Cuomo takes over governors group as virus batters states

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — The governor who in large measure has defined states' up-and-down fight against the coronavirus, including occasional combat with the White House, is poised to widen his national spotlight.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is expected to take the reins of the National Governors Association on Wednesday during a meeting held virtually because of the disease.

The association represents governors in all 50 states and territories and has emerged from the political shadows since the pandemic erupted in the U.S. The chairman who is handing off to Cuomo, Republican Gov. Larry Hogan of Maryland, has pushed the group to put bipartisan pressure on the Trump administration to provide personal protective gear, ventilators, testing kits and budget help to the states.

In a recent interview, Hogan noted times when President Donald Trump would “bristle because he wants people to thank him for the job he’s done and to say everything’s great.”

“But my job as chairman of the governors was to stand up for the governors and kind of speak out,” Hogan said. “I’ve praised them when they made progress, but I’ve also been, as nicely as I could, you know, pushed them when I thought they needed to get something else done.”

Cuomo is less worried about making style points with the president and doesn't shy from using the sharp-elbow approach. While he has worked with Trump to secure more ventilators and has even praised the president at times, he also has increased his critiques of the administration in recent weeks.

He has criticized it for failing to mandate masks nationwide, waiting until mid-March to ban travel from Europe and not providing additional aid to state and local governments beyond an initial infusion of cash in early spring.

“Every American...