New York Governor Andrew Cuomo appeared to ignore President Donald Trump’s attempts to start a political spat with him Tuesday, saying that he wants “total partnership” with Trump to fight the coronavirus.
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“Sometimes it’s better to walk away from a fight than engage in it. Sometimes it takes more strength frankly to walk away from a fight than engage,” Cuomo said, recalling a personal anecdote.
“The president will have no fight with me. I will not engage in it,” he added.
“I’ve sat here every day for 44 years asking New Yorkers to remember that this is not about me, it’s about we. I understand your personal inconvenience. I understand you are frustrated and stressed and anxious and you’re feeling pain. Think about we. Get past yourself and think about society and think about your family, think about interconnection. And act responsibly for everyone else.”
“This is no time for politics and it’s no time to fight. I put my hand out in total partnership and cooperation with the president. If he wants a fight, he’s not going to get it from me. Period,” he added. “This is going to take us working together. We have a real challenge ahead.”
Trump claimed Monday that he has full authority to re-open the economy, regardless of what governors want.
“You have a couple of bands of Democrat governors, but they will agree to it,” Trump said. “The authority of the president of the United States, having to do with the subject we’re talking about, is total.”
“When somebody is the President of the United States the authority is total, and that’s the way it’s got to be” the president also claimed.
Cuomo rebuked the president in appearances on morning cable shows Tuesday, telling MSNBC that Trump’s briefing was “infuriating and offensive, and, frankly, ignorant of the facts.” (RELATED: Could Andrew Cuomo Walk Away From A Brokered Convention With The Democratic Nomination?)
Trump appeared to respond in a series of tweets Tuesday.
“Cuomo’s been calling daily, even hourly, begging for everything, most of which should have been the state’s responsibility, such as new hospitals, beds, ventilators, etc. I got it all done for him, and everyone else, and now he seems to want independence! That won’t happen,” Trump said.