Cuomo says he ‘never apologized’ to NYPD for saying they ‘did not do their job’

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) said he never apologized to the New York Police Department (NYPD) for saying they “did not do their job” amid demonstrations protesting the death of George Floyd.

NYPD Chief Terrance Monahan told NBC News’s “Today” show that the governor’s office called him and Police Commissioner Dermot Shea to apologize and say that Cuomo “did not mean to put down the police officers.” 

In a radio interview with WAMC, Cuomo denied ever apologizing to them because his comments were directed specifically at the management, not the officers themselves. 

“I never apologized … I never said the cops were to blame. I’ve been very close to the NYPD since day one, I said it’s the management, who is responsible for the deployment and the orders that they give to the police,” he said.

“It’s never the police. I never apologized because said anything about the officers besides that they are the best law enforcement in the United States,” Cuomo added. 

The NYPD has faced scrutiny in recent days over its handling of protests in the city, including videos showing them lurching through protesters in SUVs and another of an officer pushing a woman to the ground.

At a press conference Tuesday Cuomo said that “the NYPD and the mayor did not do their job last night,” adding that, “It was a disgrace.”