Cuomo Reportedly Refused to Hire a Woman 'Not Pretty Enough' When Working in Bill Clinton Admin

Eleven women have accused New York Governor Andrew Cuomo of sexual harassment and described to investigators a “hostile and toxic work environment”, with the embattled statesman, adamantly rejecting the claims laid out in the damning report released by the state Attorney General and refusing to step down.

Andrew Cuomo once stopped short of hiring a woman because "she wasn't pretty enough", reports the New York Post.

Karen Hinton, who worked as a press aide to Cuomo when he was then-President Bill Clinton’s housing secretary, was cited by the outlet as saying she had recommended a woman who had “worked on Capitol Hill for years”.

“I knew her, she had a very good understanding of Capitol Hill politics and policy. She came in for an interview and I sat in since I had recommended her,” said Hinton.

However, according to her, Cuomo was unimpressed and refused to take on the applicant. “No, I don’t think so,” he was cited as saying. When Hinton probed the reason behind the refusal, he reportedly quipped:

“She’s not pretty enough. I don’t like the way she looks.”

Karen Hinton recalled that the politician had been amused by the sex scandal involving 49-year-old US President Bill Clinton and 22-year-old White House intern Monica Lewinsky. The affair that took place in 1998 had led to Clinton’s 1998 impeachment.

“I remember him laughing about the Monica Lewinsky situation, not because he didn’t believe her — he did — but because he thought it was funny. There were jokes made about it because of the cigars,” said the woman who is married to former Cuomo administration official Howard Glaser.

The “cigar” story was referred to in the mainstream press, alleging that Monica Lewinsky masturbated with a cigar while President Clinton watched and masturbated as well.

Hinton also accused Cuomo of having been physically “aroused” when he hugged her “too tightly” and for “too long” in an incident that purportedly took place in a Los Angeles hotel room in December 2000.

Hinton, who was working as a consultant employed by the Department of Housing and Urban Development from 1995 to 1999, detailed the alleged incident on March 6 during an interview on WNYC radio.

“He approached me, embraced too tightly, too long and was aroused. I felt extremely uncomfortable and actually shocked. Nothing had ever happened that way between the two of us.”

In response to the claims, Andrew Cuomo denied having behaved in the manner Hinton described, saying, “What she said is not true”.

Cuomo emphasised at the time that Karen Hinton was formerly the press secretary for his political rival - Bill de Blasio, serving as the 109th mayor of New York City since 2014.

“As everybody who has been involved on any level in New York politics knows, she has been a longtime political adversary of mine, highly critical for many, many years and has made many, many accusations,” said Cuomo said during a conference call with reporters on March 7.

Damning Report

The alleged incident involving Cuomo and Hinton is mentioned twice in the report released by state Attorney General Letitia James last week that accused him of sexually harassing 11 women. However, Karen Hinton isn’t included among those whose allegations were addressed in detail, as the report focused on Cuomo’s actions while governor.

At a news conference last week, Leticia James said the probe “found that Governor Andrew Cuomo sexually harassed current and former New York State employees by engaging in unwelcome and non-consensual touching and making numerous offensive comments of a suggestive and sexual nature that created a hostile work environment for women”.

James added that while state charges against Cuomo would not be brought, the investigation could lead to civil and criminal charges against him.

Democrat Cuomo has been denying any wrongdoing and resisting calls to resign by President Joe Biden and a flurry of top Democrats.

“I never touched anyone inappropriately or made inappropriate sexual advances. That is just not who I am,” Cuomo said in a pre-taped message after the attorney general’s report was released.

A Quinnipiac Poll released on Friday showed 70 percent of New York state voters believed Andrew Cuomo should resign, including 57 percent of Democratic voters.

7 out of 10 New York State voters say #GovernorCuomo should resign; 55% think Cuomo should be charged with a crime https://t.co/aXCdDFjxcK #AndrewCuomo

— Quinnipiac University Poll (@QuinnipiacPoll) August 6, 2021

Two executive sessions have been scheduled by New York State Assembly's Judiciary Committee, on August 16 and August 23, to discuss the Cuomo impeachment inquiry.

This is to be followed by at least two public hearings, with the Committee subsequently recommending whether to impeach Cuomo, said New York State Assembly's Judiciary Committee Chair Charles Lavine.

Many have inquired about the impeachment process in New York State. To ensure that the public has accurate information, here is a summary of the process. pic.twitter.com/8VgC35FZyv

— Joseph A. Griffo (@SenGriffo) August 6, 2021

If a majority of assembly members vote to impeach, the state senate will convene an impeachment trial 30 to 60 days later. If two-thirds of the state senate voted to convict Cuomo, he could be removed from office, with Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul taking over for the remainder of his term, wrapping up in December 2022.