Disgraced New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and a charity that helps helps victims of sexual assault are being represented by the identical legislation agency, it has emerged.
Each the governor, who’s dealing with growing calls to resign within the wake of a scathing 168-page legal professional common’s report saying that he sexually harassed 11 girls whereas in workplace, has contracted authorized agency Arnold and Porter.
It’s the similar firm that represents Time’s Up, a charity that raises cash to help victims of sexual harassment which was arrange within the wake of the Me Too motion.
Based on monetary disclosure kinds obtained by FOX News, the Time’s Up Basis – the group’s ‘trade and affect arm’ – has spent over $100,000 on authorized companies with the agency in 2019.
Time’s Up Now, Inc., the lobbying finish of the charity, in the meantime, paid $454,000 on authorized charges with Arnold and Porter in 2019 and greater than $719,00 in 2018.
Governor Andrew Cuomo, in the meantime, employed the agency to symbolize him in March as he first began dealing with claims of sexual harassment.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo has denied any wrongdoing within the sexual harassment scandal
Time’s Up, a charity that raises cash to help victims of sexual harassment, has reportedly spent tons of of thousand of {dollars} in authorized charges with Arnold and Porter – the identical legislation agency Gov. Cuomo employed to defend himself in opposition to sexual harassment claims – over the previous few years
Gov. Andrew Cuomo employed Arnold and Porter to symbolize him in March as he began to face sexual harassment claims. The agency’s New York workplace is pictured right here
The information comes after it was revealed that two of the Time’s Up founders helped the embattled governor draft a letter searching for to discredit allegations from one among his sexual harassment accusers.
Cuomo’s workers reportedly sought the assistance of Time’s Up Authorized Protection Fund founder Roberta Kaplan and Time’s Up CEO Tina Tchen whereas drafting a letter denying allegations made in opposition to the governor by former Cuomo aide Lyndsey Boylan.
Boylan had been the primary of Cuomo’s accusers to come back ahead publicly in February with allegations that Cuomo had sexually harassed her, making feedback on her appears and at one level asking her if she would play a recreation of strip poker with him.
The alleged involvement of Tchen and Kaplan in Cuomo’s denial letter, was revealed in Lawyer Normal Letitia James’ report, launched on Tuesday, which discovered Cuomo had sexually harassed 11 girls.
In her 165-page report, James acknowledged {that a} group of advisors for Cuomo final December, sought to pen a letter that, ‘denied the legitimacy of Ms. Boylan’s allegations, impugned her credibility, and attacked her claims as politically motivated.’
Workers for Gov. Andrew Cuomo recruited the assistance of Time’s Up co-founders Roberta Kaplan (left) and Tina Tchen throughout an effort to discredit allegations of sexual harassment by former Cuomo aide Lyndsey Boylan
Boylan (pictured) had been the primary of Cuomo’s accusers to come back forth publicly with allegations that he sexually harassed her. Within the weeks earlier than she went public with the accusations, workers for Cuomo sought to draft a letter discrediting her claims, and requested Kaplan and Tchen for assist crafting it
High Cuomo Aide Melissa DeRosa testified that Cuomo initially drafted the letter by hand, though the governor testified that he didn’t ‘bear in mind handwriting any doc,’ however that he ‘participated in drafts.’
The letter was supposed to be despatched to former colleagues of Boylan and Cuomo for them to signal, after which printed, probably as an op-ed.
DeRosa testified that she had misgivings concerning the letter, and nervous that it might ‘backfire,’ so Cuomo requested her to succeed in out to Kaplan for enter.
‘Based on Ms. DeRosa, Ms. Kaplan learn the letter to the top of the advocacy group Occasions Up [Tchen], and each of them allegedly steered that, with out the statements about Ms. Boylan’s interactions with male colleagues, the letter was nice,’ James mentioned in her report.
Workers for Cuomo, nevertheless, continued to have misgivings, apart from Cuomo ally Steve Cohen, who had mentioned with some edits ‘it might be acceptable.’
‘Ms. DeRosa reported again to the Governor that Ms. Kaplan and the top of Occasions Up thought the letter was okay with some modifications, as did Mr. Cohen,’ the report learn, ‘however everybody else thought it was a foul thought.’
In the end, the letter was by no means printed, after Cuomo’s workers was unable to search out sufficient folks prepared to signal it, based on James.
