New Kamala Harris Ad Emphasizes Ties Between Donald Trump, Mark Robinson

Democrat Kamala Harris presidential campaign is wasting no time capitalizing on a bombshell CNN story about racist and lewd comments  that North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson (R), the states GOP gubernatorial nominee, apparently made on a porn forum between 2008 and 2012.

A new Harris ad , released just a day after the report, features Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump fawning over Robinson at events.

I think youre better than Martin Luther King, Trump tells Robinson in one clip, unaware that in online posts, Robinson had allegedly called the civil rights icon worse than a maggot, wished they would bring it (slavery) back and referred to himself as a black NAZI.

In another clip, Trump, who endorsed Robinson earlier this year, says hes been with him a lot. Ive gotten to know him, and hes outstanding.

CNN reported that in other posts, Robinson known for his recent anti-transgender rhetoric explained his appreciation for trans pornography, and wistfully recalled the times he spent as a teenager secretly peeping on women in public gym showers.

Donald Trump and Mark Robinson theyre both wrong for North Carolina, a voice-over in the Harris ad concludes.

In response to the CNN story, the Trump campaign rejected reports that its pressured Robinson to withdraw from his race.

Thats absolutely inaccurate, Brian Hughes, a senior Trump campaign adviser, told NBC News . Fake news. Didnt happen. Trump and the Trump campaign have had no pushing or anything else. Inaccurate.

North Carolina Democrats , meanwhile, predict that the explosive story could affect other races  down the ballot and up.

Normally, someone running for governor, even if they turned out to underperform, wouldnt be someone who would impact the rest of the ticket, Rep. Jeff Jackson (D-N.C.) told CNN This Morning.

But this isnt normal.

Given the narrow margins in most of the statewide races there, said Jackson, even a small impact on the vote could swing a whole bunch of elections, including the presidential election.