House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Sunday stopped short of calling for New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) to resign after dozens of top Democrats in his state urged him to step down over sexual harassment allegations.<\/p>\n
Pelosi told ABC News\u2019 \u201cThis Week\u201d that the accusations against Cuomo are \u201ccredible\u201d and \u201cserious\u201d but suggested she\u2019s waiting to see the results of New York Attorney General Letitia James\u2019 investigation into the matter.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat I said at the time that these revelations came forward, I said what these women have said must be treated with respect,\u201d Pelosi said, adding that she has \u201cconfidence\u201d in James\u2019s investigation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIn terms of generally speaking, people have to look inside themselves and say \u2015 and Gov. Cuomo also \u2015 how effective is their leadership in leading the state under the circumstances that are there,\u201d she continued. \u201cBut I do think that the women deserve to hear the results of these investigations as does the governor. But again … no tolerance for sexual harassment. Let the world know that.\u201d<\/p>\n
When pressed to say whether she\u2019s urging Cuomo to step down, Pelosi said, \u201cI think we should see the results.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHopefully, this result will be soon,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd what I\u2019m saying is the governor should look inside his heart \u2015 he loves New York \u2015 to see if he can govern effectively. And that could be one of the considerations that he has.\u201d<\/p>\n
At least seven women have publicly accused Cuomo of sexual harassment or inappropriate touching, including a former aide who says the governor forcibly kissed her in his office in 2018. Cuomo has denied the harassment allegations and has apologized for making anyone feel \u201cuncomfortable.\u201d<\/p>\n
He\u2019s also come under fire for accusations of bullying and reports that his office doctored data about the number of nursing home deaths in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n
On Friday, both of New York\u2019s senators \u2015 Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand \u2015 and many prominent House Democrats from New York, including Jerry Nadler and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, called on Cuomo to step down. But Cuomo has so far refused to do so, claiming he\u2019s a victim of \u201ccancel culture\u201d and suggesting that some of the women are lying.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Pelosi, who swiftly called for the resignation of Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) in 2017 when he faced sexual misconduct allegations, had called the allegations against Cuomo \u201ccredible\u201d earlier this month, but had not weighed in on the matter since most of New York\u2019s congressional delegation demanded his departure.<\/p>\n
Gov. Larry Hogan (R-Md.) on Sunday also shied away from urging Cuomo to step down. Hogan was chair of the National Governors Association until last August, with Cuomo serving as his deputy. Cuomo took over as head of the NGA after Hogan\u2019s one-year term ended.<\/p>\n