House Republicans, led by Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, have renewed their request for the Department of Justice to pursue criminal charges against former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, alleging he lied to Congress about his role in underreporting COVID-19 nursing home deaths.
The committee claims there is substantial evidence Cuomo reviewed, edited, and drafted a New York State Department of Health report that significantly undercounted nursing home fatalities, despite his testimony denying involvement.
“Andrew Cuomo is a man with a history of corruption and deceit, now caught red-handed lying to Congress during the Select Subcommittee’s investigation into the COVID-19 nursing home tragedy in New York,” Comer said in a Monday release. “This wasn’t a slip-up — it was a calculated cover-up by a man seeking to shield himself from responsibility for the devastating loss of life in New York’s nursing homes.”
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During the height of the pandemic, New York’s long-term care programs recorded at least 17,425 COVID deaths, according to the nonprofit Long Term Care Community Coalition.
The DOJ previously declined to act on similar recommendations last year, but the new referral comes as Cuomo seeks a political comeback by running for New York City mayor.
Committee members argue that lying to Congress is a federal crime and have pledged to cooperate fully with any DOJ investigation.
“Let’s be clear: lying to Congress is a federal crime. Mr. Cuomo must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” Comer continued. “The House Oversight Committee is prepared to fully cooperate with the Justice Department’s investigation into Andrew Cuomo’s actions and ensure he’s held to account.”
Cuomo’s spokesperson has dismissed the committee’s actions as politically motivated.
“This is nothing more than a meritless press release that was nonsense last year and is even more so now.”
“As the DOJ constantly reminds people, this kind of transparent attempt at election interference and law-fare violates their own policies,” said Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi. “Referrals like these — which have been also made against Planned Parenthood, Hillary Clinton, and Anthony Fauci — don’t have to be resubmitted with a new administration, so the only point to doing this is politics.”
The renewed push highlights ongoing partisan scrutiny of Cuomo’s pandemic response and its political implications.
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