Chris Cuomo defends disgraced brother Andrew Cuomo on his radio show
CNN's suspended anchor Chris Cuomo addressed his brother's resignation during his radio show.
In the midst of his own scandal and shortly before his suspension from CNN, embattled anchor Chris Cuomo took time out of his radio show Tuesday to discuss his brother Andrew Cuomo’s resignation from the New York governorship.
Chris Cuomo introduced the subject of his brother’s resignation on Tuesday as part of his Sirius XM radio show "Let’s Get After It." Rather than reference his brother’s numerous scandals, however, Chris Cuomo appeared to blame the Democrat Party for turning on him.
CNN’s most popular program in October was the scandal-plagued "Cuomo Prime Time," which averaged 811,000 nightly viewers to finish behind 15 Fox News and seven MSNBC programs. (CNN)
"The game has rules. And one of the general principles is you can fight against the other party and you can fight against the media, but only if you have your party," Cuomo said. "Andrew had his party enforcing a rule against him that if you have accusations, you have problems, and you don't really get to vet the accusations and you don't get to go against your accusers."
In August, a report released by New York Attorney General Letitia James concluded then-Gov. Cuomo sexually harassed 11 women multiple times between 2013 and 2020. He announced his resignation that month.
Chris Cuomo lamented that his brother did not receive due process following allegations of sexual misconduct.
"I did not want him to resign in the beginning because I believed him and I thought that you don't resign. You ask for due process and leave the women alone and let due process take care of the situation. Well, but eventually, when there wasn't going to be due process and his party was against him, and obviously the Republicans weren't going to help him, then he had no choice because he couldn't do the work of the state anymore. And that's why he was in it in the first place," Cuomo said.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo arrives to depart in his helicopter after announcing his resignation in Manhattan, New York City, U.S., August 10, 2021. REUTERS/Caitlin Ochs (REUTERS/Caitlin Ochs)
This contrasted with Chris Cuomo’s previous attitude towards conservative figures facing sexual allegations. In 2018, Cuomo denied that Justice Brett Kavanaugh deserved a presumption of innocence following a sexual assault allegation made against him by Christine Blasey Ford.
"It is a lie to say that the presumption applied here because like I just said here, we're not in a court," Cuomo said.
Cuomo made additional comments denouncing Kavanaugh throughout his confirmation hearings.
Besides blaming Democrats for abandoning his brother, he also attacked Republicans for going after the New York governor as he was "leading this country during a time of crisis."
"He was leading this country during a time of crisis and the nation needed him. And it just drove the political enemies, especially Republicans … because their guy is sitting on a bed, eating cheeseburgers, watching TV or golfing," Cuomo said.
Chris Cuomo (CNN) and Andrew Cuomo | Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) (CNN | Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
Cuomo neglected to mention his brother’s additional scandal in covering up rising COVID-19 death numbers, allegedly caused by his policy of forcing nursing homes to take in senior citizens who were sick or tested positive with the virus. In the early days of the pandemic, many in the media praised Gov. Cuomo for his leadership in managing the pandemic.
During his show Chris Cuomo did not address the details in the AG report released on Monday that revealed him using his media connections to try and help his brother, including investigating accusers and snooping on journalist Ronan Farrow's reporting about the situation. The revelations led to widespread calls for Chris Cuomo's firing.
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CNN announced Tuesday night that its star anchor was "suspended indefinitely" pending an investigation.
"The New York Attorney General's office released transcripts and exhibits Monday that shed new light on Chris Cuomo's involvement in his brother's defense," a CNN spokesman said Tuesday evening. "The documents, which we were not privy to before their public release, raise serious questions. When Chris admitted to us he had offered advice to his brother's staff, he broke our rules and we acknowledged that publicly. But we also appreciated the unique position he was in and understood his need to put family first and job second."
"However," CNN continued, "these documents point to a greater level of involvement in his brother's efforts than we previously knew. As a result, we have suspended Chris indefinitely, pending further evaluation."
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