The New York Times reports:

Last spring, when the coronavirus outbreak was surging in New York, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo’s daily briefings became appointment television for many, as he authoritatively ticked through the latest statistics on infections, hospital beds and deaths.

Behind the scenes, Mr. Cuomo was often obsessed with another set of numbers: his ratings. He would sometimes quiz aides as soon as he ended a broadcast about which networks carried him live and exactly when they cut away — data they were expected to have at their fingertips.

For an image-obsessed politician who has long devoured almost everything written about him, it was an intoxicating amount of attention as Mr. Cuomo transformed almost overnight into a national leader of the Democratic Party and a foil for President Donald J. Trump. “To the 59 million viewers who shared in these daily briefings,” Mr. Cuomo said on his 111th and final daily update, “thank you.”

That June day Mr. Cuomo gathered his team in the backyard of the governor’s mansion in Albany for a mostly mask-less celebration — an aide said attendees took tests for the virus — toasting their accomplishments with beer and wine. For some allies of Mr. Cuomo, that period was the apex of an Icarus-like arc for a leader convinced of his own hype and indestructibility. [Continue reading…]