WASHINGTON — They’re at war over tax hikes, but Mayor de Blasio on Thursday staunchly defended Gov. Cuomo’s attack on “extreme conservatives” and their place in New York.
“I agree with Gov. Cuomo’s remarks,” de Blasio told reporters after delivering a speech before the US Conference of Mayors.
“I interpret his remarks to say that an extremist attitude that continues the reality of violence in our communities or an extremist attitude that denies the rights of women does not represent the views of the people of New York state,” he said.
“We all understand there’s a right to free speech. I wouldn’t disagree with that right, nor would Gov. Cuomo.”
Cuomo has drawn fire for telling a radio interviewer last Friday that extreme conservatives who are anti-abortion, anti-gay and pro-assault weapon have “no place in the state of New York.”
Conservatives took that to mean they weren’t welcome in the state and should move out.
Cuomo aides insisted he was referring only to the ability of extreme conservatives to win races in New York and was not showing the door to them.
“I think he was absolutely right to say what he said,” de Blasio added.
In his speech, de Blasio urged mayors around the country to follow New York’s lead in tackling “crippling inequality.”
“Put simply, we are in the midst of an inequality crisis,” de Blasio declared before hundreds of fellow mayors.
He said Washington is gripped in paralysis and the nation must turn to mayors “to address the root cause of inequality,” invoking the legendary Mayor Fiorello La Guardia’s New Deal-era reforms as examples of where America should head.
De Blasio described his own agenda of universal pre-K, paid sick leave and other social programs and called on other municipal leaders to join him in lobbying Congress to provide more funds.
“It’s time to stop shortchanging our cities . . . We know what’s best for our own people,” he asserted.
De Blasio made it a point not to include President Obama — who campaigned for him last year — in his criticism of Washington.
“President Obama — Chicago’s adopted son — has long been a champion of our cities, but too often his efforts to forge partnerships between the federal government and municipal leaders have been stymied by Congress,” de Blasio asserted.
The mayor’s predecessor, Mike Bloomberg, during his time in office, went out of his way to spread the blame for DC stalemates to include Congress and the president.
De Blasio defended his effort to fund more pre-K classes with a tax hike on the wealthy — even though Cuomo has offered to pick up the tab in the state budget.
“I have a very clear mandate from the people. I happened to win my election with 73 percent of the vote. This was my central platform plank,” the mayor boasted.
His remarks were met by polite applause.