'Brazen shamelessness': Disgraced Dem ex-gov burned for turning to Trump for campaign help
New York City's Democratic mayoral primary saw a major upset this summer, with democratic socialist state Rep. Zohran Mamdani clinching the nomination and thwarting the once-inevitable-seeming comeback of former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
Despite Cuomo's loss, he has vowed to stay in the race as an independent candidate for the general election. New reporting on Wednesday revealed that Cuomo — who wanted to jump back into politics after resigning over sexual misconduct allegations and a scandal about mismanaging COVID-19 in nursing homes — has spoken to President Donald Trump, who has also been briefed by pro-Cuomo super PAC strategists and is weighing whether to endorse him as an intervention against Mamdani.
The news resulted in a deluge of mockery and incredulity from commenters on social media, with many pointing out that one of Cuomo's only substantive campaign messages in the primary was that he would be the best candidate to fight Trump.
"Andrew Cuomo, who previously campaigned as the best fighter against Trump, is now talking with and having his Super PAC pollster brief Trump, likely in the hopes of an endorsement," wrote Pennsylvania Capital-Star correspondent Nick Field. "Brazen shamelessness, even for 2025 politics."
"We knew this was going on," wrote Lindsey Boylan, a former Cuomo aide and one of many who came forward to accuse him of sexual harassment. "In fact, I knew well before Marc Penn and Andrew Stein put out their magical thinking piece in the Wall Street Journal this week. That they briefed Trump privately weeks ago is no surprise either."
"So I guess the NYC Board of Elections could add a New York Sex Abuser Party line to the ballot and put Cuomo on it," wrote never-Trump conservative attorney George Conway.
"Remember when Andrew Cuomo said he'd stand up to Donald Trump?" wrote More Perfect Union producer Jordan Zakarin. "Turns out Cuomo's has been yakking on the phone with Trump, desperate for his help to beat the Democratic nominee for mayor."
"The equivalent of a $5 million contribution to @ZohranKMamdani For Mayor," wrote Politico's Jonathan Martin. "Ad writes itself."