‘A number of folks whom the Governor’s advisors requested to signal the letter had been uncomfortable with what it mentioned about Ms. Boylan,’ she mentioned in her report, including that one mentioned the letter ‘amounted to “sufferer shaming,”‘ and one other remarked ‘This complete factor is castigating her.’
Kaplan has since mentioned that her enter to Cuomo’s workplace was that the letter mustn’t in any approach disgrace Boylan.
Cuomo aide Melissa DeRosa had sought out Kaplan’s assist in drafting the letter, who in flip consulted with Tchen. Kaplan is now representing DeRosa within the legal professional common investigation. In the end the letter was by no means printed
Particulars of the try to assemble the letter discrediting Boylan’s accusations are contained within the 165-page legal professional common report
‘Whereas it seems the response was by no means printed, I made it very clear that any response ought to by no means disgrace an accuser,’ she informed the Washington Post. ‘Given the revelations within the New York Lawyer Normal report, I help and agree with Time’s Up that Governor Cuomo ought to resign.’
Tchen mentioned she didn’t bear in mind the particulars of the letter with reference to what she mentioned with Kaplan, however denied that she would participate in an effort to discredit an accuser.
‘You can’t make any try to assault or discredit an individual who has come ahead with allegations,’ she informed the outlet. ‘Had these components existed in what was learn to me, I’d have mentioned, “Don’t say that.”‘
In an announcement despatched to the Hollywood Reporter Tchen additional doubled down on her stance.
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‘Earlier than any allegations had been made in opposition to Governor Cuomo, in 2019, Time’s Up labored along with his administration to go the Time’s Up/NY Security Agenda. In December 2020, Tina was requested to offer her perspective on a public response to Ms. Boylan’s allegations,’ she informed the outlet.
‘Though Tina made no suggestions as to what he ought to do, she shared the stance Time’s Up has all the time taken in these issues. She was clear that any response coming from the Governor’s workplace addressing the allegations could be inadequate and unacceptable if it didn’t acknowledge the experiences of the ladies who got here ahead, and that it ought to under no circumstances disgrace or discredit the ladies.’
Cuomo’s three attorneys – Paul Fishman, Mitra Hormozi – who symbolize the Workplace of the Governor – and Rita Glavin – who represents Cuomo personally – spoke at a press convention which the Governor reside streamed on his state web site however didn’t seem at
In the meantime, Cuomo’s attorneys doubled-down on claims that the legal professional common’s report was flawed in a information convention on Friday, with Paul Fishman, a accomplice at Arnold and Porter, saying all the Government Chamber was blindsided by the report and solely obtained it when Letitia James first made it public Tuesday morning.
He and Cuomo’s different attorneys mentioned that they had nonetheless not obtained all the proof that went into the report regardless of asking for it, together with interview transcripts of witnesses.
One allegation that they picked out was that of ‘Government Assistant One,’ who alleges he groped her breast.
Cuomo’s attorneys say it isn’t true and that official logs from the day in query do not help the manager assistant’s allegation.
In addition they say she was mendacity about particulars like a door ‘slamming’ as a result of it might have created an ‘echo’ that different staffers would have heard however did not.
They legal professionals additionally mentioned that Boylan requested for her job again in September 2018 and that ought to show she is mendacity.
‘Do you know that Lindsey Boylan requested for her job again 4 days after she give up?
‘And that she then requested the Governor to intervene? Emailed his assistant and requested to talk with him however he did not return her name.
‘Why did not the investigators put this of their report?’ Cuomo’s private lawyer, Rita Glavin, mentioned.
The legal professionals additionally mentioned that they’d reply to allegations made by one of many two State Troopers included within the report – who claims Cuomo ran his finger down her again, touched her stomach and harassed her after recruiting her to his personal element – though she wasn’t certified for the job – at a later date.
However Glavin rejected the concept Cuomo employed her as a result of he discovered her enticing and as an alternative mentioned he was ‘impressed’ when he met her at a celebration that she ‘maintained eye contact with him’ and ‘was assertive’.
Glavin at first claimed the trooper was nonetheless on Cuomo’s element then, when corrected by a reporter who mentioned she knew that she wasn’t, admitted that she did not know.
‘That is new information you are telling me,’ she mentioned.
She insisted that nobody was going to retaliate in opposition to the accusers now as a result of ‘the world is watching.’
