Andrew Cuomo Under Fire For Focusing On 2020

Governor Andrew Cuomo (D-NY) can hardly let a week go by without making moves toward running for president in 2020. Earlier in March, Cuomo was called out for hiring Florida-based fundraisers. Now Cuomo is taking heat for using the New York state government payroll to build up his political machine:

“Cuomo announced 27 staff appointments on Tuesday and 12 either worked for the Obama White House, the federal government or in a presidential campaign. ‘The governor is gearing up for re-election next year. And if he gets re-elected, he’ll be prepared if he wants to take the next step,’ said political consultant Hank Sheinkopf, a reference to Cuomo’s possible presidential run in 2020.”

Cuomo’s staff moves didn’t escape the attention of the New York Post editorial board. They blasted Cuomo for putting the interests of his political future above New York:

“All this, as the gov pads his staff with political hacks who, as one consultant put it, ‘know how to do things beyond the Hudson River.’ Which is plainly where Cuomo’s now focused — not on New York’s real interests.”

Cuomo is no longer even trying to hide the fact that he’s more focused on running for president than running New York. Before Cuomo can launch a presidential run though, he must first win re-election in 2018. Alas, voters are known to look unfavorably on politicians who forget where they’ve come from.