The Cuomo impeachment probe is a sham

That does not matter, though, to Cuomo’s allies in the State Assembly. With studied indignation, they insisted that they would leave no stone unturned in their impeachment investigation: the nursing homes, the book deal, the favorable treatment for family and friends, the sexual harassment, even a kerfuffle over bridge safety. Democrats pledged to get to the bottom of every Cuomo scandal (at least the current ones — the corruption scandal from a few years back is apparently water under the unsafe bridge). As I explained when all this theater was rolled out, the Democrat vow to conduct a comprehensive probe was not a statement of determination; it was a pose. Democrats do not want to investigate Cuomo; they want to say they are investigating him. They are claiming to do a comprehensive probe because the more extensive it is, the longer it will take. As torpor sets in, any idea of removing Cuomo will pass. State Democrats have no intention of impeaching the governor, just of looking like they’re reacting in a serious way to convincing reports of impeachable conduct. Naturally, it turns out that they’re so very serious about the sprawling Cuomo investigation that they’ve allocated a whopping $250,000 for Davis Polk & Wardwell, an elite New York law firm, to conduct it. That happened about a month ago, and the retention contract anticipated a year of work. I have no doubt that the “investigation” will grind on, after a fashion, for a year and more. Nevertheless, as the Post reports, $250,000 is enough … maybe … if you cut a few corners … for … wait for it … three weeks of work by Davis Polk.