Assemblyman Mike Norris’ Statement on Impeachment Report

A statement from Assemblyman Michael J. Norris (R, C, - Lockport) Member of Assembly Judiciary Committee

The impeachment report speaks for itself and finds that the former Governor Andrew Cuomo betrayed the public’s trust. Based on substantial evidence, this investigation determined that the former Governor engaged in multiple instances of sexual harassment, utilized state resources and property to write, publish and promote his book which gained him $5.2M in guaranteed personal profit, and was not fully transparent regarding the number of nursing home residents who died as a result of COVID-19.

I am outraged by the former Governor’s pattern of deceit, manipulation and mistrust to fulfill his own personal gain and ego; including the former chief executive of our state indicating that he and his staff worked around the clock on the COVID-19 response, while they were in fact spending significant time and state resources and influencing data reports for the publication and promotion of this book for his own personal profit. This is completely egregious and troubling, especially considering that our schools, businesses and families needed the full attention of the former Governor and his administration on guidance and assistance for critical COVID-19 issues.

However, I still find it most telling that the former Governor himself chose to announce his resignation the day following the Judiciary Committee’s meeting and press conference held by the Speaker and Judiciary Committee Chair on August 9th when it became abundantly clear that impeachment was coming instead of facing an impeachment trial. His resignation also speaks for itself.

I remain frustrated that the impeachment investigation did not move more quickly and that impeachment appears to no longer be an option based upon legislative history. Regardless, the former Governor must be held accountable for his actions and the next step now rests in the hands of professional law enforcement officials who are handling multiple investigations into his conduct. The Committee, through Polk Davis, will continue cooperating with these investigations, and this report was prepared understandably with those interests in mind.