Mark Robinson, the bombastic Republican candidate for governor of North Carolina, is alleged in a Thursday CNN report to have referred to himself as a "Black Nazi" and to have said that "slavery is not bad. Some people need to be slaves."
The CNN KFile investigation was posted at 3:21 p.m. ET, citing his comments made on a pornography forum for the website Nude Africa under the name "Minisoldr."
CNN said it made the connection to Robinson for comments made between 2008 and 2012 "by matching a litany of biographical details and a shared email address between the two."
Robinson repeatedly denied that he made the comments on Nude Africa in an interview with CNN.
“This is not us. These are not our words. And this is not anything that is characteristic of me,” Robinson said.
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CNN reported many of Robinson’s comments were gratuitously sexual and lewd in nature, some involving his interest in transgender pornography and posting “And yeah I’m a ‘perv’ too!”
CNN said it is reporting "only a small portion of Robinson’s comments on the website given their graphic nature."
Presented with the litany of evidence connecting him with the minisoldr user name on Nude Africa, Robinson told CNN: “I’m not going to get into the minutia of how somebody manufactured this, these salacious tabloid lies.”
Around 3 p.m., Robinson posted an 82-second video on his Facebook campaign page in which he said "the news media is at it again, my opponent is at it again" and that he would not withdraw his candidacy.
"You have all seen the half truths and outright lies of Josh Stein on these (campaign) ads over and over again, and now a story leaked by him to CNN is appearing now. Let me reassure you that the things you will see in that story, those are not the words of Mark Robinson.
"You know my words and you know my character, and you know I have been completely transparent in this race and before."
Carolina Journal is reporting, via its sources, that the news was leaked to CNN and Raleigh news outlet WRAL by his Democratic competitor Stein's campaign.
Earlier Thursday, Stein's campaign said it would not participate in a debate with Robinson.
Media flood
Before the CNN report was posted, there was a flood of media outlets speculating on what would be in the CNN report, including the Washington Post, Business N.C. magazine, liberal-leaning MSNBC and conservative-leading Carolina Journal and National Review.
Robinson claimed in his Facebook video that Stein and Democrats "are desperate to shift the focus from the substance of the issues ... to salacious tabloid trash. We cannot allow that to happen."
Robinson also invoked U.S. Supreme Court Clarence Thomas and his Senate nomination appearance in saying "he was the victim of a high-tech lynching."
"Well, it looks like Mark Robinson is, too. We're not going to let them do that. We are staying in this race."
State Treasurer Dale Folwell, a consistent critic of Robinson who finished runner-up to him in this year's GOP gubernatorial primary, said Robinson is "always playing the victim."
"It seems like anyone who has ever come in contact with him has been fleeced," Folwell said. "The latest example is taxpayers, donors and the Republican grassroots. He intimated in Davie County that God would come down on a white horse and exercise vengeance on any critic."
Pressure to withdraw
The Washington Post and Carolina Journal have reported that — according to anonymous Republican sources in North Carolina — the Trump campaign may be pressuring Robinson to drop out.
“For the sake of the party, for the sake of our down-ballot races … and for the sake of Donald Trump’s victory in North Carolina, I think Mark Robinson needs to drop out,” the Washington Post quoted Jonathan Bridges, who managed the campaign of GOP primary former U.S. Rep. Mark Walker.
If Robinson were to withdraw his candidacy, the state Republican Party could nominate a new candidate with votes for Robinson being counted for that individual.
In an interview with conservative cable channel NewsNation, Sen. Ted Budd, R-N.C., said when asked about the Robinson allegations that they "are concerning but we don’t have any facts. We’re going to wait through the weekend and get everything together.”
Robinson is trailing Democratic Attorney General Josh Stein in nine polls released so far this month by a range of 5 to 14 percentage points. Robinson did not have a lead in any of those polls
According to media reports, Robinson did not attend Wednesday's campaign event in Raleigh by GOP Vice President candidate U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, nor was Robinson mentioned by Vance.
Robinson's campaign for governor has been both buoyed and battered by his bombastic comments on several hot-button topics, foremost abortion restrictions, pasty anti-Semitic comments and women's sexual activities.
Robinson told business officials at a Charlotte gathering this week said he is very pro-Israel and denied holding anti-Semitic views.
Karen Brinson Bell, who leads the State Board of Elections, was quoted by The Washington Post as saying that "I know where we are in this process. To remove a name from the ballot at this time would be an insurmountable hurdle.”
But she also cautioned that she thought it was too late to take independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s name off the ballot when he requested that several weeks ago, but she was overruled by state courts.
