his top aide, melissa derosa, resigning. she was one of his most trusted advisers. sitting next to him during his pandemic news conferences. she released a statement late sunday reading in part, personally, the past two years have been emotionally and mentally trying. adding, i am forever grateful for the opportunity to have worked with such talented and committed colleagues on behalf of our state. she did not mention cuomo. her resignation comes less than a week after new york's attorney general concluded cuomo sexually harassed 11 women. and now, the woman described in the report as executive assistant number one, brittany commisso is speaking publicly. >> there was a kiss on the cheek. and there was a hug. and then when he went to go kiss me on the cheek, he quickly turned his head and he kissed me on the lips. the governor needs to be held accountable. what he did to me was a crime. he broke the law. >> reporter: telling cbs, why she didn't come forward sooner. >> people don't understand this is the governor of the state of new york. those troopers that are ther

eastern, falling apart at the seams, embattled governor governor cuomo top aid and defender melissa derosa resigning in a shocking move, the women who filed the criminal complaint against him, speaking out for the first time. we are following the developing story all morning long. a massive sophisticated drug tunnel found near the us-mexico border, as we learn the cartels are encouraging migrants to take uber and lyft to cross into the united states. the latest ahead. a look at markets as futures are mixed this monday morning, this off a green week for all three major market gauges. the dow jones and s&p 500 notching record closes friday. european markets on the downside. overseas and in asia a mixed story. nikkei in japan close for the mountain day holiday. "mornings with maria" alive right now. ♪♪ dagen: some of the top stories we are watching, president biden 1.2 trillion dollar infrastructure bill clearing a major hurdle in the senate. lauren has more. >> that's right 18 republicans joining democrats in voting to end the debate sending the package on a path towards the final vote w

i think there are a lot of questions for his senior staff, especially melissa derosa, who seemingly is involved in both cases. griff: we are following both of those investigations. before i lose you, mike, i've got to ask you about a new report coming out of your state showing taxpayers are paying up to $1 million a night to house the homeless in new york city since the pandemic started. you can see there it's a simple number, 1 million. what's happening there and what do new york city taxpayers feel about that? >> well, this is a culmination of seven and-a-half years of failed leadership by bill de blasio. he has failed to adequately address the homeless crisis in new york city. it's skyrocketed under his administration because they weren't providing the necessary mental health and drug addiction treatment needed for many of these people who are suffering and they need assistance and so now as a result of his failed leadership and the pandemic, taxpayers are paying million dollars a day to house the homeless in hotels. it's a terrible policy, both from an economic standpoint, it's a t

he has acted with impunity with the help of people closest to him, and melissa derosa is one of those people. her name appears in the ag report any times. you see her trying to not only make efforts to retaliate against one of the 11 accusers but what you see her do is make comments that are t only outside of the realm of public service but absolutely answer -- absolutely antithetical to public service. my experience in the chamber from day one was one where it was very clear to me that the executive chamber was run solely to serve the needs of andrew cuomo. it was not to serve the needs of new yorkers. this was carried out in a way, undermining staff, yelling at staff. it felt like a whiplash between you have value but you are valueless. that was an experience of gas lighting that made many people leave -- live in a constant state of fear that you would lose your job, a fear that you would be embarrassed, i fear that you would do something wrong and be sidelined. that collective experience is what is part of the toxic workplace environment, but really what it lends itself to is the p

melissa derosa resigning and in the statement she did not mention the governor. she mentioned a number of times in the attorney generals report, she's been by the governor's side for sometime. anything to make of this resignation? >> it's a very -- it is like an atom bomb dropping in the governor's inner circle. for melissa derosa to depart in a statement like that issued ber her and not the executive chamber and did not mention the governor or say anything about her service or for the state with him for the past ten years. so it is very telling and it is arguable by one of the biggest defections in his administration to date. >> and do you think it is a sign of anything else to come? is there a sense there in albany? >> you know, there is. you know, many people are speculating would derosa leave before he resigned to get a clean clean break to say i left him and to probably try to salvage her reputation. but the governor has given all indications that he's digging in and he plans to fight this and his lawyers have tried to counter the attorney general's report t

