New book, the Cuomo years.

0:00 Speaker 1 With us this morning is Melissa de Rosa and she was secretary to Governor Cuoma, which is the most powerful job in New York State. And she’s got a new book and it’s going to be a super duper book and everybody’s waiting to read it. And the title of the book, What’s Left Unsaid? My god, the stories that

0:27 will be told. Melissa de Rosa, Good morning, How are you today?

0:32 Speaker 2 Thanks? I’m great, John, Thanks so much for having me.

0:36 Speaker 1 Are you ready for the grand opening book party and the breaking of the book that everybody’s been waiting for.

0:44 Speaker 2 I’m very excited. The book comes out on Tuesday. It’ll be available in all Barnes and Nobles and local bookstores and you can buy it on Amazon. But yeah, it’s called What’s Left Unsaid, And essentially it chronicles the last two years of the Cuomo administration, So it takes everybody through the behind the scenes what was actually going on

1:06 throughout the COVID pandemic when New York was ground zero literally globally of the pandemic, and sort of brings you into room after room so that readers can understand how decisions were being made, what conversations were being had what deliberations were going on, you know, the back and forth with Trump and Kushner, the back and forth with Stablasio,

1:29 and so it really chronicled, I think, what was one of the most important moments for our city, our state, our country in the last one hundred years. And then of course brings readers through into twenty twenty one when the administration was engulfed in scandal, and tells the truth sort of never before told story of what was happening

1:49 behind the scenes through all of that and through to the end of the administration and then what we’ve learned since. So I think people will find it fascinating. I think that people who are looking to know the truth of what was going on, we’ll think there’s tons of revelations in here, and I’m really excited to get it on bookshelves.

2:08 Speaker 1 And during that period of time with COVID, Andrew Cuomo was having a two hour press conference almost every day, and I remember you sitting right.

2:21 Speaker 3 Next to him.

2:23 Speaker 2 Yeah, for one hundred and eleven days, John, I mean, it was it’s not an exaggeration to say that he was playing the role of, you know, de facto commander in chief during that period of time. You know, it wasn’t just New York. The whole country’s eyes were on him when we were sort of going through that really

2:39 scary time and there was a massive leadership gap, and he stepped into the void, and I think, you know, played the role of commander in chief and was a comforting voice. And we provided the facts as we knew them, and I think we created sort of a model for the rest of the country to follow on how to

2:56 fight back against the COVID nineteen pandemic.

3:00 Speaker 3 And did politicians in Washington, because there was rumors going around and I’m sure this might be in the book.

3:11 Speaker 1 I’m not sure because I have not read it yet and I have not seen it yet. Did they get upset that Andrew Cuomo was thinking of running for president?

3:24 Speaker 2 Well, you know, I talk about in the book, and it was actually leaked a couple of days ago that in twenty nineteen before COVID, Andrew Cuomo was contemplating potentially running for president, and he and I flew down to Virginia and he met with Steve Rishetti and then Vice President Biden about that contemplation, and they talked him out

3:44 of it, essentially saying, you know, you would cannibalize the middle. We would end up with someone like an Elizabeth Wren or a Bernie Sanders. You’re young, you can run again next time. And so you know, he deferred to the then vice president and decided not to run in twenty twenty, and then boom, the pandemic hits. He was being recognized

4:04 internationally as the de facto commander in chief. Many and the party said that they should replace Biden with Andrew Cuomo at that point on the ticket, thinking that he would have the greatest chance against Trump and that he was already sort of playing that leadership role nationally, and so there was a lot of jealousy. There was a

4:22 lot of jousting behind the scenes on all different sides. A lot of that informed how Trump was sort of posturing with us throughout. So I get into all of that in the book, and I think people will find it fascinating.

4:37 Speaker 1 So is there a possibility that the bullet, I guess you have to read the book to find out the bullet came from Washington.

4:48 Speaker 2 Well, the bullet came from Tiss James when she issued that report. But the minute that the President of the United States said, but I’m.

4:56 Speaker 1 Sure somebody gave a permission to do it.

5:00 Speaker 2 Well, I don’t know whether or not she she sought anyone’s permission, but certainly the minute that Joe Biden, who was then the President of the United States, said he had to resign, it certainly caused this tsunami effect where once the president of United States says that everybody jumps on board. And you know, it was deeply disappointing, and

5:19 I thought really out of character for somebody like Joe Biden for him to go out and say, I haven’t read the report, I don’t know the details, but he needs to resign. And you know, this was a man who Joe Biden himself has been accused of sexual assaults and sexual harassment, and he you know, for him to

5:36 be so glib about the consequences of that call for resignation what it meant in terms of essentially overturning a duly elected government, I thought was just totally out of step with who Joe Biden is. And so yeah, I get into all of that in the book, and you know how everything sort of came to a head at

5:54 that very end in August of twenty twenty one, and I can tell you what’s been reported out there on MS of both the COVID crisis and the me too allegations against the governor has not been factual and has not been told from a first hand account. Much of it has been reported based on sources who had their

6:13 own motivations, based on press who had their own sort of politics. And so this will be the first time there’s, you know, a first hand account of what was going on throughout the entire ordeal. And I think for New Yorkers in particular, given the consequences of what happened, and I mean, look around now, there’s such a lack of

6:31 leadership on so many levels, the consequences of that report of the governor’s force, resignation and what’s followed, it should matter to people. And I know a lot of people would rather just move on. The press in particular doesn’t want to revisit any of this, but you know, a government returned and there was a lot of corruption, and

6:48 there’s a lot of things that were said in the press that weren’t true, and so I think that people will find it eye opening the level of detail and the facts and the information, And so I urge people to go out and pick it up on Tuesday.

7:02 Speaker 1 We’ve got a minute left. What other teasers do you have for us?

7:09 Speaker 2 Well, I get into, you know, an issue with a New York Times reporter and I the New York Times reporter who was who was the head reporter covering the me too, you know, allegations against the governor actually had his own inappropriate engagement with me. The Times knew about it at the highest levels. They did absolutely nothing about it.

7:31 I mean, I just think it totally underscores the hypocrisy of the New York Times, which sort of dictates to the world how they believe we should live when they themselves don’t follow their own, you know, purported rules. I get into a lot of the behind the scenes jockeying with Tiss James around the report, bring people into the

7:49 room with Jared Kushner and Donald Trump for meetings in Washington and the Oval Office at the height of the pandemic, and you know, when certain decisions were made and had and what projects were being dangled over us in order to keep us quiet and not be critical of Trump.

8:03 And so there’s a lot in there. It’s really choose your own adventure. I think people will find it and it’s also deeply personal. I talk a lot about my marriage falling apart. I talk a lot about my mental health issues during that period. I talk a lot about my infertility problems I was facing while all this was

8:20 going on. And so I think people will find it incredibly eye opening. I think that they will find that the truth is strangers in fiction. And I hope they pick it up on Tuesday, and I will come back after a doubt and you’ve had a chance to look at it, John, and we can get into some of

8:33 the details.

8:34 Speaker 1 Well, I love forward. Well, it’s Melissa de Rosa, once the most powerful woman in Aubany. You cannot see the governor unless you went through Melissa. And I look forward to reading your book and I am sure it’s going to be a lot of hot stories in it. And we’ll catch you up right after that.

8:55 Speaker 2 Thanks so much, Jean. Great to be on