De Blasio Admits Mistake in Botched Groundhog Ceremony, Regrets Ensuing Cover-Up and Mishandling Situation

In 2014 as Mayor, Bill de Blasio dropped Staten Island's groundhog during a ceremony, later causing its death due to internal injuries.
De Blasio recently admitted he should not have handled the groundhog and blamed a lack of proper guidance from zookeepers.
The zoo attempted to hide the groundhog's death by replacing it with a different groundhog for the rest of the ceremony.
De Blasio called the entire situation "idiocy" and "insane" in a new interview, questioning why an elected official would be made to hold a groundhog.
The tradition of NYC mayors holding up groundhogs for Groundhog Day ceremonies ended following the incident.