melissa derosa's mother-in-law is the u.s. attorney for southern district of new york. they will have to bring in somebody else from the department of justice to properly do an investigation without a conflict of interest. you have nine, i think it is the democratic lawmakers that are calling on the governor to take some dramatic action and step away from this issue. you have the one specific democrat who is saying that he was threatened. i think anybody in law enforcement would like to know specifically. remember this is allegedly a coverup of the numbers. it is not just about new york. the centers for disease control is trying to figure out how the disease is spread, who it is affecting, how it is being affected. so when you cover up, don't provide the data, the centers for disease control it affects us across the country because then the scientists cannot do their job. elizabeth: that is an important point you just made. you know, you wonder if the biden administration, if the doj there would do a probe because of what you

did the governor know melissa derosa's inresigning was coming? >> i don't want to get into conversations but i want to say this about her, she has worked non-stop 24/7 for the last two years and it takes a toll on you, particularly through covid and the last six months if you look at, you know, some of the ways she's been to rportrayed ie media, it was not fair to her. she gave a detailed statement about her departure and i'll leave it at that. i think that melissa worked very hard for the people of the state of new york and i don't have anything more to say on that. >> i know you don't want to characterize their conversations but were you given a heads up, did the governor know this was coming. >> i won't comment on my conversation with the governor. >> all right. brittany in the interview this morning, she described an interaction with the governor according to the a.g.'s report took place on december 31st, 2019. the selfie the governor requested. take a listen. >> i then felt while taking the selfie his hand go down my back on to my butt and h

derosa, what was reported by "the new york post" late last night is that melissa derosa had a conversation with new york state democratic lawmakers and admitted that they withheld this information from the feds because they wanted to block a doj investigation. i believe and my colleagues in the new york congressional delegation believe as many others as well that there should be a an investigation into this. not just the consequences of the original policy and a cover-up that followed but also fast forward to what we were learning last night. there is an admission of what could be obstruction of justice. >> sandra: and it janice dean as well has spoken up to so many families. what level of accountability are you looking for here and do you believe based on what you know today that the governor engaged in a criminal offense? >> the investigation is what you need to do to determine who is specifically should be held accountable from the criminal justice standpoint, obstruction of justice seems to be admitted and what "the new york post" was reporting late yesterday. as you point to janice de

this as melissa derosa last night, mentioned 187 times in the attorney general's report. reporting that derosa resigned after determining that cuomo no longer had a pact to stay in office and she would no longer be willing to publicly defend him. meantime, roberta kaplan, an attorney for the #metoo organization has resigned. lgbtq organization, actually under investigation. his name is alfonso david. they are both accused and the attorney general's report of helping governor cuomo retaliate against one of his sexual harassment accusers. >> john: the onion just keeps getting peeled back, layer by layer. brian, thanks so much. we are expecting the speaker of the assembly as well as chairman of the judiciary to come out later on this afternoon and sort of explain next apps and all of this. >> anita: you've got two things going on. the judiciary committee meeting, and now you have the criminal complaint, so like you said, the heat is getting turned up. >> john: moment by moment. >> john: moment by moment. >> john: joining us in a little bit to talk about this, make sure you s

we do understand the eastern district of new york which is not where melissa derosa's mother in law, the neighboring jurisdiction, the fbi fair and the us attorney is starting to look into this but for this candidate to say he is open to it, doesn't seem like he is really interested in pursuing it. i am calling for a special prosecutor to be appointed so we have clear independence on this and don't get a whitewashing. jillian: thank you for joining us, appreciate it. todd: fire erupts when a train and an 18 wheeler, lied. that's never good news. what caused that crashed? jillian: president biden holds a virtual meeting with the canadian prime minister. they are not talking publicly about their feud over the keystone pipeline, the conversation next. ♪♪ ♪♪ walk away ♪♪ ♪ ♪ four filets. you know this dinner's for their... kids. thanks for watching them. where's the pizza? the buick encore gx. current eligible non-gm owners get nearly $4,300 purchase allowance on 2020 buick encore gx models. >> us airlines grounding planes of the same type of engine that. up after taking

