Did Kennedy Play Duplicitous Role in Cuomo Child Support Settlement Pressure?
According to the New York Post, two anonymous sources said that Gov. Andrew Cuomo, 58, has been battling his ex-wife Kerry Kennedy, 56, for 2.5 years over child support payments for their three daughters and possibly over alimony.
The Reporter surmises that one of the Post’s anonymous sources may have been Kennedy herself.
On the record, Kennedy and Cuomo issued joint statements denying they had financial disputes over the support of their children.
Statements released by Cuomo and Kennedy read in part. “The Post hearing rumors of discord, they are just that, unfounded and untrue gossip, and as such their publication would be hurtful and inaccurate.”
A second statement said, “Kerry speaks for herself and only she would know the truth.’’
But anonymous source(s) – which the Post identified only as “close” to the Kennedy family – and “well known” – say Cuomo “didn’t pay child support or alimony for the past 2½ years until a few weeks ago.”
It is not clear why Cuomo would have to pay the purportedly wealthy Kennedy alimony.
Kennedy is the daughter of former Sen. Robert F. Kennedy.
The anonymous source(s) told Fred Dicker of The Post that Kerry agreed to issue the “no problems” statements because Cuomo finally agreed to financial terms for the children.
Allegedly, disputes over costs of education for Cuomo/Kennedy children, Cara, 20, attending Harvard, Mariah, 20, attending Brown U., and Michaela, 18, recently graduated from high school, came an end, perhaps not coincidentally, just after Dicker – who has been a critic of Cuomo – began making inquiries into the matter.
Cuomo is paid $179,000 a year as governor.
Cuomo and Kennedy had an unpleasant, very public divorce battle in 2003 following revelations that Kennedy was having an affair with a married, wealthy family friend, Bruce Colley.
The conflicting statements between the anonymous sources “close to the Kennedys” and the public statement of Kerry Kennedy has raised the question in our minds: Was Kerry Kennedy one of the unnamed sources?
If not, did she encourage a relative (who she armed with her version of the child dispute facts) to contact Dicker?
Did she successfully use the press to embarrass Cuomo into settling?
Did Kennedy lie to Cuomo about who the anonymous sources were for the Post?
Did Cuomo agree to disadvantageous terms to halt unfavorable press?
After she got the agreement from Cuomo, did Kennedy agree to join Cuomo in ‘lying’ to the Post about their dispute?
If Kennedy was the anonymous source, then this cynical ploy was transparent to Dicker of the Post.
He has an obligation to protect his sources, but also to report the truth.
Dicker wrote, “One of The Post’s sources said Kennedy agreed to sign on to the joint statement with Cuomo because ‘he finally agreed to make the payments he hadn’t been making’ and ‘out of a desire to shield her daughters from as much of this as possible.’”
