Report: NC Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson Considers a Parting Gift to Gov. Cooper

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As North Carolinians and probably a fair amount of people outside of the state know, there has been bad blood between Gov. Roy Cooper (D) and Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson (R) since day one.

For starters, there’s the obvious issue of them being members of opposing parties with starkly different political agendas. But beyond that, there are the differences in tactics and personalities; Cooper is the type who loves to tinkle all over your leg and tell you it’s merely raining, while Robinson, on the other hand, has never been shy about calling things as he sees them, even if that means throwing political correctness out the window in the process.

In part because of the questions surrounding the September CNN report that alleged Robinson made numerous controversial posts on a pornography website between 2008 and 2012 (claims that Robinson has filed a lawsuit over), his gubernatorial campaign failed to gain enough traction with voters to put him over the top on Election Day.

As a result, North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein (D) is now our governor-elect.

But because there is never a dull moment in North Carolina politics, rumors are swirling that Robinson may be getting ready to leave Cooper – and Stein – a parting gift on the way out the door:

Gov. Roy Cooper is in Washington, D.C., Wednesday pushing for hurricane funding, so under the state constitution, his out-of-state travel makes Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson the acting governor.

A source close to Robinson says he’s considering trying to sign into law a bill expected to pass the N.C. Senate this afternoon that would shift power away from Gov.-elect Josh Stein and other newly elected Democrats.

The bill also includes some funding and recovery measures for Helene, and the source says Robinson wants to get needed aid to western North Carolina immediately.

It was Robinson, not Cooper, who took the lead in the early days of the Hurricane Helene devastation in western North Carolina, setting up 24/7 air convoys to assist in search and rescue efforts and to help keep the supply chain moving at a critical time in the powerful storm’s aftermath.

He also provided important on-the-ground updates, making sure the voices of western North Carolinians who felt stranded were heard not just by state government leaders but by the federal government as well.

Stein, on the other hand, held a campaign fundraiser two days after western North Carolina was hit.

In any event, Robinson was asked Wednesday if the rumors were true. He says they aren’t and he has no plans to sign the bill into law while Cooper is away:

Full Robinson on possibility of signing Helene/power shift/election changes bill tonight: “It’s just rumors. As usual, that’s just rumors. No, we don’t have any plans to do that. We don’t.” #ncpol https://t.co/oDdGPXegwu

— Brian Murphy (@MurphinNC) November 20, 2024

Had Robinson chosen to do so, there were questions as to whether it would stand even though technically the Lt. Gov. is the acting governor when the governor is out of state.

The bill in question has passed the House and as I was writing this, it passed the Senate as well. Cooper undoubtedly will veto it:

After fireworks, #SB382 passes 30-19. @RoyCooperNC will veto, but won’t matter as #NCGA plans to override his veto in Dec.

When enacted, more disaster $ for #WNC. NO more @NCSBE appt power for @NC_Governor. NO more @NCAGO power to go against state law. A big win for NC! #ncpol pic.twitter.com/sm97QWdsFI

— Clay McCreary (@ClayMcCreary) November 20, 2024

And while state Republicans have a supermajority in both chambers through the end of the year, three GOPers in the House voted with Democrats against the bill, which could set up a rare scenario where a Cooper veto would be sustained.

As always, stay tuned.