In New York’s campaign season, the hottest race to watch is Cuomo versus Cuomo and it’s a real nail-biter.

There’s the Andrew Cuomo in 30-second ads that you can’t miss if you’re watching a Yankee game – or anything else on TV. He’s the greatest governor since FDR (sorry, Mario) who’s willing to take on President Trump and make the Empire State the most progressive state in the union (not-so-sorry, Jerry Brown).

Then there’s the Andrew Cuomo who makes an off-color remark about Jews, gets a room of women a little uncomfortable by saying how lucky he is to be one of the few men in the room, and tells liberal supporters yesterday that “America was never that great.”

It’s a small miracle that Cuomo is agreeing even to one debate with Cynthia Nixon – although it’s on his own terms which include the odd provision that he doesn’t have to stand at a podium.

The ultimate control freak is in danger of letting this election fall out of his control because he’s trying to play the room just a little too hard.

Despite avoiding the Albany press corps and only holding one-on-one interviews remotely from his office, Cuomo still managed to cross the border into gaffe-land, slagging America while making a larger point against President Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan (which, incidentally, Trump stole from Ronald Reagan’s 1980 presidential campaign.)

At this point, Cuomo’s team can only hope to make a pitcher of political lemonade from the bushel of lemons the governor handed them, trying to morph his mistake into a battle royal with the president. And they certainly got what they wanted with a Trumpian Tweet last night.

“WE’RE NOT GOING TO MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN, IT WAS NEVER THAT GREAT.” Can you believe this is the Governor of the Highest Taxed State in the U.S., Andrew Cuomo, having a total meltdown!”



Despite the source of the trolling, meltdowns must still be high on the worry chart of Cuomo’s team – likely remembering his self-immolation in in 2002 when he said Governor Pataki did little after the 9/11 besides holding Mayor Giuliani’s coat.



In the primary campaign’s final weeks, the governor should avoid looking into his rear-view mirror. Cuomo’s gaining on him.

Bob Hardt