melissa derosa, his top aide resigned. the last two years have been emotionally and physically trying. i am grateful for the opportunity to work with colleagues in our state. after an executive assistant filed a criminal complaint. her quote, what he did to me was a crime. let's bring in melissa owen, criminal defense attorney. and i just want to play a a little bit from brittany commisso talking about what she went through. >> to me this was a dream job and it unfortunately turned into a nightmare. i know the truth. he knows the truth. i know what happened and so does he. the governor needs to be held accountable. >> being held accountable to you means seeing the governor charged with a crime. >> what he did to me was a crime. he broke the law. >> dana: from your vantage point and expertise and background was it a crime and could he face a criminal charge? >> so there is a question of whether or not the very basic threshold of charging can be met. often the answer to that is yes if somebody is making allegations that ther

he also defended his top aide, melissa derosa that admitted that they withheld nursing home death toll information in terms of the data because they feared political backlash from the trump administration who at the time asked the doj to beginning a inquiry into the nursing home scandal. governor cuomo said the data wasn't being hidden by legislatures. no, instead, it was just being delayed while they dealt with the doj inquiry. democratic assemblyman ron kim that lost his uncle, a u.s. army veteran to covid-19 veteran said they were withholding data because of politics. >> he didn't address the core problem that we're dealing with. if secretary derosa came to us and told us those things, we could have disagreed and we could have argued back. but that's not what she did. that's not what she told us. >> the reality is, jerry, for months reporters as well as others have been -- and legislators have been asks for the full data, the full scope of the death toll and the thousands moved from hospitals to nursing homes. they were being stonewalled and now democrats and republicans want a full

melissa derosa said his team froze because they were worried that giving out the information "would be used against him." that aid trying to walk back that statement today saying the governor's office was "comprehensive and transparent." greg, it keeps on getting worse and worse for governor cuomo. i guess the biden doj's dropping the nursing home investigation but the state of new york is coming after him. >> greg: this scandal sent his political career to one of his rest homes because i don't think it's going to survive, nor should it. the one thing that bugs me is how his team apologized to the state democrats for putting them in a difficult position. may be apologizing to them first is not a good look. there's a whole other group of people you should be apologizing, like to the victims' families, it was a political apology. they are more worried about how the fallout would affect them politically, and they didn't seem too concerned about the press because i guess they figured the press would run cover for them, because they have in the past. remember how much they love their cuomo.

guess what melissa derosa said under oath: we had pretty regular contact. chris sends me a lot of the things a lot of the time. and there are pages and pages of text messages. chris has a lot to answer for, maybe more than -- >> harris: maybe ms. cuomo should be asking questions. i'm not kidding. >> emily: allegations what we know so far observation results not withstanding it's unethical, unprofessional at a minimum and goes up to potentially criminal. because you are exactly right. that's witness intimidation and a lot more unprofessional. >> harris: if you are a a woman in that environment and you have to work with chris cuomo what do you say? >> emily: former executive producer said it best when she wrote an op-ed detailing the assault she had been subjected to in front of her husband apologize for in writing. why wasn't he terminated then. it's against state and federal law workplace sexual harassment conduct and that includes activities outside of the workplace where work people are present, a sanctioned event. all of this is absolutely aberrant that

derosa. and there is also as you mi mentioned one of the accusers stepping into the public light and attaching a name and a face to some of the most serious ac accusations. some of the sexual harassment allegations that have come forward toward the governor. and then the final point, the new york state assembly getting closer to a potential impeachment vote. that is happening in closed session, a conversation between those lawmakers and investigators. we were told that later this afternoon we could get a better idea in terms of what the timeline is for that investigation. but late last week we reported that the governor is on notice and told that he has until this friday to provide lawmakers with any kind of evidence that he feels might potentially help his case. but back to the second point that i made and brittany comisso who spoke publicly. i want you to hear a portion of that exclusive interview that she gave cbs news as she described one of the aencounters that took place. and keep in mi

no one is afraid of melissa derosa. some people were afraid of the governor. that is why those folks ruled in fear but that fear has dissipated. women have come out as you well know, talked about the allegations of sexual harrassment, even assault. legislators have spoken up. he is facing impeachment investigation in the assembly as well as numerous investigations but the reality is, every day we learn some new scandal, some new coverup, some new corruption from this governor and his time i believe in office is short-lived and he should have resigned already. elizabeth: now we've got the ninth accuser sherry vill speaking to the new york state attorney general's office. we'll be staying on that. so final word. he also picked a huge fight with bill de blasio of new york saying he is obviously ego driven and narcissistic. your final word on that? >> well, i guess you know, it would take two to identify each other so to speak. so look it, the mayor, and the governor have not gotten along their entire time. i'm sure the mayor is enjoying the role reversal but, i w

