White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki sidestepped a question about whether President Joe Biden still considers New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s (D) leadership amid the COVID-19 pandemic the “gold standard.”
ABC’s Jonathan Karl showed Psaki footage from last year of Biden’s comments about Cuomo’s leadership.
The president said Cuomo has “done one hell of a job” and called his leadership “the gold standard.”
Karl asked Psaki if Biden still believes that after news broke of Cuomo allegedly undercounting nursing home deaths.
“We work with Gov. Cuomo just like we work with governors across the country,” Psaki said.
She continued, “He plays an important role in ensuring that we’re coordinating closely in getting assistance out to people in his state and to state’s across the country and we’ll continue to do that.”
Watch her remarks below:
Biden’s press secretary repeatedly refuses to condemn Andrew Cuomo’s actions that led to the deaths of thousands of elderly New York nursing home residents. pic.twitter.com/0VPApRtUV2
— Arthur Schwartz (@ArthurSchwartz) February 21, 2021
Psaki said the Biden administration would leave it up to investigators and law enforcement to address Cuomo’s alleged cover-up and “determine how that path is going to move as we look forward.”
“But we are going to continue to work with a range of governors including of course Gov. Cuomo because we think the people of New York, the people of states across the country need assistance not just to get through the pandemic but to get through this difficult economic time and that’s where our focus remains,” Psaki said.
Karl pressed Psaki on the question and told her it was a “yes or no” answer.
“It doesn’t always have to be a yes or no answer, Jon,” Psaki said.
She continued, “I think the president is focused on his goal, his objectives as president of the United States. I’m not here to give new labels or names from the president, I’m here to communicate with you about what our focuses are and what his objectives are as president.”
On Wednesday, the Times Union reported the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Brooklyn are launching an investigation into Cuomo’s handling of nursing home deaths, as IJR reported.
