New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said that “extreme” conservatives who oppose abortion and support gun rights have no place in his state.

The Democrat cited a “schism” within the Republican party as a reason for political gridlock in New York.

“It’s more about extreme Republicans versus moderate Republicans,” he said in a radio interview Friday, National Review Online reported. “You’re seeing that play out in New York. … The Republican Party candidates are running against the SAFE Act — it was voted for by moderate Republicans who run the Senate.

“Their problem is not me and the Democrats; their problem is themselves. Who are they? Are they these extreme conservatives who are right-to-life, pro-assault-weapon, anti-gay? Is that who they are? Because if that’s who they are and they’re the extreme conservatives, they have no place in the state of New York, because that’s not who New Yorkers are.”

“If they’re moderate Republicans like in the Senate right now, who control the Senate — moderate Republicans have a place in their state,” he continued. “George Pataki was governor of this state as a moderate Republican; but not what you’re hearing from them on the far right.”

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