Hillary Rodham Clinton joined Governor Andrew Cuomo for a rally today, supporting the governor at a “Women’s Equality Party” rally in midtown Manhattan. Both made speeches, as did Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor Kathy Hochul, to a crowd of approximately 250 people.
Gaggle:
Cuomo spoke with the press afterward, with questions mostly focused on the election, the debate last night and the “Women’s Equality Party” and “Women’s Equality Agenda”. Question topics included whether the “Women’s Equality Party” and “Women’s Equality Agenda” is a “smokescreen” and abortion a “bogeyman” intended to deflect attention from his record (deemed “a highly insensitive and obnoxious question” by Cuomo), his reaction to U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara’s statement yesterday that his office continues several probes related to Cuomo’s Moreland Commission, whether he’s endorsing Hillary Clinton for president, his view on the inclusion of Libertarian Party candidate Michael McDermott in the debate last night, whether he personally follows the Catholic Church’s position on abortion, whether the state will release SAFE Act assault weapon registration statistics, his position on the three November ballot propositions, whether he’ll support Hillary Clinton if she runs for president, what his girlfriend is making for dinner tonight (really), if he’s in the process of deciding whether to run for president and whether he was surprised by the New York Times endorsement he received this week.
Update – Selected Clips:
Here are a few particularly worthwhile moments from Cuomo’s wide-ranging gaggle.
Moreland Commission:
Cuomo gave a lengthy response when asked about U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara’s recent comments on continuing Moreland Commission-related probes. “This is exactly what was supposed to happen” said Cuomo, referring to the U.S. Attorney taking over investigations from the Moreland Commission.
Running for President:
The governor discusses the decision of whether to run for president, vis-a-vis Mario Cuomo, Hillary Clinton and Andrew Cuomo.
NY Times Endorsement:
The governor was asked for his reaction to receiving the New York Times’ endorsement.
Update #2 – Speeches:
Here are the complete speeches by Hillary Clinton and Andrew Cuomo: