A reporter was booed at a rally after asking Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance a question about the embattled North Carolina Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson.
Robinson, who is the Republican candidate for governor in his state, has been mired in controversy after a CNN report claimed that he had once made controversial comments online including describing himself as a “Black NAZI.”
At the rally in Charlotte on Monday, WBTV reporter Nick Ochsner asked Vance: “I want to ask you about Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson, the lieutenant governor was with you on stage with you and…”
The crowd begins to loudly boo at the mention of Robinson.
“I’m trying to ask the question, if you’ll let me ask it,” Ochsner continued.
“I knew I’d get asked this,” Vance said to the crowd. “Go ahead.”
Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance speaks at a rally on August 28, 2024 in Erie, Pennsylvania. A reporter was booed at rally in Charlotte after asking a question about Mark Robinson.
Jeff Swensen/Getty Images
Ochsner went on to note that Robinson had been on stage with Vance and Donald Trump at previous rallies in the state, and noted that he was not there today.
“Is there something disqualifying about the comments uncovered by CNN that wasn’t disqualifying about any of the previous comments he made?” Ochsner asked.
“Is that the question?” Vance responded. “Look, here’s my view on the lieutenant governor. First of all, what he said or didn’t say is ultimately between him and the people of North Carolina. The people of North Carolina are going to make that decision.
“Now, look, I’ve seen some of the statements, I haven’t seen them all. Some of them are pretty gross, to put it mildly. Mark Robinson says that those statements are false, that he didn’t actually speak them. So I think it’s up to Mark Robinson to make his case to the people of North Carolina that those weren’t his statements, and I’m going to let him make that case.”
Vance then changed the subject to criticizing the media for not reporting negatively about Kamala Harris‘s policies.
Robinson has already been facing criticism for comments he has publicly made, including calling LGBTQ+ people “filth” and making comments described as sexist, Islamophobic and antisemitic.
Newsweek reached out to Vance and Robinson’s offices via email outside of regular working hours.
Robinson, who has been endorsed by Trump, has been facing scrutiny following the CNN report that uncovered comments allegedly made by him on the message board of an adult website called “Nude Africa” more than a decade ago.
In the messages, Robinson allegedly defended slavery, described “peeping” on naked women and used transphobic slurs while describing his interest in watching porn with transgender people in it.
Robinson has repeatedly denied that he made the comments reported on by CNN. The scandal has led to many of his campaign staff resigning.