ask melissa derosa your confidante, your right hand and you couldn't have been more aggressive andrew because you are too busy promoting yourself on the national stage with your pathetic attempts to promote yourself as a presidential candidate. funny though how "cnn" isn't talking about you now but there's your movement to remove your emergency powers done in a movement to impeach you did turn a general investigating you. once a liar, with a always a liar. once a crook, resa curt or give it up and her. no one believes a word you say and most of all the families of those killed by your mandates. thanks so much for watching. i'm judge jeanine pirro advocating for truth justice and the american way. you can catch me on cameo and i will see you next saturday night. greg: thanks to "cnn" we learned a lot of new things about president biden. a he likes to build a fire in the oval office b uses the fireplace c he often throws a logon otherwise known as the john kerry, d he likes to read the newspaper on a plane. this is some crazy [bleep] so what else will we hope to learn from our fearless

>> remember a top aide to governor cuomo melissa derosa told state lawmakers in a private meeting that the state delayed share wgt legislature the full scope of covid-related deaths of nursing home residents because of can concerns about a potential federal investigation. now, one person who was on that call was new york democratic assemblyman ron kim who represents queens. what he has now told cnn is that last week after the story first broke, governor cuomo called him wanting him to put out a new statement. kim told cnn governor cuomo called on me directly on thursday, called me directly on thursday to threaten my career if i did not cover up for melissa derosa and what she said. he tried to pressure me to issue a statement and it was a very traumatizing experience. now, he went on to say that that cuomo said we're in this business together and we don't cross certain lines. and he said i hadn't seen his wrath and that he can destroy me. now, cnn also spoke with kim's wife who says that she overheard parts of the phone call and heard cuomo saying things like who do you think you are,

it was compounded with the phone call that you were on for democratic lawmakers when melissa derosa said, she said in addition to attacking cuomo's democratic governors trump "directs the department of justice to do an investigation into us and we froze. we were then in a position if we weren't sure we were going to give -- what we were going to give them was going to be used against us." so he's saying today, that's not the way it sounds. what really happened is we had a state investigation, a doj investigation so we held back on the seat numbers while we addressed the doj. he said over and over assembly man, we did the best we could. these people how they died and that directive came out didn't change. this is what happened. it attacks older people. he said as much as everybody wants to blame somebody, it's not his fault. has anything changed based on what you just heard? >> i think that's the talking point, the script that they want to tell us. oh, let's go take care of the federal inquiry first and then we'll get to you. that's why it was delayed. but that's not what we heard. that's

the latest fallout, the resignation of top aide melissa derosa, at his side during months of pandemic appearances, quitting under fire for aiding his cover-up of sexual harassment accusations, according to the investigation report. derosa says she's stepping aside after an emotionally and mentally trying two years. one of cuomo's accusers describes her interactions with the governor to cbs. >> these were not hugs that he would give his mother or, you know, his brother. these were hugs with the intention of getting some personal sexual satisfaction out of. and then there was at one point a hug and then, when he went to kiss me on the cheek, he quickly turned his head and he kissed me on the lips. >> joining us now, nbc's kathy park in albany. governor cuomo disputes these allegations and denies any wrongdoing, but the state's democratic lawmakers are moving forward. there are some ripple effects within some major national advocacy groups. >> reporter: andrea, good afternoon. yeah, that is absolutely right. i'll start with some breaking news that probably just came in in the past hour o

it's not just the comment by melissa derosa saying we froze and we were afraid the numbers would reflect badly. now you have senior staff that says yes, that's what happened and the numbers were adjusted in that report, which is pretty stunning. in terms of the cnn coverage, you know, with your media analysis hat on, you know, how good of a job are they doing at this point of the nursing home issue and the calls for andrew cuomo to resign? >> it's like being down four touch downs and you get the offense going. last year you had andrew cuomo on the 9:00 p.m. show on cnn, which is anchored by his brother. i believe it was 11 times. ten of the 11 times andrew cuomo wasn't asked about the nursing home scandal once. this is after there was plenty of reporting on this. now only now they're saying that chris cuomo can't cover this because of a conflict of interest. the very conflict of interest that they promoted last year and embraced is a p.r. mess and nightmare for cnn concerning what they did last year saying what they can't do now. >> martha: great to have you on, joe. a story exclusive wi

