Mark Robinson’s campaign for North Carolina governor is hitting the skids, but hey, who needs integrity when you’ve got a trail of inflammatory comments that makes headlines? Four key operatives on his campaign bailed faster than Democrats from a tax cut proposal. The exit of general consultant Conrad Pogorzelski III, campaign manager Chris Rodriguez, finance director Heather Whillier, and deputy campaign manager Jason Rizk is no small matter, especially coming just after the media conveniently “uncovered” Robinson’s crude, decade-old comments on a porn site. It’s almost as if the media lives for moments like this.

Robinson, the Republican lieutenant governor of North Carolina and the GOP’s gubernatorial hopeful, is no stranger to controversy. This time, the media found a treasure trove of salacious posts Robinson made on a pornography site message board years ago. And, oh boy, it’s not pretty. The posts were a mix of offensive and bizarre remarks, including Robinson calling himself a “black Nazi” and recounting how, at 14, he’d sneak peeks at women in the gym. Classy, right?

What’s worse is that Robinson didn’t exactly use an anonymous alias. Nope. He listed his full name and even an email address he’s reportedly used for years. Subtlety isn’t his strong suit, apparently. He was active on a site called Nude Africa, which doesn’t exactly scream “family values,” does it? The media had no trouble linking Robinson to a username, “minisoldr,” a name he used often online. Once they matched the email address to his comments, the trail was clear. And let’s just say, it wasn’t just the racially insensitive stuff. Robinson also expressed support for reinstating slavery and, wait for it, praised transgender pornography – a strange twist considering his very public anti-trans agenda.

But Robinson didn’t take these accusations lying down. In an interview, he flat-out denied making the comments, saying, “This is not us. These are not our words.” Of course, he had no clear explanation for why this email address and username, both of which he’s used elsewhere, were linked to such garbage. Robinson did what most politicians do when cornered – blamed the Left for a smear campaign, calling the media’s investigation nothing more than “salacious tabloid lies.”

The North Carolina Republican Party, so far, is sticking with Robinson through this mudslinging match. They issued a statement of support, essentially saying the Left is desperate to make this election about personality instead of policy because, when it comes to actual issues, Republicans win. Well, they’ve got a point there – the Left does seem to love turning everything into a character assassination. But this one? This is a tough sell. It’s not like Robinson’s comments were from some forgotten off-the-cuff remark. These were detailed posts on a sleazy website, and they’re dragging him down.

Some Republicans in North Carolina are getting cold feet, pushing Robinson to step aside. But here’s the catch: it’s too late for him to withdraw. The state deadline for dropping out has passed, and Robinson is still in the race, with the NCGOP digging in. Meanwhile, Democrats are licking their chops, hoping to tie Robinson’s scandal to Donald Trump. In fact, Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign is already trying to make the connection between Robinson and Trump in their attack ads, painting them both with the same brush of extremism.

And while the controversy swirls, Robinson’s campaign insists it’s still in a solid position. In a statement after the campaign shake-up, Robinson claimed that polls consistently underestimate Republican support in the state and that a large portion of the electorate is still undecided. It’s the kind of optimistic spin you’d expect from a campaign in crisis mode. And who knows? Maybe the voters will brush this off as just more media manipulation

Interestingly, though, Robinson didn’t show up at Donald Trump’s rally in Wilmington. The Trump camp didn’t invite him, and the former president didn’t mention Robinson in his remarks, which is odd, given how often Trump has sung Robinson’s praises in the past. Just months ago, Trump compared Robinson to Martin Luther King – or rather, an amped-up version of him. Trump called him “Martin Luther King on steroids” and “MLK times two,” whatever that’s supposed to mean.

But right now, Robinson is looking less like a civil rights hero and more like a political liability. As the scandal plays out, North Carolina Republicans are left to decide if they want to ride out the storm with Robinson or cut their losses before Election Day. One thing’s for sure, the media is going to milk this for all it’s worth. Whether Robinson can survive this scandal will depend on how well he can convince voters that this is all just a big smear campaign. But with such a paper trail, it’s going to be a tough sell.