Don’t Forget the Nursing Homes

In late October of 2021, Andrew Cuomo, the former Governor of New York, was charged with a misdemeanor sex crime. The criminal complaint stems from an incident that reportedly occurred at the governor’s mansion in December of 2020. Cuomo is charged with allegedly engaging in forcible touching. This charge comes months after Cuomo resigned his gubernatorial post following allegations that he sexually harassed more than ten women while in office. These allegations almost entirely eroded support for the previously beloved governor from within the Democratic party. 

Cuomo’s fall from grace is because of the political inconvenience of a prominent Democrat facing allegations of workplace harassment. Obviously, he should face consequences if he is found guilty, but it remains unclear whether he will face any consequences for the Empire State’s mismanagement of COVID-19. 

Andrew Cuomo will likely never be held accountable for his direct role in causing thousands of COVID deaths in nursing homes and the subsequent cover-up.

In March of 2020, then-Governor Cuomo issued an executive order forcing retirement homes in New York to accept and house individuals who tested positive for COVID-19. As we all know, the elderly are among the most susceptible to COVID, and Cuomo’s orders resulted in thousands of deaths. 

The consequences of this order were tragic, and Cuomo should have faced impeachment shortly after issuing it, but unfortunately, the story doesn’t end here. Not only did Cuomo’s gubernatorial edict kill thousands of people, but his office actively withheld and hid data on these deaths to throw the Department of Justice under the Trump Administration off their scent. 

While celebrities and Democrats across the country heaped praise upon Cuomo’s name, behind the scenes he was exposing thousands of vulnerable individuals to COVID when they otherwise would have been safe. 

Cuomo faces the consequences for his misconduct in the workspace but in only one capacity and it seems that the worst of his actions may go untouched. It will be a step in the right direction If Andrew Cuomo has his day in court and is found to be guilty of the crimes for which he is charged, but at the end of the day until he is held accountable for the deaths that he caused and his office covered up, New Yorkers will not have justice. 

Republican Glenn Youngkin won Virginia’s recent gubernatorial race in a massive upset for the Democratic Party. In the 2020 general election, Democrats won Virginia by ten points, so how did a Republican win election in a state which all conventional wisdom suggested was safe for the Democrats? The people finally held politicians and the institutions that affect them accountable. Terry McAuliffe — the Democratic nominee — made the mistake of telling Virginians what he actually thought: that parents should get out of the way of the teachers’ unions and let the unions have full control over what their children learn in public schools. 

Virginians acted to hold those seeking to rule them accountable. In order to prevent the powerful from abusing their station, Americans must follow Virginia’s lead. Punish those who abuse you by denying them power; make politicians face the consequences of their actions.