>> well, melissa derosa was the highest ranking official. she basically ran the governor's office and in many respects ran state government here in new york. she was the governor's most trusted aid. i know from dealing with her she was both liked and very much feared by reporters. you also knew when you were talking to her, that was as good as talking to cuomo himself because they saw eye to eye. the loss was really astounding. we found out about this last night. we certainly thought that one of the last people remaining standing with the governor would have been melissa derosa. something about the report spooked her and she wanted out, wolf. >> which is very dramatic indeed. jennifer, there are 11 women where claims are specifically detailed in the state attorney general's report. when you look at the totality of governor cuomo's legal exposure right now, what stands out to you? >> well, you know, it is hard to say. he's got this criminal possibility. i think the civil exposure, though, is huge because not only do you have the 11 women whos

we know the truth because melissa derosa never expected her meeting with fellow democrats would come out. i will tell you this, she was not remorseful. she spoke to the cuomo administration she has her finger on the pulse of the cuomo mono administration but she was not remorseful that 15000 senior citizens died preventable deaths and cause undue pain to thousands upon thousands of people. she was apologetic to her fellow democrats because of the political fallout it caused them. it gave them a bad election. that says it all to me. kennedy: yes, that was the most important thing to her was apologizing to people within her own party for some political difficulties. so jim, are we seeing democrats reach out to you? are we reaching critical mass here? and do you think this governor will be impeached and removed? >> the first thing we need to deal you mentioned that his takeaways emergency abilities. your due diligence with checks and balances with that we have to support my bill unless the committee members who control the senate are willing to subpoena, the commissioner, melissa derosa

the long time aide secretary to the governor melissa derosa is stepping down, and that is significant and she has been alongside through thick and thin for many years, yasmin. >> and barbara, talking through several scenarios taking place with the governor and as dasha was speaking, charles lavine was on the screen talking at the press conference that we are monitoring. and so, you have one criminal investigation in albany and another in westchester and going down the state to manhattan and all three simultaneously taking place, and how do they progress and when do they go from investigation to charge, and could they affect one another? >> i think they could, but one of the things that is very important in a criminal case is the admissibility of evidence of prior bad acts, and so if somebody did something that they are charged with is not admissible, because it is not assumed that somebody has a propensity to commit a crime, but if there is something that proves the motive or the lack of mistake or the m.o., then those things become admissible, and hearing such consistent stories from

report that accuses close staffers like top aide melissa derosa of working to discredit add least one of his accusers. >> no one who's named as doing anything unethical in my report will remain in my administration. >> reporter: for the soon-to-be new governor her title isn't the only thing changing. >> i've always viewed myself as someone behind the scenes. but i decided i have to get in the arena. i have to get in there and fight. >> reporter: cuomo still faces several criminal investigations and possible civil lawsuits. on monday, a judiciary committee will meet here to discuss impeachment. jericka duncan, albany new york. >>> coming up, deep impact. the chance that an asteroid will collide with earth has gotten higher. >>> and later, field of dreams. two major league baseball teams will square off tonight in a special stadium inspired by the legendary 1989 movie. this is the cbs morning news. m. this is the cbs morning news. , balanced nutrition for strength and energy. whoo hoo! ensure, with 27 vitamins and minerals, now introducing ensure complete! with 30 grams of protein. ♪

overnight, one of cuomo's most closest senior aides melissa derosa announcing her resignation. derosa appearing throughout the a.g. report, including for allegedly spearheading retaliation against one of cuomo's accusers. derosa has yet to respond to allegations regarding her role. some of the biggest names in national politics calling for his resignation. >> these actions are inappropriate for the governor of new york state, and i do believe that he should resign. >> i think he should resign. >> reporter: but the governor giving no indications of stepping down. >> i am not aware of the governor having plans to resign. >> reporter: now, earlier today, we did get an update on that new york assembly's impeachment investigation into governor cuomo. this could conclude within weeks is what the assembly members are saying. these democratic members of the assembly have widely said and indicated that they simply do not have confidence in the governor anymore. so the bottom line, wolf, is that it is very, very difficult right now to find anyone in new york who has confidence that he ca

