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Andrew Cuomo on Principles & Values

Democratic Governor

 


Mafia stigma is painful anti-Italian American stereotype

The mafia-stigma is one of the most painful and vicious of Anti-American stereotypes. I fought it all my life as my father had done before me. I speak about it often to the Italian-American community. The Godfather movies and the Sopranos all reinforce the stereotype of the Italian as the criminal or the thug. Some people repeat the stereotype out of ignorance. The Times Union in Albany published a column about Fredo [the character from The Godfather], for which they were unapologetic even after the Italian American organization publicly complained. Some people just don't appreciate how offensive stereotypes can be.
Source: American Crisis, by Andrew Cuomo, p.124 , Oct 13, 2020

Predicted Trump would lose, charge fraud, lose in court

I made a wager with my daughters that night. I often like to say to them, "I will bet you ten dollars," as a way to get their attention and excite their competitive edge. I said, "I see the future. Donald Trump is going to lose the election and claim voter fraud as the reason he lost, claiming the mail-in ballots were fraudulent and that the Post Office mishandled the mailings. Attorney General Barr will bring the lawsuit on behalf of the United States , and will go to the Supreme Court. Trump will believe the Supreme Court will side with him because he will have the support of his Court appointees. He will believe it will be a repeat of Bush v. Gore."
Source: American Crisis, by Andrew Cuomo, p.328 , Oct 13, 2020

Divorced; refused to get annulment delegitimizing children

I remember a service with my daughters at a church in Mount Kisco the Sunday after passing that law. The priest gave a homily about how reprehensible marriage equality was. We got up and left in the middle of the service. This is after we'd had to leave our previous church because the congregation gave us a hard time about being divorced. I also had refused to get an annulment that would have made my children illegitimate.
Source: American Crisis, by Andrew Cuomo, p.76 , Oct 13, 2020

Instinct is to be aggressive; I am a controlling personality

I know my strengths and weaknesses. I want to get things done and be judged by making a positive difference, and I can be obsessive in that pursuit. I have disdain for the shallowness and the duplicity of political theater and no longer want to hold my
Source: American Crisis, by Andrew Cuomo, p.13 , Oct 13, 2020

1982: ran father Mario Cuomo's gubernatorial campaign

As a teenager in Queens, New York, Cuomo put up posters to help his father, Democrat Mario Cuomo, campaign for state office. Andrew graduated from Fordham University in 1979, the year in which his father became New York lieutenant governor. After graduating from Albany Law School (J.D., 1982), he ran the campaign that made his father governor (1983--95). For the next two years Andrew worked as his father's senior advisor in Albany.
Source: Britannica Encyclopedia for Clinton Cabinet biographies , Dec 2, 2018

Committed to community and standing together

I believe in Robert Kennedy's spirit of brotherhood. That is my political philosophy. That is what this campaign has been about--bringing people together in community and sharing and helping.
Source: All Things Possible, by Andrew Cuomo, p. 10 , Oct 14, 2014

Liberals believe that government could solve all problems

It took the White House and Congress just a few months to establish monumental programs like Model Cities, Head Start, Medicare, and Medicaid, and the Job Corps, and to pass the Elementary and Secondary Education Act that gave federal money to public schools for the first time. Democrats and liberals had a bedrock belief in the idea that the government could correct even the most otherwise intractable problems. They passed laws and established initiatives to ban literary tests at the polls, wipe out rural poverty, and force integration. The gospel was that government could solve all.
Source: All Things Possible, by Andrew M. Cuomo, p. 18 , Oct 14, 2014

Committed to community and standing together

I believe in Robert Kennedy's spirit of brotherhood. That is my political philosophy. That is what this campaign has been about--bringing people together in community and sharing and helping.
Source: All Things Possible, by Andrew M. Cuomo, p. 10 , Oct 14, 2014

Practical experience trumps theory, no matter how visionary

I've realized that the best teacher isn't theory but practice. Yes, the vision can sound good on paper or in a speech. Yes, it can inspire. But a good theory does not automatically lead to a good policy. I saw then how dangerous it can be for politicians, Democrats or Republicans, to wage political arguments from on high, with little knowledge of the ultimate consequences of their actions and decisions--and I hold fast to the memory.
Source: All Things Possible, by Andrew M. Cuomo, p. 30 , Oct 14, 2014

OpEd: Primary challenge doubles the campaign donation limit

Though Zephyr Teachout's campaign can prove disruptive to Cuomo's early election season, it has one silver lining for the incumbent. Without a primary challenger, Cuomo would have to return a percentage of donations he received. With Teachout's entry, Cuomo will be able to accept maximum donations for both the primary and general election cycles
Source: Buzzfeed.com blog on 2014 New York State gubernatorial race , Jun 13, 2014

