Cuomo: Pushes gun control, an end to sexual harassment
TOWN OF POUGHKEEPSIE – Governor Andrew Cuomo was at Marist College
in Poughkeepsie today (Thursday) touting his accomplishments over the
past seven years while also laying out his upcoming initiatives including
the addressing of the recent gun control, epidemic of sexual harassment
complaints across government and industry.
Cuomo also said the state is on the right financial track after years
of problems.
“We are in the process of making more progress, but the fundamental
issues we face, we reversed. Our taxes were going up, our jobs were going
down, the unemployment was going up and upstate investment was abandoned
by Albany,” he said. “That is a death formula and that is
the spiral we were in for decades, literally.”
Cuomo said the president “pledged allegiance to the NRA”
instead of backing initiatives to prevent further gun violence.
Earlier, in a telephone conference call with governors from New Jersey,
Connecticut and Rhode Island, Cuomo said the states plan on establishing
a joint database to share gun information.
In his Poughkeepsie speech, he also said the recent sexual harassment
complaints in government a “national disgrace” of which he said
“I don’t see the federal government stepping in anywhere on sexual
harassment except denying it.”
Cuomo is poised to let New York set the standard for anti-sexual harassment
policies that are consistent throughout all levels of government and possible
adoption by the private sector.
His agenda includes the elimination of the ability to use taxpayer funds
to pay for an official’s liability related to sexual harassment claims,
ending secret non-disclosure agreements and requiring companies that do
business with the state to disclose the number of sexual harassment adjudications
they have had.
Cuomo also mentioned upcoming initiatives to protect the environment and
natural resources because “the federal government is looking the
other way.”
Four local bodies of water including Lake Carmel and Mohegan Lake are
slated to be a part of a $65 million dollar to find ways of eradicating
harmful and toxic algal blooms. Cuomo further criticized the federal EPA
pertaining to their possible decision to accept General Electric’s claim
that they have remediated the PCB contamination in the river. Cuomo plans
to bring suit against the feds if they accept the proposal.
Interference of the election process by Russia was also a target of Cuomo’s
plans for the near future. The governor plans to require all social media
outlets to maintain a public file of all political ads purchased by a
person or group for publication on the internet. Currently print, radio
and television ads that contain a political message are required to list
the purchaser of the advertisement and the governor wants the same requirement
for digital ads.
