North Carolina: GOP Governor Candidate Denies Controversial Comments
Facts
- A Thursday report by CNN claimed that North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, the Republican nominee for governor in that state, between the years of 2008 and 2012 made a series of controversial comments, including calling himself a 'black NAZI,' on a pornographic website.[1]
- The comments were connected to Robinson by CNN using biographical details and matching a shared email address between him and the username, 'minisoldr.' Robinson also allegedly expressed a fondness for transgender pornography and a desire to see the return of slavery to the US.[1]
- Robinson has been an outspoken opponent of abortion and transgender issues. He also characterized the COVID pandemic as a global conspiracy and has been accused of using anti-Semitic language and denying the Holocaust.[2]
- Despite the report, Robinson posted a video to X, vowing to stay in the race and denouncing the 'news media' for spreading 'salacious tabloid trash.' He also sought to 'reassure' the public that the words in the report 'are not the words of Mark Robinson.'[3]
- Former Pres. Donald Trump has endorsed Robinson in the governor's race. There were conflicting reports Thursday about whether the Trump campaign had requested Robinson to drop out. On Thursday evening, the North Carolina GOP published a statement expressing solidarity with Robinson.[4][5]
Sources: [1]CNN, [2]USA Today, [3]X.com, [4]New York Post and [5]The Hill.
Narratives
- Democratic narrative, as provided by Atlantic. Despite Robinson's long history of racist, anti-Semitic, and anti-transgender comments, Robinson has maintained the support of the Republican Party in North Carolina and beyond. So now the GOP is stuck with someone whose campaign claims to be built on religious conservatism but is awash in extreme and hypocritical scandals. This bodes well for the Democrats in North Carolina come November.
- Republican narrative, as provided by PJ Media. Democrats and their allies who make up most of the mainstream media may want to convict Robinson without a proper investigation into this matter, but CNN has been less than trustworthy with its past reporting — especially when it comes to hoaxes related to conservative figures. This could be high-tech misinformation planted by Robinson's opponent to distract from the issues.