This was about half an hour. Governor cuomo good morning, thank you for being here. To my right is new york city police. To my left is melissa derosa. To her left is the budget director. It is another long and ugly night in the United States of america. Last night, as it was in new york state. Day 97 of the coronavirus crisis, day 12 of the civil unrest dealing with the aftermath of mr. Floyds murder, and this is a dangerous combination, colliding crises, compounding each other. But, our job is to address what is presented, and this is the reality presented, and this is what we will deal with. On the coronavirus situation, there is a lot to learn from what we just went through, and i believe it is a transformative situation for society, and something that we can really learn from going forward. Coronavirus was a medical issue, and economic issue, but more than anything, it was a social issue. It was about how people behave, and to address coronavirus, what we had to do was to change society. It was not a government operation, it was not something i could do, people had to do it, government could provide leadership, and we had an operational component, but it was about people making the changes that had to be made. They had to accept it, and understand it, and change their behavior. That is a monumental undertaking always. Social change, when those social change happen . Social change happens when people are presented with the facts, they understand the facts, there is a plan forward based on the facts and people care enough to make a difference. With coronavirus, i sat up here every day and said here are the facts, the number of deaths, hospitalizations, this is what we are looking for. Here is a plan that could take us forward based on those facts and people were motivated because it was about life and death, and about their life and death, and their familys life and death, and we went forward. Compare the coronavirus situation to the situation we are in with the social unrest that we see. People have seen mr. Floyds murder, they are watching what is going on on the streets every day. And they are saying enough is enough and it is what they are seeing, and what they know that is disturbing, and we will show you again for those of you who have not seen a scene from buffalo and a scene from new york city. This is a story all across the state. [sirens] [shouting] hold the line. Gov. Cuomo buffalo new york, yesterday. I spoke with that gentleman on the phone who, thankfully is alive, but you see that video, and it disturbs your basic sense of decency and humanity. Why . Why was that necessary . Where was that threat that the older gentleman, where was the threat . Thethen you just walk by person when you see blood coming from his head. And Police Officers walked by. It is just fundamentally offensive and frightening. You say, who are we . How did we get to this place . Incidents of pushing the press, you have incidents of police getting hit with bricks in the head, and you say where are we . Who are we . And these are undeniable situations. The buffalo situation i want to applaud the mayor. The mayor of buffalo suspended the Police Officers yesterday, immediately. And i believe the District Attorney is looking into it from a possible criminal liability point of view, and i applaud the District Attorney for moving quickly. But people see this. They see the facts. Now, when you have all of this emotion, you have to focus on the facts and the intelligence of the matter. It cannot be about emotion. Of course, police must protect Public Safety and protect themselves. That is a fact. Of course, there are also cases of police abuse and the abuse of power. That is a fact. You can have two coincident facts. Mr. Floyds murder was the breaking point of a long list of deaths that were unnecessary, and which were abusive. That is a fact. People are saying enough is enough. That is a fact. What people are saying is we must change, and we must stop the abuse, and that is a fact. And new york should be at the forefront of that. That has always been new yorks legacy as the progressive capital. We are the ones who hold the standard of what is the right progressive reform. And new york should pass, next week, what we call the say their name reform agenda. The say their name reform agenda comes from the long list of names of people who we have seen who have been abused by Police Officers, by the criminal justice system, and mr. Floyd is just the last name on a very long list. Fine, enough is enough, change the law, reform. There are four cornerstones for our agenda, one, transparency of prior disciplinary records of a Police Officer. If they are being charged or investigated for abuse, their prior disciplinary record is relevant, and, it is relevant one way or the other. If there were no other Disciplinary Proceedings, that can exonerate the person charged. If there are prior Disciplinary Proceedings for this type of behavior, then yes, it is evidentiary, but people should know, choke holds, we went through this with eric garner. Again, you saw it with mr. Floyds death, but we learned it with eric garner and many other cases. Why . We have seen 911 calls, which , false calls. A false 911 call based on race should be classified as a hate crime in the state of new york. We know that it is wrong for the local District Attorney to investigate the police force from that county. By executive order, i made the attorney general as an independent prosecutor, that should be codified in law, i did it five years ago. These are the cornerstones of a that canrm agenda address what is going on in the street. Reform works for everyones interest. Stopping police abuse vindicates the overwhelming majority, 99. 