SMELLS WEIRD

NY Vaccine Czar Grilled Officials on Their Cuomo Loyalty: Report

Larry Schwartz, an old friend of the embattled governor, insists the calls were personal, not business.

Larry Schwartz, the New York’s “vaccine czar” and a longtime adviser to Gov. Andrew Cuomo, has made multiple phone calls over the past two weeks to county officials throughout the state, asking them about their loyalty to Cuomo as demands for the Democratic governor’s resignation continue, according to the Washington Post.

Cuomo, who is in the middle of his third term, stands accused of sexually harassing and inappropriately touching at least five women who have come forward in recent weeks. One of those who was contacted by Schwartz about their support for Cuomo, an unnamed county executive cited by the Post, said they were concerned enough about the call that they notified the New York State Attorney General’s Office of their intention to file an official ethics complaint. In a statement, Schwartz—who is volunteering his time overseeing the state’s vaccine distribution—acknowledged making the calls but said he was acting in a personal capacity as a friend to Cuomo, and that he never brought up the topic of vaccines at any time.

“I did nothing wrong,” Schwartz told the Post, declining to say whether or not he had taken New York State’s ethics oath before assuming his position. “I have always conducted myself in a manner commensurate to a high ethical standard.”