Democratic New York Governor Andrew Cuomo released his book “American Crisis: Leadership Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic” on Thursday.
“Andrew Cuomo chronicles the ingenuity and sacrifice required of so many to fight the pandemic, sharing the decision-making that shaped his policy as well as his frank accounting and assessment of his interactions with the federal government, the White House, and other state and local political and health officials” the book description says. “Real leadership, he shows, requires clear communication, compassion for others, and a commitment to truth-telling—no matter how frightening the facts may be.”
Although Cuomo writing a book (and by him, I mean ghostwriters) about the coronavirus pandemic makes sense, it comes across as self-aggrandizing for it to be published this quickly. Lockdowns began in March, and it is now mid-October. New York and the United States continue to face closures and occasional case surges.
Due to New York once being a major hotspot of coronavirus, Cuomo’s daily press conferences quickly rose his profile on the national stage. It was suggested at one point that he should be the Democratic nominee for president, and is now being floated as a possible Biden pick for Attorney General.
It is awfully rich for Cuomo to write about leadership, especially due to the nursing home policy that he allowed until May. In order to accommodate for hospitals being overwhelmed, New York’s policy was to bring certain coronavirus patients into nursing homes, which oftentimes offer similar services to hospitals. Seniors with underlying conditions are considered to be the highly vulnerable to contracting coronavirus.
The nursing home policy lasted till Cuomo amended the order in May, but only after many seniors living in long-term care facilities died. Miscommunication between nursing homes and the state government left many nursing homes feeling obligated to take coronavirus patients in.
Many family members and loved ones are furious about Cuomo’s book release. Fox News meteorologist Janice Dean lost her in-laws due to the nursing home policy, and has been a vocal critic of Cuomo.
“We still don’t have the total number of patients that died from COVID that were in nursing homes,” Dean said. “And now, with his book tour, I mean I don’t know any governor in the middle of a pandemic that should release a book, especially this one.”
Cuomo is using a tragedy to make a profit before the tragedy itself has ended. Nearly all politicians are opportunists, but Cuomo’s book deal is a result of unearned vanity.