Fox’s Doocy Questions Jen Psaki With Cuomo Sexual Harassment Allegations During White House Briefing
President Joe Biden is set to meet with the National Governors Association on Thursday. The head of that association is New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who on Wednesday was accused of persistent sexual harassment by former aide Lindsey Boylan.
Fox News reporter Peter Doocy questioned White House press secretary Jen Psaki about whether the administration is worried the allegations will be a “distraction” from the meeting to discuss Covid response.
He read out some of the allegations against Cuomo, which included him joking to Boylan that they should play strip poker, and at one point kissing her on the lips. Cuomo’s office denied the allegations as “false” in a statement.
“Well, let me first say that the president is consistent in his position. When a person comes forward, they deserve to be treated with dignity and respect,” Psaki said. “Their voice should be heard, not silenced. And any allegation should be reviewed.”
“Governor Cuomo is also the governor of one of the largest states in the country, that has been one of the hardest hit, with millions of people still suffering from an ongoing pandemic and economic crisis,” she added. “He is also still head of the National Governors Association, hence he is at the event today.”
Doocy followed up by questioning if Biden will talk to Cuomo about allegations from Democrats he “misled the public about deaths in nursing homes throughout the pandemic.”
“Well, this is a meeting and a conversation with a range of governors about how we can all work together to address the pandemic and get relief to the American people. And that’s what I expect the focus of the meeting to be on,” Psaki replied.
Doocy then asked about Biden’s comment from last year that Cuomo is the “gold standard” for leadership during a pandemic and was doing “a hell of a job.”
Psaki noted those comments were made in April 2020, when there was a “vacuum of leadership at the federal level.”
Watch above, via CBSN.
