Disgraced ex-Gov. Cuomo — who imposed harsh COVID lockdowns — says remote work is hurting big cities

Disgraced ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo said remote work from home — a seismic shift that accelerated after he imposed lockdowns during the coronavirus pandemic — is hurting cities like New York.

“Cities in general are in trouble across the country. It’s not just New York. COVID changed the rules. A city was a city because that’s where you went to work,” Cuomo said Friday during an interview on John Catsimatidis’ “Cats at Night” show on WABC 770 AM radio.

“With COVID, you don’t have to go to the office. You can stay at home. Well, why don’t I put my home in a state that is warmer? It’s changing the fundamental economics for cities.”

He said New Yorkers no longer have to wait to retire to move to Florida “because you can work from home [in} Florida. That’s what’s happening.”

Cuomo — who resigned under threat of impeachment last year amid sexual misconduct accusations and other COVID-related scandals — said the wealthiest New Yorkers who generate a big chunk of tax revenues for state and city coffers have the means to move elsewhere and take their money with them.

“That’s when we’re going to have a real problem,” he said.

Cuomo made no mention of the extended lockdowns he imposed as contributing to employees getting used to working from home and resisting going back to the office — nor was he asked about them.

He imposed the “pause” or stay at home orders to curb the spread of the deadly infection during the peak of the pandemic in 2020-21.

Critics said Cuomo was trying to rewrite history.

“This is another attempt by Andrew Cuomo to rehabilitate himself through revisionist history. He imposed the mandates that sent people packing,” said Staten Island Councilman and Republican Minority Leader Joe Borelli.

Cuomo also lambasted the “defund the police movement” and cuts in police spending.

The ex-governor — who started his own podcast this week — approved the controversial cashless bail law in 2019 that law enforcement officials claim has contributed to the surge in crime.

Cuomo also approved New York’s Raise the Age law that raised the age of prosecution for crimes from the age of 16 to 18. Critics complained older gang members have exploited the “catch and release” policy to have younger teens commit crimes with little or no consequence.

“We need to be able to say, ‘Look, we are a progressive city. And we are a progressive state. We did legalize marijuana and raise the age of criminal liability. And we believe in giving people a second chance. But we also have to keep people safe. Dangerous criminals need to be in jail.’ Both things are consistent,” he said.

But Borelli said, “Cuomo signed the horrible bail law that is essentially on the ballot in this election.”