De Blasio: NY Gov. Cuomo 'in the way of us saving lives' by refusing to resign

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Majority of US Congress members from New York call on Cuomo to resign

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Judith Miller weighs in on the embattled governor facing increasing pressure to step down

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Sunday that New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is "literally in the way of us saving lives" during the coronavirus pandemic by refusing to resign amid sexual misconduct allegations.

De Blasio made the comment on CBS’ "Face the Nation" on Sunday two days after the embattled governor refused to resign amid mounting pressure from fellow Democrats for him to step down over the allegations leveled against him – with Cuomo lashing out at "reckless and dangerous" politicians he accused of not knowing all the facts.

Addressing the slew of House Democrats from the New York delegation and at the state level who have called for him to resign Cuomo said, "Politicians who don't know a single fact but then form a conclusion and an opinion are in my opinion reckless and dangerous."

"The people of New York should not have confidence in a politician who takes a position without knowing any facts or substance – that, my friends, is politics at its worst."

When asked on Sunday if he thinks Cuomo will resign, de Blasio said he thinks the New York governor will "try to hold out" and is "used to getting things his way."

"The folks in this state and the political leadership don’t believe him anymore," de Blasio added. "He doesn’t have any credibility so I think an impeachment proceeding will begin and I think he will be impeached and perhaps right before that he’ll decide to resign. That’s probably the most likely outcome right now."

He went on to say that he thinks Cuomo "should resign right now because he’s holding up our effort to fight COVID."

"He’s literally in the way of us saving lives right now," de Blasio continued.

Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Jamaal Bowman, Jerry Nadler, Nydia Velazquez, Grace Meng, Sean Patrick Maloney and Carolyn Maloney on Friday added their voices to those calling for Cuomo to step down. 

The lawmakers spoke after the Albany Times Union reported that a woman said Cuomo aggressively groped her at the executive mansion after summoning her there to help him with a cellphone issue. Cuomo is alleged to have reached under her blouse, according to the paper.

The sixth woman to come forward with allegations against Cuomo is the latest in a cavalcade of accusations facing the governor, as well as a coronavirus nursing home scandal that some lawmakers have cited when calling for Cuomo's resignation.

That scandal erupted in January when Attorney General Letitia James' office announced that the administration had undercounted deaths in nursing homes by up to 50% – raising questions about a possible cover-up.

De Blasio on Friday urged Cuomo to "do something that's decent after these many, many indecent revelations and simply resign."

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Those calls came after an array of state Democrats had called for him to resign and a possible impeachment investigation has been initiated. Dozens of Democratic members of the state Assembly and Senate issued a joint statement on Thursday calling for Cuomo to resign due to the two scandals.

​​​​​​​New York Democratic Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand and Chuck Schumer on Friday also joined the long list of lawmakers in calling for Cuomo to resign amid the mounting allegations of inappropriate conduct.

When asked if Cuomo deliberately tried to cover up the scale of nursing home deaths in New York, de Blasio said, "I don't have a doubt in my mind."

"Everything was about his public image," he continued. "Everything was about his political future. It was not about what people needed."

He added that he believes the investigations will prove "this was a thoroughly corrupt situation and he just needs to resign so we can actually turn the page."

"Andrew Cuomo can’t lead us into the future," de Blasio added. "We got the people of the state ready to reopen, but we got to get him out of the way to do it."

A spokesperson for Cuomo did not immediately respond to Fox News’ request for comment. However, on Friday, Cuomo made it clear he would not resign: "I am not going to resign, I was not elected by the politicians, I was elected by the people."

He urged people to wait for the independent reviews to be conducted. 

Cuomo said he wants the two reviews that are underway to be concluded "quickly" and "thoroughly" and encouraged them to be conducted.

He also said elected officials often take positions for all sorts of reasons, including "political expediency" and bowing to pressure.

"People know the difference between bowing to cancel culture and the truth – let the review proceed," he said.

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When asked if he will run for New York governor in 2022, de Blasio said, "I'm focused right now on fighting COVID and reopening our schools and bringing our city back, that’s my focus."

"I'm not worried about the future right now," he added. "We are in the middle of the war right here and we’re winning that war. Let me tell you New York City is going to come back. It’s going to be a recovery for all of us."

Fox News’ Adam Shaw, Audrey Conklin, Ronn Blitzer and Sam Dorman contributed to this report.