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Morning, gang.
This week we’re bringing you a story a few years in the making—a deep dive into the fantasy life and alter egos of Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, GOP candidate for governor.
No, not that fantasy life. No, not those alter-egos. Yes, there’s more.
I first recognized Robinson’s obsession with professional wrestling two years ago, when I was following him around the state as he spoke to conservative church groups. Superficially, his speeches had a lot in common with wrestling promos—the angry, cocky monologues wrestlers give insulting their enemies, proclaiming their superiority, and bragging about what they’re going to do when they get into the ring. But that might have gotten past me had Robinson not slipped in a line I recognized from an old Ric Flair promo.
My dad was a career Marine. I grew up on military bases, in trailer parks, and in trailer parks that were on military bases. In those places, at that time, wrestling was treated as seriously as baseball, basketball, or football.
Here in Greensboro, where the Greensboro Coliseum was one of wrestling’s great cathedrals, Robinson grew up even more deeply embedded in the culture.
He devotes an entire chapter to it in his 2022 autobiography, calling it “an extremely important, perhaps crucial, part of my formative years” and “a lifelong passion.”
The intersection of politics and pro wrestling isn’t a new thing in this country.
A young Abraham Lincoln was a renowned “catch as catch can” wrestler, one of several styles of proto-pro wrestling that led to the form we recognize today.
Teddy Roosevelt was an avowed pro wrestling fan, once saying if he wasn’t president of the United States he would like to be George Hackenschmidt, the Estonian strongman and early pro wrestling celebrity.
America’s first real pro wrestling superstar, Frank Gotch, was so popular he was courted to run for political office long before Jesse “The Body” Ventura became governor of Minnesota.
This year’s Republican National Convention saw Hulk Hogan tearing his shirt off as he endorsed former president Donald Trump, who has himself been part of angles in the WWE.
But what fascinated me about Robinson’s life and political ascent was the role of “kayfabe”—an old carny term still used to describe the shared suspension of disbelief employed by both wrestlers and fans. In kayfabe identities are malleable, inconvenient truths disposable, and history rewritten whenever it gets in the way of a good story.
Of course, politicians love this stuff.
Wrestling’s creation and defense of imaginary worlds and alter egos, its willingness to say or do anything that will capture an audience, and the belief that perception is reality—all of that shaped Robinson’s personality, worldview, and perspective on politics. Today it seems to guide his public response to mounting scandals that threaten to end his political career.
“When we were kids, the kayfabe was what mattered to us,” Robinson wrote in his book. “And it still does.”
–Joe Killian
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Mark Robinson and the Suspension of Disbelief
Professional wrestling is a world built on fabulous stories, and the Republican gubernatorial candidate’s lifelong love of the sport explains much of what you need to know about his political rise and fall.
Black Democrats Rally for Harris in Greensboro
For a few hours last Tuesday, a small room in East Greensboro’s Providence Baptist Church was the place to be for Black Democrats.
A few dozen people milled about, pausing to give hugs and greet familiar faces. Three of the city’s Black council members were in the crowd, chatting with constituents. Gallons of sweet tea and trays of food at the back of the room anticipated the meal to follow the day’s main event.
While the mood felt like a reunion, the group of longtime community residents, faith leaders, and members of Greensboro’s Black elite were gathered for more than a meeting. They were at the church to talk politics, more specifically Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign, and what the looming 2024 election means for North Carolina.
“We’ve got to turn the vote out, we can’t leave any stone unturned,” said Rep. Jim Clyburn, the longtime Democratic congressman from South Carolina and prominent Harris campaign surrogate.
“Between now and November 5th all of us are AKAs,” he later joked referring to the presidential candidate’s historically Black sorority, drawing laughs and cheers.
That Clyburn—a congressman with a reputation as a political kingmaker— stopped in Greensboro is a reminder of how much the city, and Guilford County more broadly, matter for Harris’s presidential hopes in the battleground state. The vice president previously made her own stop for a September rally at the Coliseum, and her campaign is expected to be involved in activities during North Carolina A&T’s Homecoming celebrations.
Greensboro is a valuable place when it comes to shoring up support among Black voters for Harris. Guilford County has been a reliably blue dot in the region. Biden won the area by more than 20 points in 2020, despite losing the state as a whole.
“In this election, there’s a lot at stake,” said state Sen. Gladys Robinson. “The future of our state and county, the future of our children and great-grandchildren.”
State Rep. Amos Quick agreed, telling The Thread the outcomes of the upcoming local and national contests will be significant to the region’s progress.
“This election has tremendous implications to the future of the country,” he said. “We can either go forward or go back, and I prefer the candidate that has us looking forward.”
With weeks to go before the election, the day’s speakers carried a singular message: Black voters matter, and could be a big factor in the direction the state ultimately swings.
Speaking with The Thread after the event, Clyburn said the election is a chance for a city steeped in civil rights to help make history once again.
“Greensboro’s been very important to me,” the congressman said, noting that he was involved in the wave of student activism sparked by the local sit-in movement in the 1960s. “What we started back then was an effort that we are trying to continue today, and that is to be a part of the process that continues the trek towards a more perfect union.”
Read this newsletter online or contact The Thread team with tips and feedback at greensboro@theassemblync.com.
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What We’re Reading
Flip It and Reverse It: Last week our partners at Triad City Beat held town halls in Greensboro and Winston-Salem ahead of the coming elections. But they flipped the script, putting the spotlight on voters rather than candidates and letting them talk about the issues important to them.
Better Know Your Ballot: Speaking of elections, The Assembly and The Charlotte Ledger have teamed to bring you a comprehensive election guide. Check it out and don’t just go to the polls—go to the polls informed.
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