Polls at the time of the CNN report already showed Democratic rival Josh Stein, the sitting attorney general, with a lead over Robinson. Louis Love Money, the other named defendant, released the video and spoke with other media outlets before the CNN report. In North Carolina courts, a public official claiming defamation generally must show a defendant knew a statement was false or recklessly disregarded its untruthfulness. Robinson worked for several days with a central North Carolina sheriff collecting relief supplies and criticized Democratic Gov. Robinson had been a frequent presence at Trump’s North Carolina campaign stops, but he hasn’t participated in such an event since the CNN report.

Source: CNN October 15, 2024 14:05 UTC