As New York City restaurants face an uncertain future with the latest forced closure of indoor dining, Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) is throwing himself a celebrity-filled birthday fundraiser with Robert De Niro and Ben Stiller.
The virtual party, set for Thursday, is intended to raise cash for the governor’s 2022 reelection campaign. Donation levels range from $50 for young professionals to $10,000 for the “host” level, according to the official invitation.
In addition to Meet the Parents co-stars De Niro and Stiller, the fundraiser will feature special appearances by Whoopi Goldberg, Rosie Perez, and Henry Winkler. All of those stars appeared in a recent video tribute to Gov. Cuomo during the International Emmy Awards, when the politician accepted a special Emmy in recognition of his televised coronavirus press conferences.
Cuomo, who turns 63 on Wednesday, recently ordered New York City restaurants to cease indoor dining, saying that it is necessary to slow the spread of the coronavirus. However, he also acknowledged in a press conference on Friday that close to 75 percent of the state’s coronavirus infections have come from private gatherings, while only 1.4 percent have been traced to restaurants and bars.
The new order, which takes effect Monday, is sure to deal another economic blow to the city’s restaurant industry, which is already hanging on by a thread following months of limited service.
In the early weeks of the pandemic, Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered nursing homes to accept COVID-19 patients, which is believed to have caused the virus to spread rapidly among the state’s elderly population, leading to the thousands of deaths. New York state has the second highest COVID-19 death rate in the country.
Nonetheless, Cuomo has embarked on a victory tour. In addition to his Emmy award, he published the book American Crisis: Leadership Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic. As Breitbart News reported, the volume fails to mention the number of nursing home residents who died in the state.
Follow David Ng on Twitter @HeyItsDavidNg. Have a tip? Contact me at dng@breitbart.com
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