9 of the police who are there to do the right thing, and do the right thing every day. It restores the confidence, respect, and trust that you need to make this relationship work. You have to heal the policecommunity relationship. That has to happen for the sake of the police and for the sake of the community. You look at this looting that has been going on in new york city, this hurts poor communities and distressed communities. You saw many businesses destroyed that are relied upon by that community. You cannot have the relationship that works one way or the other, and, even in this politically partisan, racially charged environment, there is still a truth, and there are still facts, and that is what we have to focus on. That was the truth with the coronavirus. Even though it was all political, and everything was partisan, and democrat, republican, red, blue, they all they offer us false choices. Coronavirus, do you want to save peoples lives or reopen the economy . And you should reopen the economy and forget public health, or you should take care of Peoples Health but not reopen the economy. It was never either or, it cant be either or. I know from a hyperbolic, rhetorical, partisan, it is one or the other, liberate new york. Worry about health, close new york. It was never one or the other, that was unintelligent. It was always both. It is the same situation here. It is not a question of Public Safety or civil rights. Whose side are you on, Public Safety or civil rights . It cannot be either or. It cannot be Police Safety or prosecutor safety. On . A side, which are you red or blue, democrat or republican, who are you with . You have to be with both. Yes you need Public Safety, and yes you need civil rights. Yes, you need police to be safe, and yes you need the protesters to be safe. These are false choices. We need both, even in this hysterical moment you need to be able to hold two truths in your hands at the same time. How do we change society to make these reforms happen . How do you have a new societal awareness . Can you do that, can you change behavior to respect one another . You are darn right you can. We know we can because we did it through the coronavirus, in a very fundamental way. You changed peoples fundamental behavior whether or not they leave the house, go to school, or go to work. They changed themselves, remarkably fast, and remarkably effective. We have the lowest number of deaths from coronavirus that we have had since this started. 42 deaths, the lowest number since we started. Eight weeks ago, we had 800. Eight weeks. 800 people die to 42 people die in eight weeks. Amazing. How did you do that . I did nothing. The people of the state radically changed how they behaved. Look at that progress, lowest number of hospitalizations to date, in a matter of weeks. So, we know that we can change, and we know we can change dramatically. People are focused, we have a plan, and that is when social reform happens, when people are motivated and focused. That was the civil rights act, nationally, that was the triangle shirt waist factory fire which changed labor rights in this nation, that was the Environmental Movement after storm king, that was the revolution of lgbtq rights after stonewall. That is what we just saw in coronavirus, which will go down in history as one of the great transformational moments of society. And this is a moment to lead in terms of social change. And we will do it because we are new york tough, smart, united, disciplined, loving. That is what the moment requires. Thank you. Questions . [indiscernible] we saw medics and lawyers, delivery drivers, all be arrested and assaulted by Police Officers. At this point in time, do we think that the curfew is serving its initial purpose of protecting the public, and should we rethink it . Gov. Cuomo curfew is a local decision made by mayors across the state. I support their decisions. The police need to protect the demonstrators, protect Public Safety, but they need to deal with the looters. What the looters are doing, what looting is is people exploiting the fact that police are busy. Police are busy, we can now go loot because the police are busy with the protesters. The curfews are designed to let the police be in a position where they can stop the looting. And, that has been a serious problem in many cities. The first answer is, deploy enough police. A place like new york city, you can do that, you have 36,000 police. Some cities, you do not have enough police. You dont have a sizable force that can do everything. But that is a local decision. It has been better over the past few days. You look at new york city, looting it was on the edge of chaos, on the edge of chaos. And now, you have a police force in the city that is adequately deployed, you have enough police. They have a better management plan, and you have not seen the looting the past couple of days. The entire protests have been sparked by the overpolicing of black and brown communities. Why is it that more Law Enforcement is needed when the thing that they are protesting against gov. Cuomo have you seen the videos of the looting . So if that was your business or house just destroyed, you would understand why you need police because your house was just destroyed. With all due respect, you announced the curfew with mayor de blasio, what is your opinion . The clashes you have highlighted are in large part because of the enforcement of the curfew. Do you think the curfew is serving a purpose at this point or should it be canceled . It has been in other cities. Gov. Cuomo i know you are the times, but you do not get to make up your own facts. The curfew is a local decision. It is not a state curfew, it is a local curfew. Cities put the curfew in. I do not put the curfew in. You are right, i announced the curfew with mayor de blasio in new york city after a night of looting and craziness at 11 00. The mayor revised the curfew to 8 00 and extended it, which i had nothing to do with. That is a matter of fact. Yes, that is a fact. Lets start with facts, that is what i am trying to say, and then have an opinion. If you have your own facts, you have your own opinion. Let me finish. People do not get to have their own facts, because then you have all these different opinions because they have their own facts. So, New York Times are not, you have to have facts. Your facts were wrong, these are the facts. It is a city decision. Decision, i announced the new york city one with the mayor at 11 00. He then went to 8 00 and has extended it, which i said nothing on. I support the mayors decisions. They are on the ground and working with their local police department. If they believe a curfew is necessary, i support their decisions. I support the mayors decisions. I think the looting, and the criminality was much worse. The situation we were in in new york city, which spurred the curfew was much worse, and what we have seen over the past couple of days is better in new york city. Better. It is better, and that is undeniable, by the way. On buffalo, do you think the officers involved in that incident should be fired by the city . And as a followup, when you saw that video, what was your reaction . Gov. Cuomo i was sick to my stomach. Sick to my stomach. It was the same feeling i have had for 90 of the past nights when i would get the death total from coronavirus. I would physically get sick to my stomach, and when i saw the video, i got sick to my stomach, not to be overly graphic. But, that is the answer to your question. I think mayor brown was 100 right in suspending the Police Officers last night. I think he acted quickly and appropriately, and