Gov. Andrew Cuomo joined CNN on Wednesday night, October 24, to bring a horrifying twelve hours for the network and the nation to a close, with his recollection of what it was like to come to terms with the growing realization that authorities had a massive terror plot on their hands. In piecing it all together, the two-term New York governor couldn’t help but be reminded of the feeling that set upon him on the fateful morning of September 11, 2001.
“The first bombing was the Soros bombing, right? Receiving the bomb on Monday. And everybody basically held their breath,” the governor told his son during a late appearance on CNN’s Chris Cuomo Prime Time. He then recounted how word got around about the interception of packages that were subsequently headed for the residences of former Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama in the wee hours that followed the scare at George Soros’ Westchester County home. It was at that point, Cuomo recalled, that the reality of the situation dawned on him.
“To use a frightening analogy, for me it reminded me of when the first plane hit the World Trade Center on 9/11, and you said, ‘Well, maybe it’s just an aviation accident.’ And then the second plane hit,” said the governor.
Gov. Cuomo had spent his day keeping the public informed on developments surrounding suspicious packages recovered from as far West as the offices of the San Diego Union-Tribune and from as deep in the South as Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s base in Florida.
To CNN ‘s misfortune, many would get their first sign of what was in store after a parcel bound for former CIA Director John Brennan led to the evacuation of the news outlet’s Manhattan bureau just after 10 a.m. To the misfortune of peace-loving Americans, it seemed that passing hour to follow would raise the name of an additional target.
By days end, the Los Angeles Times reported that ex-Attorney General Eric Holder, California Rep. Maxine Waters, and Obama Vice President Joe Biden would be among those named. Meanwhile, Gov. Cuomo’s condemnation of the attempted attacks only got stronger with it not being lost on him that each politician who wound up in the serial bomber’s crosshairs, happened to be a figure from the Democratic Party’s leadership.
“This is political terrorism. This is American terrorism. This is red versus blue terrorism – and that, we’ve never seen before,” Gov. Cuomo told Chris. He then went on to call on all parties to unequivocally denounce the acts and to behind on a path of reclaiming a sense of decency in how they engage political discourse.