On September 10, the Congressional Pandemic Oversight and Accountability Special Committee held a hearing to interrogate former New York Governor Cuomo over his policies towards the state nursing homes in March 2020 and the subsequent allegations of manipulating the death toll in the nursing homes. During the hearing, two members of Congress repeatedly mentioned the name of Cuomo’s former Chinese-American aide, Linda Sun.
The primary focus of the Congressional committee’s questioning of Cuomo revolved around two main issues. Firstly, on March 25, 2020, the New York state government issued a “fatal” directive ordering nursing homes in the state to accept residents discharged from hospitals regardless of whether they were infected with COVID-19, effectively forcing infected individuals to reside with other vulnerable nursing home residents. This directive was widely believed to have contributed to the significant increase in deaths in New York’s nursing homes during the pandemic.
The second issue involved accusations that Cuomo had manipulated the death toll figures from nursing homes that the state publicized in June of that year, significantly underreporting the actual number of deaths. An investigation report from the New York State Attorney General Letitia James corroborated this, revealing that the state health department’s reports had underestimated the figures by 50%. In reality, over 15,000 individuals died in New York’s nursing homes during the pandemic.
“You directed against federal guidance and medical theory. In these infectious cases that lead to death, you cannot house highly infectious patients together with vulnerable elderly,” stated Congressman Brad Wenstrup, the chairman of the committee from Ohio.
Additionally, the committee found that the death toll figures concerning nursing homes in June 2020 were the result of pressure exerted on the state health department by Cuomo’s aides, with witnesses testifying that the figures were altered by Cuomo to “cover up the truth” and disseminate false information.
Cuomo maintained that his policies regarding nursing homes complied with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines and the demands of the state attorney general. He cited reports from the New York State Health Department attributing deaths in nursing homes mainly to infected staff members. He also shifted blame to the inadequacy of medical protective equipment under the Trump administration, slow vaccine rollout, and contended that his directives were merely “guidance” that nursing homes could choose to reject, citing reasons such as insufficient facilities instead of “pandemic” concerns.
Cuomo continued to assert that the investigations into his actions during the pandemic were politically motivated by the Republican Party, labeling them as “conspiracy theories.” He also defended the modified figures, stating that he only published “confidently ‘accurate'” numbers.
Cuomo’s demeanor during the hearing elicited anger from many lawmakers. A female congresswoman challenged Cuomo, saying, “Do you have the courage to stand up now and tell these families that seeking accountability here is a ‘conspiracy theory’?”
Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks from Iowa expressed her disappointment, stating, “I hoped to see a governor with less defensiveness and more remorse today, but that person did not show up.”
Congresswoman Elise Stefanik from New York questioned when Cuomo began negotiating a $5 million book deal touting his supposed “pandemic success” and suggested that he should apologize to the families of deceased nursing home residents present at the hearing. However, Cuomo did not stand up.
“You became the former governor of New York for a reason,” Stefanik said. “You will never hold any elected office again.”
Her words were met with warm applause from the hearing audience.
In his concluding remarks, Committee Chairman Brad Wenstrup expressed his disappointment in Cuomo, emphasizing that the day was not about a trial or political strife but about striving for improvement and sparing individuals who had lost loved ones during the pandemic from enduring further hardships. Wenstrup remarked, “As governor, you are accountable for your state, but you seem to lack reflection, only intensifying your actions.”
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene from Georgia unearthed a tweet from Cuomo in 2020 where he thanked the Chinese government, insinuating a connection to a Chinese spy working for him.
“Either you are the dumbest tool of the Chinese (CCP) government, or you’re being used knowingly,” Greene said. “You murdered them (the nursing home residents).”
Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis from New York criticized Cuomo for manipulating death figures and sarcastically suggested, “Although your name is at the top of the document, perhaps it was signed by Linda Sun, the communist Chinese spy in your government?”
Both congresswomen referred to Cuomo’s Chinese-American aide Linda Sun, who was recently arrested and accused of being a Chinese agent.
In his opening statement, Committee Chairman Wenstrup mentioned that they had faced two threats during the investigation: one from the Chinese embassy when investigating the origins of the pandemic and another from Cuomo’s lawyers when probing the state’s nursing home policies.
“I can tell you: we did not and will not succumb to these threats,” he stated.
Following the hearing, the committee will continue to gather evidence and has issued a subpoena to the current New York Governor Hochul, demanding access to the state government’s records during the pandemic, with her spokesperson affirming full cooperation.