WASHINGTON (NewsNation Now) — President Joe Biden finds the developing harassment allegations against New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo “troubling” and “hard to read,” the White House said Monday.
“Like everyone who continues to read stories and new developments seem to happen every day, we find them troubling. The president finds them troubling, hard to read, and every woman who steps forward needs to be treated with dignity and respect,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said during a briefing.
The administration is calling for the investigation into the claims of the governor’s inappropriate behavior and misconduct to be “both quick and thorough,” Psaki said.
New York Attorney General Letitia James is leading the investigation into the allegations made by seven women, several of whom were former members of Cuomo’s staff. The claims range from unwelcome flirtatious behavior at work to groping.
The governor has denied touching any women inappropriately.
He’s also under pressure from disclosures that his administration withheld the number of nursing home residents killed in New York by COVID-19.
Biden has declined to call for Cuomo’s resignation, despite several prominent New York Democrats — including Sens. Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand — urging the governor to step down.
Pressed by a reporter on Sunday over whether Cuomo should resign, Biden responded, “I think the investigation is underway, and we should see what it brings us.”
Biden has not spoken directly with Cuomo, who currently chairs the National Governors Association and was expected to join a weekly call with the president on Tuesday, Psaki said on Monday.
“Our objective… continues to be to get the COVID pandemic under control, and we don’t want the people of New York or any state to be impacted negatively,” Psaki said. “We’ll continue to work with a range of governors, including Gov. Cuomo, who I would expect to join the call tomorrow. We’ll leave that up to him.”
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.