New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks throughout the day by day media briefing on the Workplace of the Governor of the State of New York on June 12, 20
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks throughout the day by day media briefing on the Workplace of the Governor of the State of New York on June 12, 2020 in New York Metropolis.
Jeenah Moon | Getty Photos
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Friday threatened to sue the Trump administration for damages over banning state residents from the Division of Homeland Safety’s Trusted Traveler Program, saying the company “abused authorities sources to advance political functions.”
Cuomo accused two DHS officers, performing Secretary Chad Wolf and performing Deputy Secretary Ken Cuccinelli, of potential prison legal responsibility.
“I consider Mr. Wolf and Mr. Cuccinelli have attainable prison legal responsibility. I consider there may be civil legal responsibility. It was a transparent abuse of presidency energy for political functions,” he mentioned at a press convention in Albany.
On Thursday, DHS mentioned it will elevate its ban on New Yorkers from taking part in this system, which permits for faster entry at airports for U.S. residents returning to the nation. Cuomo mentioned DHS instructed the state round 2 p.m. Thursday that it lifted the ban after New York agreed to share with U.S. immigration businesses the DMV information of individuals making use of for TSA Precheck and different Trusted Traveler applications.
Later within the day, the U.S. Legal professional’s Workplace for the Southern District of New York instructed U.S. District Decide Jesse Furman in a letter that DHS was dropping its opposition to New York’s beforehand introduced lawsuit over this system, admitting the company had made “inaccurate or deceptive” statements.
“Defendants deeply remorse the foregoing inaccurate or deceptive statements and apologize to the court docket and plaintiffs for the necessity to make these corrections at this late stage within the litigation,” mentioned Audrey Strauss, the performing United States legal professional in Manhattan.
Cuomo instructed reporters at a press briefing Friday the DHS “made a startling revelation yesterday afternoon” that New York state is not the one state to have a Inexperienced Mild regulation.
“It’s not possible that the Division of Homeland Safety simply figured that out yesterday afternoon,” Cuomo mentioned, including that it’s extensively identified. “What occurred yesterday is that they received caught.”
He known as on U.S. Legal professional Normal William Barr to launch an investigation and mentioned the state may also search attainable civil damages from the DHS.
“The Division of Justice ought to do an investigation … I believe the Congress ought to examine it as a result of they lied and so they did a variety of harm,” Cuomo mentioned.
He mentioned the state is making an attempt to quantify the financial damages. The ban backed up trucking and air cargo deliveries at New York borders for six months, costing the Port Authority extra money to run the airports, he mentioned. It additionally packed individuals into lengthy strains ready to be screened at airports at an important time when Covid-19 was simply beginning to flow into within the U.S. “How do you quantify that?” he requested.
The DHS and Customs and Border Safety didn’t instantly reply to CNBC’s requests for remark.
The U.S. presents a number of so-called trusted traveler applications that enable for faster entry for U.S. residents returning to the nation. They embrace World Entry, which for a $100 payment and a background examine, permits air vacationers to reenter the U.S. sooner, and a program devoted to industrial truck drivers crossing the border again into the U.S.
CNBC’s Amanda Macias, Dan Mangan and Leslie Josephs contributed to this text.
This can be a growing story. Please examine again later for updates.