Five-point plan to build a New NY

    Andrew Cuomo's five-point plan to build a New NY.
  1. Clean Up Albany: We must restore honor and integrity to government.
  2. Get Our Fiscal House In Order:
  3. Immediately impose a cap on state spending and freeze salaries of public employees.
  4. Rightsizing Government: Government in NY is too big, ineffective, and expensive
  5. NY Works: We must make New York the jobs capital of the nation
  6. NY Leads: in protecting and advancing individual rights and safeguarding the future of its citizens.
Source: 2010 Gubernatorial campaign website, andrewcuomo.com , Nov 2, 2010

To win the argument, you must make one

Democrats lost elections in 2000 and 2002 because we were lost in time. We showed little understanding of the vast changes in the world and were unresponsive to the needs of the times. We expressed no clear vision for the future. We had become the party of fear instead the party of hope--spending more time warning what Republicans would take away rather than we did on what Democrats had to offer. To voters, we seemed bloodless, soulless, and clueless. It is not because we are a party devoid of ideas, passion, or soul but because we fooled ourselves into a political strategy of timidity. In the most recent election, Democrats feared appearing in stark contrast to a popular president and thereby failed to offer a competing vision of the future. "To win the argument you must make one."
Source: Crossroads, by Andrew Cuomo, p. 58-59 , Oct 14, 2003

Aggressive progressives: social/economic/racial justice

True Democrats are aggressive progressives. We challenge the status quo, norms, and biases. For Democrats, the ideal society is a purely just and compassionate society. Therefore, Democratic success means a country where no child sleeps in poverty, where there are no victims of discrimination, where everyone has clean, decent and affordable housing, where each child receives a high-quality public education, where there is a safety net for people who require assistance, and where the US is a respected beacon of democracy and freedom for every country on the globe. Of course, this is an idealistic and optimistic world-view. Therefore, the Democratic agenda is a call to arms. It is an ongoing struggle; it is a journey more than a destination.

To me, the essence of the Democratic philosophy is the concept of "justice" in the fullest sense: social justice, economic justice, and racial justice.

Source: Crossroads, by Andrew Cuomo, p. 62-63 , Oct 14, 2003

Other governors on Principles & Values: Andrew Cuomo on other issues:
NY Gubernatorial:
Andrew Giuliani
Joe Pinion
Larry Sharpe
Lee Zeldin
Letitia James
Rob Astorino
Tom Suozzi
NY Senatorial:
Antoine Tucker
Charles Schumer
Joe Pinion
Josh Eisen
Kirsten Gillibrand
Mike Sapraicone
Gubernatorial races 2025:
New Jersey Governor:
Virginia Governor:
    Democratic primary June 17 cancelled:
  • Abigail Spanberger, U.S.Rep., VA-7 (2019-2024); Dem. nominee 2025
  • Levar Stoney, VA Secretary of the Commonwealth (2014-2016); (withdrew to run for Lt. Gov.)

    Republican primary June 17 cancelled:
  • Winsome Earle-Sears, Lt. Gov. since 2022; GOP nominee 2025
  • Amanda Chase, State Senate District 11 (2016-2023); failed to make ballot
  • Denver Riggleman, U.S.Rep. (R-VA-5); exploratory committee as Independent
  • Glenn Youngkin, Incumbent Governor , (2022-2025), term-limited
Mayoral races 2025:
NYC Mayor Democratic primary June 24, 2025:
  • Adrienne Adams, speaker of the City Council
  • Andrew Cuomo, former governor of New York, 2011-2021.
    Republican June 24 primary cancelled; general election Nov. 4:
  • Eric Adams, incumbent Democratic mayor running as an independent
  • Jim Walden, Independent; Former assistant U.S. Attorney
  • Curtis Sliwa, Republican; CEO of the Guardian Angels

Jersey City Mayor (Non-partisan)
    Non-partisan general election Nov. 4:
  • Mussab Ali, former president of the Jersey City Board of Education
  • Bill O'Dea, Hudson County commissioner (since 1997)
  • Jim McGreevey, former N.J. Governor (2002-2004)
  • James Solomon, city councilor (since 2017)
  • Joyce Watterman, president of the Jersey City Council (since 2023)

Oakland CA Mayor
    Non-partisan special election April 14, 2025:
  • Barbara Lee, U.S.Rep CA-12 (1998-2025)
  • Loren Taylor, Oakland City Council (2019-2023), lost general election
  • Sheng Thao, Oakland Mayor, lost recall election Nov. 5, 2024
Abortion
Budget/Economy
Civil Rights
Corporations
Crime
Drugs
Education
Energy/Oil
Environment
Families/Children
Foreign Policy
Free Trade
Govt. Reform
Gun Control
Health Care
Homeland Security
Immigration
Infrastructure/Technology
Jobs
Local Issues
Principles/Values
Social Security
Tax Reform
War/Iraq/Mideast
Welfare/Poverty

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