On Sunday, a Jewish opponent of mayoral candidate Andrew Cuomo attacked the former governor, accusing him of lying about a nonprofit he established to combat antisemitism that hasn’t been doing much.
During a speech at the West Side Institutional Synagogue, candidate Scott Stringer said that the advocacy group “Never Again, NOW!” was created to combat anti-Semitism but instead served as a platform for Cuomo’s comeback effort.
“He actually showed up in people’s living rooms and promised to set up an organization that would run commercials, host symposiums and – with money raised from the Jewish donor community – join the fight against rising antisemitism,” the former city comptroller and Manhattan borough president stated.
“But he never lifted a finger. There were no commercials. Nothing,” Stringer continued. “This organization was a vehicle for his mayor’s race – and everybody knows it.”
In an earlier speech at the same synagogue, Cuomo accused other Democratic Party primary contenders of being antisemitic or supporting hatred toward Jews.
He was wise enough not to criticize me. Earlier in his remarks, Stringer informed the audience that it would have been a mistake. Nevertheless, his cynical and, to be honest, pathetic attempts to split the city and this community horrified me.
Stringer claimed that Cuomo’s silence during the terror assaults in Israel by Hamas on October 7, 2023, was worse.
“He didn’t tell you that he came to this community in our darkest moment, during our hour of need – after more than 1,200 people were murdered by the terrorist organization Hamas, with hundreds of hostages held in Gaza – and he lied to us,” Stringer stated.
“This was the worst attack on the Jewish people since the Holocaust. Our hearts were broken,” he stated. “And he sold us all a bill of goods in our darkest moment, during our hour of need … he thinks he’s getting one over on us. But we know better.”
Then, in order to warn the congregation about Cuomo, Stringer used a verse from the Talmud.
“‘Be careful about the government, as they approach a man only when they need him. They seem like good friends in good times, but they don’t stay for him in time of his trouble,’” he stated.
In July 2024, Cuomo’s “Never Again, NOW” did create a video campaign criticizing Hamas.
As the Democratic primary for mayor on June 24 draws closer, Cuomo has a significant lead in the polls, which has made him a target for other contenders. Stringer has been using single-digit polling.
Following his resignation as governor in 2021 under fear of impeachment due to a slew of allegations of sexual misconduct, which he denies, Cuomo has been targeted during his mayoral campaign.
His handling of the COVID-19 pandemic has also drawn harsh criticism, especially a contentious March 2020 administration order requiring care homes to take in hospitalized patients who were recovering from the virus.
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A statement from state Assemblyman Sam Berger, a Cuomo supporter in the Jewish community, was supplied by the Cuomo campaign in response to Stringer.
“Governor Cuomo has shown his support for the Jewish community with action, not just words. Scott Stringer played footsie with the anti-Israel, anti-democratic DSA [Democratic Socialists of America] and their allies who won’t condemn hate,” Berger said.
“When Queens faced a choice for DA between a Jewish pro-Israel candidate [Melinda Katz] and a card-carrying DSA member [Tiffany Caban], Stringer chose DSA. We need a mayor who’ll fight for us — not one who just panders when convenient.”
The Cuomo camp also pointed out that while he was governor, he signed the country’s first executive order prohibiting state agencies from doing business with companies involved in boycott, divestment, and sanctions actions against Israel; he also strengthened penalties for hate crimes; he obtained millions of dollars for security upgrades for synagogues and yeshivas; and he arranged a solidarity trip to Israel in 2014, during which time Hamas was currently bombing the Jewish State.
Cuomo, however, spoke Sunday morning at Brooklyn’s Salem Missionary Baptist Church and defended his choices made during the outbreak.
He informed the congregation at church, “We beat COVID and saved lives.”
