White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki says New York Andrew Cuomo (D) did not give officials advance notice of his plans to step down.
During a press briefing on Tuesday, she was asked what President Joe Biden’s reaction was to Cuomo’s resignation, “The president made clear his views last week and those stand. Our view is that this is a story about these courageous women who came forward, told their stories, shared their stories.”
“And an investigation overseen by the attorney that of course concluded today in an outcome that the president called for just last week,” she continued.
Finally, she said, “I know a number of you have asked whether the president talked to [Cuomo] since this report came out, the answer is no. Whether we had a heads up on this announcement today, the answer is no.”
She also said Biden did not reach out to push Cuomo to resign.
Watch the video below:
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki on the resignation announcement from Gov. Andrew Cuomo: "Our view is that this is a story about these courageous women who came forward, told their stories, shared their stories." pic.twitter.com/GnrRst2DTn
— USA TODAY (@USATODAY) August 10, 2021
On Aug. 3, New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) released a report that found Cuomo sexually harassed several women, as IJR reported.
Biden called for the New York governor to resign hours after the report was released.
On Tuesday, one week after the report was released that accused him of sexual harassment, Cuomo announced that he would resign.
“New York Tough means New York loving. And I love New York, and I love you. And everything I have ever done has been motivated by that love. And I would never want to be unhelpful in any way,” Cuomo said, adding, “I think that given the circumstances, the best way I can help now is to step aside and let government get back to governing.”
His resignation announcement came shortly after the Senate passed a $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package, giving Biden a legislative win.