MTA, Corruption, A Tea House For SJP: Nixon, Cuomo Spar In Debate

NEW YORK — Tax returns, Vladimir Putin, marijuana and a tea house for Sarah Jessica Parker all took the stage in Wednesday's fiery debate between Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Cynthia Nixon.

The only scheduled debate in the Democratic primary race for New York governor saw the activist and former "Sex and the City" star persistently attack the two-term incumbent. Cuomo took a few jabs of his own while standing by his record as a pragmatic progressive.

The rival candidates sparred over political corruption, the beleaguered Metropolitan Transportation Authority, whether public-sector workers should be able to strike and several other issues in their hour-long showdown at Long Island's Hofstra University.

While it generated more than a few good one-liners, it's uncertain whether the back-and-forth will help Nixon narrow the wide gap between her and Cuomo in the two weeks until the Sept. 13 primary election. The most recent Siena College poll showed Nixon behind by more than 30 percentage points.

Nixon aggressively attacked the governor over the New York City subway system's decline during his tenure. After Cuomo called for New York City to step up its funding for the agency, Nixon retorted that he "stole" hundreds of millions of dollars from the MTA budget "for his pet projects."

"He used the MTA like an ATM and we see the result," Nixon said.

Nixon interrupted Cuomo after he began to say the city technically owns the subway system. "Can you stop interrupting?" he asked.

"Can you stop lying?" she shot back.

"Yeah, as soon as you do," he replied.

More substantively, Nixon said she would delay the MTA's planned fare hike and have the state make up the shortfall. Cuomo said he would do so if the city agreed to cover half the cost.

Cuomo attacked Nixon throughout the debate for what he called a lack of transparency around her income taxes. She disclosed her most recent tax return in May, but made another four years of returns available on Friday after continued pressure from Cuomo's campaign.

Cuomo panned the three-hour window Nixon's campaign gave reporters to review the returns. "Only Donald Trump has done less transparency on his taxes than my opponent," the governor said.

He also lambasted Nixon's reported use of a company called The Fickle Mermaid Corporation to handle her acting-related income and expenses. "You are a corporation," he said at one point. He later called for her to "stop the corporate loopholes" and said working people don't have their own corporations.

Such companies are common among actors, Nixon said, adding that she is "in effect a small business owner." She pointed the finger at Cuomo, saying he initially didn't release his tax returns when he first ran for governor in 2010.

Nixon also noted that she is a person, not a corporation. In case any reporters were unsure, her campaign sent an email with the subject line, "FACT CHECK: Cynthia Is A Human Being."

Nixon did seem to acknowledge her wealth by saying she would forego the governor's salary if elected.

The candidates also traded barbs over corruption. Nixon pointed to the recent bribery conviction of Joseph Percoco, one of Cuomo's former top aides, and accused him of doing too little when it comes to state campaign finance reform.

Cuomo said he has "zero tolerance" for corruption and that he "had nothing to do with" Percoco's shady activity. He in turn accused Nixon of calling Mayor Bill de Blasio's office for favors on behalf of her friends.

When Nixon denied the allegation, Cuomo said, "How about for the tea house for Sarah Jessica Parker? That wasn’t a favor?"

He was apparently referring to a reported 2014 email from Nixon's former "Sex and the City" co-star that included a message from the owner of Tea & Sympathy in the West Village.

Parker's email reportedly expressed concern about businesses in the neighborhood possibly shutting down. She said Tea & Sympathy was at risk of losing its lease because a new landlord wanted it to pay back taxes, according to the New York Daily News. Nixon reportedly sent Parker's email to several mayoral staffers.

Nixon said she didn't know what Cuomo was talking about. "Well, you should read the newspapers," he shot back.

The road to the debate was long and somewhat dramatic. Nixon first challenged Cuomo to a one-on-one face-off in May. He didn't agree to one until about two weeks ago, when the fateful announcement was buried in a press statement from Byron Brown, the chairman of the New York State Democratic Committee.

Nixon's campaign complained that Cuomo got to dictate the terms of combat without any input from his challenger's team. In an apparent strike back, Nixon senior adviser Rebecca Katz reportedly asked for the debate hall's temperature to be set at 76 degrees given that Cuomo is known to like icy rooms. (Another Nixon campaign aide, Jamilah Lemieux, said the room was nonetheless "very cold.")

Despite all the sniping, Nixon and Cuomo reached something of a consensus on at least one issue: They both demurred when asked whether they wanted de Blasio's endorsement.

"I love Mayor de Blasio. I’m sure he loves me in a strange sort of way," said Cuomo, who has been the mayor's political nemesis. "After 30 years we have a dysfunctional relationship."

(Lead image: Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Cynthia Nixon debate at Hofstra University on Wednesday. Photo by Craig Ruttle-Pool/Getty Images)