New billboards remind North Carolinians of Donald Trump’s past praise for Mark Robinson

Less than 24 hours after CNN’s searing report on Republican gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson, North Carolina residents are being reminded of his connections to former President Donald Trump through digital billboard displays in Charlotte, Greensboro, and locations near Raleigh.

The Democratic National Committee had the messages up Friday in time for Trump’s campaign event in Wilmington on Saturday.

The CNN report found a username linked to Robinson on the pornographic website Nude Africa, where the writer on its message board called himself a “black NAZI,” said he wanted to buy slaves, and that he enjoyed transgender pornography, along with other anti-Semitic, racist, and sexually explicit posts. Robinson listed his full name in his profile on the site, CNN reported.

Robinson, who has crusaded against LGBTQ people and used the word “filth” referring to them, released a video late Thursday where he denied making the message board comments and vowed to stay in the race for governor.

Vice President Kamala Harris’s campaign also released an ad linking Robinson and Trump called “Both Wrong,” which highlights Robinson’s anti-abortion comments.

The ad alternates Trump’s praise for Robinson with Robinson’s anti-abortion statements, including, “Abortion in this country, it’s about killing a child because you aren’t responsible enough to keep your skirt down.”

Harris is emphasizing her support for reproductive freedom in her campaign.

“Trump can’t run away from the truth: He stands shoulder to shoulder with Robinson and for the extreme abortion bans that are putting women’s lives at risk across the country — and if they have the chance, they will go further and ban abortion across the country. From now until Election Day, we will make sure voters don’t forget that,” Harris-Walz Campaign Chair Jen O’Malley Dillon said in a statement.

Trump endorsed Robinson in the GOP primary for governor.

Associated Press reported Friday afternoon that Robinson will not speak or appear at Trump’s rally on Saturday in Wilmington following the CNN report. Robinson has made frequent appearances at other Trump events in the battleground state.

Vice President Kamala Harris’s rapid response social media site posted a montage Thursday of the two men shaking hands and standing side-by-side giving thumbs-up, along with video of Trump praising Robinson. At one campaign stop, Trump referred to Robinson as “Martin Luther King on steroids.”

In his 2022 autobiography, Robinson wrote about calling Martin Luther King a communist on Facebook.

Martin Luther King III said on Thursday that Robinson’s rhetoric, and grotesque characterization of his father’s legacy are “deeply worrisome for all North Carolinians and all Americans who oppose racism and bigotry.”

King has pledged to campaign this week in North Carolina “on behalf of Josh Stein and local candidates who will stand up for women, Black and Brown North Carolinians and everyone else who Mark Robinson chooses to disparage.”

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