but melissa derosa is all over the state attorney general report. do you think she's jumping a sinking ship? or what do you -- what do you think of this? >> i think she's looking out for her best interests. and, you know, it's very telling that, in her brief note announcing her resignation, she does not mention andrew cuomo. she doesn't mention the person, who hired her, elevated her, gave her all of that power, and worked side by side with her, literally, for -- for years. that is telling. that's not an accident. it's not like she was too busy, on the -- on a sunday night to -- to -- to put in a word of thanks to him. and what it, strongly, suggests, don, is that she sees her own, personal, and perhaps legal, interests as diverging from that of the governor. and diverging from that of the administration. i read this, as a sign that she sees the storm clouds gathering. she sees that the governor wants to fight, wants to fight with somebody. and she, also, sees that the state assembly and other sources, including now, the sheriff of albany county, ar

derosa, accused of discrediting at least one of the women alleging sexual harassment, according to the attorney general's findings derosa writing in part "the past two years have been emotionally and mentally trying. while his inner circle shrinks, cuomo's legal woes are growing brittany commisso self-identified as executive assistant number 1 is still showing up for work and sharing her story publicly for the first time after filing a criminal complaint against cuomo. >> that's when he put his hand up my blouse and cupped my breast over my bra. >> reporter: the governor is denying any wrongdoing and hasn't been charged with a crime his lawyer firing back today. >> with respect to brittany commisso, it just did not happen. >> reporter: governor cuomo is showing no signs of stepping down he has until friday to submit evidence in the state assembly judiciary committee to support his case lester >> kathy park in albany, thank you. >>> now to the climate crisis, and perhaps the most urgent warning yet. a new u.n. report declaring that the world is at the code red stage. richard engel has m

one key thing that happened actually over the weekend on sunday was the resignation of melissa derosa, his top aide, the woman who has spent -- if you watched every single briefing last year, if you were in the room like myself, she was in the room next to him and he was the person he would turn to to describe certain things going on with the pandemic, but also years and years of background and history between the two so once she detargeted and said she was going to resign. that was a major sign. i still didn't think it was going to be as soon as yesterday that the governor would step down, but melissa derosa's departure was absolutely a major sign of the governor being at the end. >> yeah. and to your point, his attorney ryota glavin was on this program the day before sounding defiant on behalf of her client and to a lawyer's perspective, cindy, i want to get your reaction to the governor's defense here, and a little bit and we saw it, you know, in that news conference where he kind of said, you know, he's from a different generation. he used and tried to infer that there was a cultu

derosa the administration's attorney said no one should be surprised, it happens in every investigation, and it's wildly premature to speculate what it means. cuomo, who's denied any inappropriate behavior, has recently deflected questions citing the ag's investigation. tonight cuomo's attorney said the governor often comforts new yorkers with hugs and kisses but vill says she's taking her allegation to the attorney general. lester >> anne thompson in new york, thank you. >>> ghislaine maxwell, longtime confidant o jeffrey epstein, is facing new charges for the first-time accused of sex trafficking of a minor. a new indictment accusing her of helping recruit and paying a 14-year-old girl to engage in sexual acts with epstein between 2001 and 2004 maxwell pleaded not guilty to previous charges tied to epstein. >>> in tennessee, even more rain is forecast for the nashville area, as it tries to recover from a weekend of record and deadly flooding morgan chesky is there. >> reporter: tonight a waterlogged tennessee in recovery mode after an historic drenching turned deadly. >> it felt like

and even lateesha james said to melissa derosa she had been at an event and heard she was not credible. yet the report credits her 100%. that is problematic. that is very problematic. i do take issue. again, i don't mean to be -- i do take issue that governor groped and fondled all of these women. you need to look at it is equally take theively different. we have kaitlyn does not suggest that the governor groped or fondled her. neither does the health care worker. >> i understand that. i understand you want to -- >> it's a bit frustrating. >> you want to go through every case. we don't the time for that. certainly that will come out. i do want to say over the weekend you characterized the attorney general's report as an ambush. do you still stand fwha? >> absolutely. >> okay. so let me just share -- let me share something with you. two things. one, nothing in state law actually says that you or your client are entitled to get a report from the attorney general's office beforehand. i actual will you want to put up for viewers a letter you sent to the attorney general actually -- i think

