Robinson, despite praise from Trump, isn't ready to endorse former president
Former President Donald Trump has praised North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson on multiple occasions, most recently at the North Carolina Republican Party convention in Greensboro. But Robinson isn’t ready to endorse Trump.
Trump on June 10 called Robinson “one of the great stars of the party,” saying he plans to endorse him in the Republican gubernatorial primary. Robinson hopes to beat out State Treasurer Dale Folwell and former U.S. Rep. Mark Walker for the party’s nomination next year.
“I’m going to endorse Mark, but I’m not going to tell you about it tonight, OK?” Trump said. “We’ll save it for another time. But you can count on it, Mark. Congratulations. Great job. You’ve been doing a fantastic job.”
Trump’s promise echoed comments he made at a rally in Wilmington in September, when he said: “Whatever you’re running for let me know, I want to give you a real early endorsement,” Trump told Robinson, calling the lieutenant governor “a friend of mine.”
Robinson, it turns out, may not be ready to reciprocate.
In an interview with WBT radio, conducted before Trump’s speech and then posted online Thursday, Robinson said he’s not ready to endorse any of the presidential candidates.
“I love President Trump. I really do,” Robinson said. “And I love him because of his body of work. The four years he was in office, he did amazing things in this country.”
He continued: “President Trump is a guy for me. But I don’t discount any of the candidates. And I’m not necessarily — right now, at this moment — ready to endorse anybody. But I can tell you that right now I’m MAGA. If they want to call it that, I’m MAGA all the way because I saw what it did last time, and I know what those policies can do in the future.”
Robinson’s campaign didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
After Trump praised Robinson in Greensboro, Folwell tweeted that he hadn’t asked for or expected an endorsement from Trump.
"President Trump doesn't know my track record for governing or explaining conservatism without offending people,” Folwell tweeted, adding: “I plan to do as I've done in the past two elections - receive more votes in NC than any Presidential candidate.”
On Friday, he said Robinson’s hesitation to endorse Trump “is no more bizarre than anything else he has said or done in the past 1,000 days” as lieutenant governor.
Walker, for his part, suggested Robinson’s hesitation could backfire.
“Once President Trump learns about the real Mark Robinson we’ll see if he wants to run on a ticket with him,” Walker told WRAL in a statement. “There are a lot of questions the lieutenant governor will have to answer, but I'm not here to talk about personal finances, outrageous comments, alienating entire voting blocks our party needs, or who he hasn't endorsed.”
Folwell and Walker haven't endorsed anyone in the GOP presidential primary, either.
Robinson, who is considered the frontrunner in the race for the GOP nomination, is best known for his fiery speaking style and controversial messaging, which captivates audiences and enamors conservatives — and which has featured explicit anti-gay, antisemitic and misogynistic themes.
Last year, Robinson was surprised to learn in an interview with WRAL that he still had hundreds of dollars in delinquent Guilford County vehicle tax bills, with records showing five unpaid bills from 2006 to 2018. Robinson later paid the bills.
