New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo Spotted Without a Mask

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo arrives with a face mask at a news conference on May 21, 20
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
Hannah Knudsen

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D), known for frequently criticizing Americans who refuse to “mask up”, was spotted without a mask in public.

A photo is circulating on social media, showing Cuomo outside and walking a dog without a mask.

“Found this picture of someone without a mask on the internet today,” Fox News meteorologist Janice Dean wrote. Dean has been a sharp critic of the governor over his administration’s March 25 order requiring recovering patients to be placed in nursing homes.

She lost both of her in-laws, who were in elderly care facilities, to the Chinese coronavirus in Cuomo’s New York.

Cuomo has been one of the most outspoken politicians during the coronavirus pandemic, loudly voicing his position on the importance of wearing a mask. In June, Cuomo urged Trump to sign an executive order “directing everyone to wear a mask” and begged the president to “lead by example.” The following month, speaking to MSNBC’s Nicolle Wallace, Cuomo cited studies that suggest thousands could die due to the lack of a nationwide mask mandate. Cuomo said:

Nicolle, that we’re still talking about masks is indefensible. You have the IHME projection model, which is the model that the White House follows. It’s funded by Gates. They say 40,000 more Americans will die because we didn’t have a mask policy. Forty thousand people will die because we didn’t have a mask policy? Every health expert says it. Every federal health expert says it. The CDC says it. The NIH says it. That we’re allowing politics to allow Americans to die is a level of dysfunction that we haven’t seen in this country before.

In July, the New York governor introduced “Mask Up America,” a pro-masking campaign featuring several celebrities speaking on the importance of wearing a mask:

“We can only beat this virus if we are united as one, not divided by ideology or politics,” Cuomo said in a statement detailing the campaign.

“In that spirit, we worked with the best and most creative team to deliver this vital message in multiple ways and in different voices – I wear a mask to protect you and you wear a mask to protect me,” he said. “It is as simple as that. Mask Up America.”

The governor has remained consistent in his call for others to wear a mask, writing on Monday, “Wear a mask. Stop the spread. Protect yourself”:

This is not the first time Cuomo has been spotted without a mask since the start of the pandemic. In July, the New York governor failed to wear a mask during a visit to Georgia. Photos showed Cuomo in close proximity to others without a face covering:

Despite that, Cuomo has been consistent in instructing others to wear masks, as his own Twitter feed shows:

It remains unclear why Cuomo was not following his own instructions and wearing a mask in public.

COMMENTS

Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.