i applaud that. The firing is in a contractual, collective bargaining question, how do you go from suspension to firing by that contract and that process. I would say, i think the city should pursue firing, and i think the District Attorney should look at the situation for possible criminal charges. And, i think that should be done on an expeditious basis. We saw in minneapolis that people want answers and they want accountability, and they want it quickly. The wheels of justice move slowly. They do not have to, you can move fast. You can turn the crank faster, and i would encourage the District Attorney not to do what happened in minneapolis, which was the delay itself caused issues. The District Attorney came out and said initially that there is other evidence that suggests something else. People do not want vague. People are upset, angry, and frustrated. Give me an answer, give me an answer quickly, explain it to me. If there is something you know that i do not know, tell me what you know. I am tired of secrets by government, so i would encourage the District Attorney to move quickly, and fairly, but quickly. I think the mayor and police chief should pursue firing and go through whatever process they have to go through. Look, the mayor suspended those two cops very quickly, and i respect that. Are you considering going out to any of these protests in a show of solidarity to both protesters and police as you have made a distinction between the two . There have been protests in albany. There is one scheduled for nearby troy for sunday, or even rochester. Do you think that would be helpful to cops and protesters if you were out there . Gov. Cuomo i am talking to everyone right now. I am also talking to the legislature about a session that will happen on monday, and that is going to be the focus over the weekend. We will see how it goes. [indiscernible] we have seen other leaders out there. Based on what the fundamental function of a Police Officer is, it attracts a certain percentage of people with toxic personality traits like hyper aggression. Is that true . And if so, is there a way to do that legislatively and to keep it from moving back in once the damage is done . There are other ways police can cause damage, which goes back to are the best people doing the job . What is your opinion on that line of thought . Gov. Cuomo if you have sophisticated testing mechanisms that are used to hire police, Civil Service tests that are used to hire police, you have training of police, etc. I do not know that there is any credence in that this occupation attracts a certain type of person. Look, to be a Police Officer is truly public service. I have total respect for the occupation and the people who do it. This is a tough job. It is a tough job and you put your life in harms way. There is no doubt about that. Also, look at the circumstances. Today, with these video cameras and telephones that have cameras, everything winds up being videotaped. Everything. I can tell you personally, everything gets videotaped. You are walking in a parade, you scratch your ear and that is on the nightly news. Everything is videotaped. And, remember what is happening here, i already said the attorney general will investigate the police conduct, so the attorney general is investigating in real time, this is like new age reality tv, you have these videos, i already told the attorney general, do an investigation, everything they are doing is being videotaped and is being investigated immediately. Because, the Investigation Report has to be due in less than a month now. So, the Police Officers know that they are being videotaped. The protesters know that they are being videotaped. They all know that they will be total accountability, not like the old days when you had to get a tip and you had to go back. It is all on videotape. And i have had these conversations directly with them. What you are doing is going to be on videotape tonight. So, there is no pretense or hiding, or maybe i will get away with something. There is no getting away with anything. It is all on videotape. The ag is investigating and happening now in real time. [indiscernible] would body cameras provide the proper context because a lot of cell phone video or bodycam video does not show everything . If all officers had body cameras, what that help . Gov. Cuomo i think that would be helpful. I do not think any of these things are the silver bullet. You are looking at a lot of the video that came from the mr. Floyd murder. It is from video, from phones, from observers, security cameras. My point to the police and protesters is, whatever you do, just assume that it is going to be videotaped and the attorney general is going to look at it tonight. That is where we are. Before you go out there tonight, when a Police Officer is getting dressed, suited up, a protester is calling their friends to go out, assume that we are going to watch the video tonight and the attorney general is going to watch it tonight, and if there is any potential liability, it will be immediate. Let us take one more. Joseph. School board elections are schools are having a difficult tuesday. Time getting the ballots out, so they either want to have the vote delayed a week, or to allow the votes to come in postmarked tuesday rather than delivered to the district on tuesday. A lot of confusion out there. Are you looking at that . Gov. Cuomo we are looking at that. We do not have a decision yet. We will over the weekend. I understand the issue, and we are looking at it, and we will have a decision by sunday. [indiscernible] gov. Cuomo i will see you tomorrow. I am off to work on saturday. You get time and a half. The house is not in session next week, but off the floor we expect house and Senate Democrats to announce their Police Reform initiative in reaction to nationwide protests. Right now the next round of votes for the house are scheduled june 30, but that could change. Watch the house live on cspan. The Senate Returns monday consider a public lands package that would permanently fund the land and Water Conservation fund while establishing a fund for maintenance of public parks and other lands. A procedural vote has been scheduled 5 30 eastern. A debate on executive and judicial nominations and a motion to meet with the house on fisa reauthorization. You can follow the senate live on cspan2. Reporter for the Charlotte Observer newspaper in North Carolina. Cspan interviewed him about the upcoming president ial race and what the impact might be on voters if the Republican Convention were split between charlotte and another city. Joining us via charlotte, North Carolina is jim morrill for the Charlotte Observer