.”
What’s even more shocking in DeRosa’s admission is that this was a calculated attempt to withhold and obstruct the actual data on the deaths because of “fear” of a DOJ investigation.
In terms of accountability, Cuomo seems to believe he’s above taking responsibility for his actions and arrogance. It runs in the family from what I’ve seen. But this is criminal. The state of New York cannot let this slide. They must demand answers.
It seems as if the Democratic lawmakers want to take swift and decisive action. This seems to be a nonpartisan collective push to get answers and to hold Cuomo and his staff accountable for these deaths.
They are considering taking away his emergency powers and holding impeachment hearings. This cannot be partisan. Integrity is needed between both parties to reconcile this horrid situation and deal with such egregious misconduct of judgment and leadership.
Even with this mounting pressure to hold Cuomo accountable, this is going to get ugly.
Not necessarily because of partisanship, but simply from the gruesome and colossal way Cuomo left our most vulnerable to die a miserable death, and unfortunately, most passed without the benefit of a loved one by their side.
It’s heartbreaking for those families that have suffered so much from these losses. What’s worse is the suffering of those that trusted their elected officials to have cared more about their well-being, instead of their collective and callous disregard for it.
Everyone in Gov. Cuomo’s administration should be held liable for their actions and their deceit that resulted in possibly 22,000 nursing home Covid deaths. I still don’t know the accurate tally of deaths. Governor Cuomo’s office lied to me and said they didn’t know the number.
Maybe Gov. Cuomo should have taken that oversize Q-tip out of his ear and listened to what was going on, and actually been a leader. But he is not. He is an abject failure, and now an admitted liar and needs to go to jail.