. >> the tipping point came when, in a private video call the governor's top aide, melissa derosa, told state lawmakers they delayed giving updated information to them after then president trump's department of justice sent an inquiry about nursing home deaths in the state, because, quote, basically we froze because then we were in a position where we weren't sure of what we were going to give to the department of justice or what we give to you guys. what we start saying was going to be used against us. her words, an admission that the administration stalled on showing a true picture of just how many nursing home residents died, just as the governor was lauded globally for his pandemic response. >> between his emmy for his coronavirus press briefings to governor cuomo's book, to his speech at the democratic national convention, governor cuomo has been held up as the model governor in his coronavirus response, even though new york was so hard hit by the virus early on. >> reporter: cuomo arguing today much the same as his top aide that, request for data by former president trump's depart

we learned from the report that when melissa derosa, cuomo's top aide, the one that leaked confidential files to reporters to discredit lindsey boilen, the first accuser that came forward, the report finding had that unlawful retaliation. the executive assistant participated with the aide, melissa derosa in whiting out some names before the report on boilen could be released. she then accuses of course the governor of groping her, reaching under her blouse and touching her breast and so i think the role that the media has now is to make sure that every single stonies overturned, that everything comes forward and to use their i think fundamental role which is to be the fourth estate to hold governors and governments accountable. shine a light. howie: it may well be that you're right, ben, that the media will let this drop. on the other hand you have democrats in albany who say they have enough votes to impeach the governor. if that were to happen, he would have to step aside and let the lieutenant governor take over during the impeachment process. let me get a break. we'll talk about chr

. >> for the first time we see testimony from cuomo's former top aide melissa derosa. she testified she did not see him harass anyone. investigators seemed to touch upon unsubstantiated rumors, which she and cuomo deny that they had an affair >> has he ever kissed you on the mouth? >> no. >> derosa after hours of testimony. >> would it surprise you to learn the governor frequently kissed annabel walsh >> no. i'm sorry, i'm so tired. >> she called it a day transcripts released of cuomo's brother cnn anchor chris cuomo he admitted being looped in on e-mails when the allegations surfaced in march of this year, delo sa asked him to check his sources chris cuomo respond he was on it, later answering that no one heard anything yet >> your thanks to jonathan for that report. >>> the trial of jesse smollett begins in ernest this morning. he is accused of lying to police in 2019, that he was assaulted in a hate crime. nbc news' megan fitzgerald has more. >> reporter: actor jesse smollett on trial that he staged a racist and homophobic attack three years ago. a jury of 12 in a p

. >> reporter: and his top aide, melissa derosa, resigned this weekend as state legislators in albany prepared for a possible impeachment. >> andrew cuomo was on an island. it was more difficult for cuomo to find people to take his call. he was calling around to try and gauge support. in the end he lost all meaningful political support. >> reporter: while his political future appears to be effectively over, his legal woes are perhaps only beginning. >> beyond politics, the governor is also facing the possibility of criminal charges and civil lawsuits from his accusers if they want to go down that road. in many ways the state attorney general's 165-page report could be a roadmap for attorneys. >> reporter: the governor facing potential misdemeanor charges stemming from a criminal complaint filed by his former executive assistant britney kamiso, speaking with abc news. >> he put his hand up his blouse and cupped my breast over my bra. >> reporter: cuomo's legal team disputing her account and calling the motivations for the entire attorney general's report into question. >> the report go

and when you've lost melissa derosa, who's been with him for ages, it is officially over. i think maybe that was the moment when he timely realized it's time for me to willingly go down instead of being forced out and even further disgraced. >> well, look, it doesn't sound like you're ready to give an answer. maybe you would have given it to me already. do you think it's time to move on or should this investigation go on, should impeachment still be in the air? it's clear the governor decided he doesn't want to go through with this investigation and trial. is him resigning punishment enough for you? >> well, look, i think one of the foundations here is that whether you're the 11 women who have come forward, there's word there are other women who are now coming forward to the attorney general since the report, there's got to be accountability. and certainly him being removed from office through resignation, that is some significant level of account. but my colleagues and i, we've yet to discuss whether that is enough, whether there should be impeachment. and look, this is g

