The campaign of Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris on Thursday sought to remind former President Donald Trump of his praise for embattled North Carolina GOP gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson following an explosive CNN report detailing past racist and lewd statements tied to him made on a porn website.
The network unearthed comments Robinson allegedly made between 2008 and 2012 on the message board of a pornography website called “Nude Africa,” in which he referred to himself as a “black NAZI” and shared his appreciation for transgender pornography, among other explicit statements.
Robinson has denied making the posts, dismissing the evidence shared in the CNN report as “salacious tabloid lies.”
The Harris campaign sought to emphasize Trump’s ties to Robinson, sharing a series of videos on X, formerly Twitter, featuring Trump’s praise for the Republican candidate on multiple occasions.
Trump endorsed Robinson at a rally in Greensboro, North Carolina, in March, calling him “better than” civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.
“This is Martin Luther King on steroids,” Trump said of Robinson at the time.
David Plouffe, a senior adviser to the Harris campaign, suggested Trump’s comments, in light of the new reporting on Robinson, could cost him North Carolina’s 16 electoral votes in November, hurting his chances to win the White House.
Another video shared by the Harris campaign features part of a speech Trump gave at Mar-a-Lago in December 2023, calling Robinson a “star.”
“You have to cherish him. It’s like a fine wine,” Trump said. “He’s an outstanding person.”
Trump also referred to Robinson as a “friend” and “one of the hottest politicians in the United States of America” in a rally ahead of the 2022 midterms.
Harris’ team also shared a slideshow of photos of the two posing together with a thumbs-up emoji.
Despite rumors that he was under pressure to resign over the story, Robinson vowed to stay in the gubernatorial race.
“Clarence Thomas famously once said he was the victim of a high-tech lynching,” Robinson said in a video posted on social media. “Well, it looks like Mark Robinson is, too.”
In a statement shared with several news outlets, Karoline Leavitt, a spokesperson for the Trump campaign, did not address Robinson’s past comments and suggested North Carolina, a key battleground, remains very much in play for the former president.
“We are confident that as voters compare the Trump record of a strong economy, low inflation, a secure border, and safe streets, with the failures of Biden-Harris, then President Trump will win the Tarheel State once again,” Leavitt said. “We will not take our eye off the ball.”
The New York Times reported that while Trump had no plans to pressure Robinson to drop out, he had recently declined having Robinson join him in at least one event in the state and his campaign planned to create more distance between him and the gubernatorial candidate going forward, citing a source with direct knowledge.
Meanwhile, the North Carolina Republican Party is standing by Robinson.
“Robinson has categorically denied the allegations made by CNN but that won’t stop the Left from trying to demonize him via personal attacks,” it said in a statement posted on X. “The Left needs this election to be a personality contest, not a policy contest because if voters are focused on policy, Republicans win on Election Day.”
Still, Democratic North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper suggested both Trump and the state’s GOP were complicit in promoting Robinson despite “knowing who he was and what he stood for including disrespect for women and inciting violence.”
“They reap what they sow,” Cooper added.
