Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Friday that one of his daughters had been in “precautionary quarantine” for 14 days after a “possible” exposure to the coronavirus — adding that he believes there have been “thousands and thousands of cases walking around New York.”
Cuomo did not say which of his three daughters with ex-wife Kerry Kennedy had been quarantined — only that she no longer was.
“One of my daughters was in … precautionary quarantine for 14 days” after coming into contact with a coronavirus “hotspot” population, he said during an afternoon press conference on the status of COVID-19 response in New York.
“This is going to be everywhere,” he said of the virus. “This day-to-day count — we’re up two, we’re up seven — My guess is there are thousands and thousands of cases walking around New York.”
The vast majority “had symptoms, symptoms resolved, and moved on and never knew they had it.”
Of his formerly quarantined kid, Cuomo said, “That’s my daughter. That’s everything to me. That’s why I get up in the morning.
“I miss her,” he said at one point, suggesting that he hasn’t seen her since her precautionary quarantine ended.
Cuomo said his emotional response to his daughter’s possible infection was at odds with his knowledge of the facts about coronavirus — that young, healthy people are the least at risk for serious health effects.
Still, the governor said he asked himself, “Why didn’t I protect my daughter?” when in fact, “It’s impossible. It’s impossible… so I have to talk myself through the facts … My daughter was possibly exposed because you can’t control it.”
Had his 88-year-old mother, Matilda, been asked to quarantine herself, “Then I would have been more concerned,” he added. “So what am I doing? I’m taking more precautions with my mother.”
Cuomo has three daughters, twins Mariah and Cara, 25, and Michaela, 22.