melissa derosa, his secretary, has described the last two years as emotionally and mentally trying. lawmakers have accused mr colombo of 11 cases of sexual harassment. the indian actor anupam shyam has died at the age of 63. he was admitted to hospital last week with a kidney infection. he was a familiarface on kidney infection. he was a familiar face on television, and appeared in many forms. coming up — leaving home, lionel messi bids an emotional farewell to the club he has played for in his whole professional career. the big crowds became bigger as the time of the funeral approached. as the lines of fans became longer, the police prepared for a huge job of crowd control. idi amin, uganda's brutal former dictator has died at the age of 80. he's been buried in saudi arabia where he lived in exile since being overthrown in 1979. two billion people around the world have seen - the last total- eclipse of the sun to take place - in this millennium. it began itsjourney off the coast of canada, . ending three hours later when the sun set - over the bay of bengal. the latest headlines:

melissa derosa announcing her decision saying the past two years have been emotionally and mentally trying. she was one of cuomo's top supporters. her departure after a report by the attorney general alleged the governor sexually harassed 11 women. derosa name comes up 187 times in the report. cuomo, who has not been charged with any crime, denies any wrongdoing and refuses to step down. >>> r. kelly's new york trial will begin today two years after the trial was delayed in february due to issues related to the covid-19 pandemic. the disgraced singer is charged with racketeering, sexual exploitation of a child, kidnapping, bribery and forced labor. jury selection will start this morning. opening statements are expected next week. >>> we've come to the end of an unprecedented olympic games in tokyo. after a lifetime of dedication and a year delay they got their shot at glory. >> the closing ceremonies brought a joyful ending to a long journey in tokyo and a stunning light display of olympic rings floated above the empty seats. however, due to covid protocols many athletes had returned home.

mistakes were made, i think the bigger concern is the attempt to cover up the decision and we know that melissa derosa the top aide told your colleagues a week before last that the decision had been made quite deliberately to cover-up the numbers who had died as a result from nursing homes into cover-up those numbers precisely for political reasons because they were concerned they didn't want to be attacked by the trump administration. that is not a mistake that is something much more serious than a mistake that you're making emergency circumstances, isn't it? >> which is why immediately the calls were revoking the emergency powers came and it's something that we are deliberating very carefully in both chambers of the state legislature in new york and the action in my opinion is necessary to restore full public confidence in state government. gerry: great thanks to senator john liu. thank you very much indeed. democratic states struggled to reopen the schools while florida has been open for months we will take it up with the florida education or next. it. >> all be thankful for the sure strong

melissa derosa secretly told democrats cuomo hid the nursing home deaths because the feds were investigating them. they froze because the worried the information would be used against them. nearly 9,000 recovering covid-19 patients were sent to nursing homes in new york directed by cuomo and 15,000 nursing home residents died in that state. he could have used the u.s.s. comfort, but refused because he probably didn't want to give trump any credit. here to react, congressman steve scalise. the feds were looking into him because he directed these sick patients to go into these nursing homes. he looks count barrel of that gun and says no, no, no. we have to hide this. according to our research, you are looking at obstructing government administration in the second degree, you could be look at conspiracy. conspiracy -- misdemeanors are still official misconduct, but i think things are starting to tighten up for the governor. >> this report from the "new york post" is a bombshell. thousands of people died who shouldn't have died from covid, going back to march when the governor cuomo gave it orde

report that accuses close staffers, like top aide melissa derosa, of working to discredit at least one of cuomo's accusers. >> no one who is named as doing anything unethical in the report will remain in my administration. >> reporter: but for the soon- to-be new governor, her title isn't the only thing changing. >> i've just always viewed myself as someone behind the scenes, to make someone else look good. but then i decided at one point, i need to get in the arena. i have to get in there and fight. >> reporter: cuomo maintains that he did not sexually harass or grope anyone. he still faces multiple criminal investigations and possible civil lawsuits. and on monday, the judiciary committee meets here in albany to discuss impeachment. major. >> garrett: jericka duncan, thank you. tonight, we are following severe storms that have battered the upper midwest, including a tornado spotted in northeast wisconsin. no reports of damage or injuries, but hundreds of thousands lost power in wisconsin and michigan. some could be in the dark for days. tonight, more than half of all americans are un