Mark Robinson, the disgraced former lieutenant governor of North Carolina, announced Friday that he will not run for Senate against incumbent Republican Senator Thom Tillis.
He’s also dropping his lawsuit against CNN over its stories about his frequent visits to a porn site called Nude Africa on which he reportedly referred to himself as a “Black Nazi.”
Robinson’s announcement that he would not challenge Tillis was not entirely unexpected.
Even before the CNN stories, Robinson was a uniquely bad candidate. His mix of sexist, antisemitic and homophobic rhetoric made him a pariah among the normally straight-laced North Carolina voter base. Then CNN revealed that he once wrote about enjoying porn featuring transgender women, despite his notably transphobic public rhetoric.
It explains why even as Donald Trump won North Carolina, many MAGA voters couldn’t stomach Robinson. Voters overwhelmingly elected Democrat Josh Stein over Robinson in their race for governor. Ironically, the opposition to Robinson resulted in North Carolina’s first Jewish governor.
Tillis, who first won his seat in 2014, can breathe a sigh of relief in the wake of Robinson’s announcement, along with many voters. Since coming to Washington, Tillis has become an effective dealmaker and someone Democrats can trust to pass some legislation, and every once in a while, oppose Trump initiatives.
Tillis has proven himself to be a skilled political operator, having played a major role in taking out the scandal-ridden former Republican congressman Madison Cawthorn, who threatened to primary any Republican who voted for the infrastructure bill that Tillis had brokered.
But now that Trump has returned, Tillis faces pressure to mend fences with MAGA.
Yet he is still trying to walk the tightrope to appeal to swing voters, criticizing Trump’s decision to pardon January 6 rioters who assaulted police officers. When The Independent asked him about Trump’s comments about diversity hiring causing the Army helicopter-airplane crash Wednesday night that killed 67 people, Tillis responded: “I'd have to see if the evidence is substantiated. It seems a bit early to me when I think that statement was made before we even had a flight data recorder.”
Last Friday, after keeping mum about his plans, he voted to confirm Pete Hegseth to be Secretary of Defense, helping to give Hegseth 50 votes, which left Vice President J.D. Vance to break the tie.
During Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s hearing to become Health and Human Services Secretary before the Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday, Tillis appeared to tee up questions which indicated he’s more willing to confirm Kennedy. He also introduced Kash Patel, Trump’s controversial choice to lead the FBI.
But his attempts to repair bridges with the Trumpian right also came at a risk.
It’s no secret that Democrat Roy Cooper, the wildly popular former governor whom Josh Stein succeeded, wants to challenge Tillis. Democrats will pour millions of dollars to take out Tillis, who always wins by tight margins. Similar to how Senator Susan Collins’ vote for Brett Kavanaugh for the Supreme Court put a target on her back, Tillis’ vote for Hegseth has made him vulnerable.
But now that Tillis has been spared a bloody primary on his right with Robinson, Tillis could be free to edge toward the center to ward off a Democratic challenge.
That’s bad news for RFK Jr., who has floundered throughout his confirmation hearings in both the Finance Committee and in the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. HELP Committee Chair Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, a physician, didn’t seem inclined to confirm Kennedy given his dodgy answers on vaccines.
And given Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell’s support for vaccinations after surviving polio and Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski’s opposition to unqualified nominees, Tillis could be the swing vote to keep Vance from breaking a tie to protect him should he jump off the cliff with Cassidy.
The same might also be true for Tulsi Gabbard, Trump’s nominee to be director of National Intelligence.
Tillis is a supporter of Ukraine who has so far taken a wait-and-see approach to her confirmation. During her confirmation hearing, Richard Burr, Tillis’ former co-senator from North Carolina, introduced Gabbard, likely an overture to get Tillis on their side.
If Tillis no longer has to fear a primary challenge from the right, he might feel less inclined to get behind Trump’s nominees, especially if he helps get Patel over the line in the Senate Judiciary Committee on which he sits.
North Carolina loves a toss-up campaign about as much as it loves tight battles among its powerhouse college basketball teams. Robinson’s decision to not run has just turned next year’s Senate race into a jump ball and hands Tillis a few free throws on Trump’s cabinet.
