Cuomo wishes he 'blew the bugle' on the coronavirus earlier

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) in an interview this week expressed regret that he didn't warn about the dangers of the coronavirus in December or January.

Cuomo spoke to Axios on HBO and, when asked what he wishes he could change about the actions he took during the coronavirus crisis, he said officials should have been more concerned about the threat of COVID-19 in December, despite what China was saying.

"When we heard in December that China had a virus problem, and China said basically it was under control, don't worry — we should have worried," Cuomo said, asking "where was every other country" working to "make sure China had it under control?"

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Cuomo said he wishes he personally spoke out about the threat of the virus at this time.

"I wish someone stood up and blew the bugle, and if no one was going to blow the bugle, I would feel much better if I was a bugle blower last December and January," Cuomo said. "Even though no one danced to the music, I would feel better sitting here today saying, 'I blew the bugle about Wuhan province in January. I can't say that."

This, The New York Times noted, "appeared to mark the first time Mr. Cuomo questioned his handling of the virus." Cuomo on March 2 had said that "we think we have the best health care system on the planet right here in New York" and so "we don't even think it's going to be as bad as it was in other countries." Dr. Thomas Frieden, former head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told the Times earlier this month that had New York implemented widespread social measures a week or two earlier, the state's coronavirus death toll could have potentially been reduced by between 50 and 80 percent. Brendan Morrow