Cuomo's $4M book deal under new scrutiny

NEW YORK - Amid accusations of sexual harassment and doctoring nursing home death numbers, Governor Andrew Cuomo is now facing new scrutiny.  This time about the book he wrote about his leadership during the COVID pandemic.

The New York Times is reporting that during negotiations for his four-million-dollar book deal last June, senior aides, including Melissa DeRosa were allegedly falsifying the number of nursing home deaths so it would not tarnish the Governor's image as a national leader and hurt book sales.

"When you are the Governor of a state, you should know that you can't use your campaign to sell your own product," said Jordan Libowitz of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. CREW, as it's known, has filed a complaint with the New York state Board of Elections saying the Governor appears to have violated election law by using his campaign funds and government staff for personal gain.  

"This is mounting pressure for him not to run for a 4th term," said Hank Scheinkopf, a New York City political strategist.

If New Yorkers believe the Governor with his book sales tried to make money off an ongoing tragedy, it could cause long-lasting damage to the Governor's reputation and political future.

"Being paid four million dollars from not only what was a dud of a book but it makes him look like he's profiteering from a tragedy that tens of thousands of New Yorkers suffered through," said Chris Smith, a contributing editor for Vanity Fair.

FOX 5 NY reached out to the Governor's office for comment, but have yet to get a response.