1 of 5 | Former president Donald Trump was in Wilmington, N.C. Trump (pictured) was in Washington, D.C., on Thursday. File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI |
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Sept. 21 (UPI) -- Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump traveled to North Carolina for a rally Saturday amid fallout from that state's GOP gubernatorial candidate calling himself a "Black Nazi" on a pornography website.
North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson made comments more than a decade ago that were originally uncovered by CNN. Robinson is the Republican nominee to replace term-limited Democratic incumbent Roy Cooper and has been enthusiastically endorsed by Trump.
The Trump campaign did not invite Robinson to the rally and Trump made no mention of the lieutenant governor in his remarks in Wilmington.
Robinson has opened several rallies and speaking engagements for Trump during the current campaign, which is now attempting to distance itself from him.
"President Trump's campaign is focused on winning the White House and saving this country," campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told Raleigh, N.C.-based WRAL-TV in a statement.
"North Carolina is a vital part of that plan. 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 Tar Heel State once again. We will not take our eye off the ball."
According to CNN, Robinson called himself a "Black Nazi" and supported reinstating slavery in comments made on a pornographic website more than a decade ago.
He also reportedly said that he enjoyed watching transgender pornography. The 56-year-old is a self-described devoted Christian, opposed to abortion and has voiced hostility towards transgender people.
Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign launched a new television advertisement tying Trump to Robinson.
The Democratic presidential nominee didn't schedule any public appearances Saturday after making a campaign stop Friday night in Madison, Wis.
Harris spoke to a crowd of 10,000 for around 30 minutes in the battleground state's capital, touching on abortion rights, home ownership, healthcare and opportunities for middle-class Americans.
Meanwhile, the two running mates campaigned in Pennsylvania, a key battleground state like North Carolina and Wisconsin.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz spoke Saturday in Allentown while Vance, a senator in Ohio, held a campaign event in Leesport, Berks County. The distance between these locations is about 25 miles.
At Trump's campaign site, began arriving at the venue as the doors opened at 10:30 a.m. while the U.S. Secret Service agents displayed photos of items that were prohibited inside the event.
Trump said Saturday that if reelected, he will push for congressional action to outlaw so-called sanctuary cities and empower federal law enforcement to curb undocumented immigration.
Philadelphia is a sanctuary city. Counties include ones near Philadelphia.