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- New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo will have plenty of time to ride out his impeachment investigation.
- The probe will likely take "months, rather than weeks," according Assemblyman Charles Lavine.
- Lavine, who heads the lower chamber's judiciary committee, said the scope puts the timeline in flux.
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New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's main strategy in the face of cascading scandals has been to buy himself more time.
On Tuesday, Assembly Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Lavine, a Long Island Democrat, told lawmakers in a preliminary hearing that the probe will take "months, rather than weeks."
"At this early stage, it's not possible to say precisely how long this investigation will take," Lavine said.
Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, a Bronx Democrat, announced last week that the white shoe law firm Davis, Polk and Wardwell would be handling the investigation.
Several lawmakers and Cuomo accusers raised concerns that the firm has a potential conflict of interest in the investigation given its connections with the Cuomo administration. The main example cited by critics is how the Davis Polk's head of litigation married to the chief judge Cuomo appointed to the New York Court of Appeals.
On the audio stream of the hearing, Lavine promised due process for both the governor and the accusers. Nine women have come forward in recent weeks to accuse Cuomo of misconduct ranging from sexual harassment to unwanted sexual contact.
"Due process is not just a preset. It's not just at the heart of what makes New Yorkers tick. It's at the heart of the American democracy as well," he said.
The investigation will also involve the Cuomo administration's handling of COVID-19 deaths among nursing home residents, as well as "structural safety" issues involving snapping bolts on the Mario Cuomo bridge and whether Cuomo officials watered down a state investigation into the problem.
Cuomo has denied any wrongdoing and refused to resign despite calls from most of New York's congressional delegation to step aside.