The most cynical, manipulative, Machiavellian – and dangerous – liberal in the nation has outdone himself once again.

New York governor Andrew Cuomo has issued a pardon potentially affecting some 35,000 felons on parole, enabling them to vote – presumably for him – in his bid for a third term this November.  The pardon will also apply to future felons on parole (although the governor reserves the right to exclude individuals on a case-by-case basis).

In New York, parole is considered part of a convict's sentence, which is not entirely served until parole is completed.  Current state law restores voting rights only upon completion of parole, and the State Senate – technically controlled by the Republicans with the assistance of one turncoat Democrat – would not change the law to allow parolees to vote.

In his typical dictatorial and demagogic style, Cuomo stated that he refused to "take no for an answer" and issued the pardon.

Cuomo cynically and insincerely claimed that his pardon was an act of racial justice, contending that blacks are unfairly disenfranchised by criminal convictions and that the Fifteenth Amendment (ratified by Republicans in 1870 to grant voting rights to freed slaves) justified his actions.  Cuomo announced his pardon in conjunction with Al Sharpton, a principal actor in the 1987 Tawana Brawley rape hoax.

The real reason for Cuomo's pardon is that Cynthia Nixon, the openly lesbian Sex and the City actress, is running against Cuomo on his political left, championing the legalization of marijuana as a cornerstone of her campaign.  Cuomo's poll numbers have already taken a hit since Nixon announced her candidacy.  He is almost certain to lose the not insignificant gay, queer, lesbian, transgendered, and hipster vote in New York City to Nixon – so his scheme is to replace those votes with the votes of convicted black felons.

Cuomo is rather selective regarding which constitutional amendments he wishes to champion.  While pretending to be solicitous of the Fifteenth Amendment rights of black felons, he tramples on the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding taxpayers who have never committed a felony.  New York, which already has the most drastic gun laws in the history of the U.S., just added ten misdemeanors – including trespassing – to a list of misdemeanors that ban someone from having a gun for life.

Cuomo's pardon specifically excludes restoring the gun rights of felons on parole.

Voters in the rest of the nation should expect that Cuomo will win re-election this fall and then run for president in 2020 on a platform that will be so radically and unapologetically left-wing that he will make Barack Obama look like a John Bircher by comparison.