North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, who is running for governor of the state, said Saturday on Newsmax that he has not yet gotten a response from the Biden administration concerning the arrest of an immigrant whose name is on the federal terrorism watchlist.
"President [Joe] Biden came to our state. He chose to talk about health care," Robinson, a Republican, said on Newsmax's "America Right Now." "The North Carolina Legislature has already spoken on health care and has done things to make sure that North Carolinians have great health care."
What Biden needs to do, he added, is "step up and do what he's supposed to do, which is protecting the sovereignty of the United States of America by protecting our border, and he's not doing it."
The suspect, Awet Hagos, was arrested in a rural part of the state on charges of resisting arrest, carrying a concealed weapon, and assaulting a public official, reports NBC affiliate WRAL in Raleigh, North Carolina.
The federal government reached out after Hagos was fingerprinted to tell local officials not to release him, as he was on the terrorism watchlist.
The man is originally from Africa or the Middle East and was most recently in Haiti before coming to the United States sometime last year, according to reports.
Meanwhile, Robinson's Democrat opponent, North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein, has rejected the idea that the state has sanctuary cities. But Robinson pointed out there are sheriffs in the state who refuse to cooperate with federal officials concerning immigrants.
"Of course there are going to be sanctuary cities, because there are going to be folks that are going to know that if they break American law by crossing our border illegally, they can come to those counties and they will not be held," Robinson said. "My opponent has been clear that he does not plan on defending the people of North Carolina. He never has and he never will."
Robinson has also been speaking out against the state's "woke" actions, saying on Newsmax that has been a focus for him because of his Christian beliefs.
He said that he believes such actions are being forced on children, the church, and in the workplace.
"I've made the statement time and time again," he said."I'm not against anybody having their right to believe ... We've reached a point in this country where now folks who are contrary to what other people believe start groups and believe they can no longer voice their opinion."
As governor, Robinson said he would focus on protecting the law and the serious issues facing his state, which are the economy and education.
"When you talk about the economy, you have to talk about public safety, talk about housing, all those associated things that boost up and hold up our economy," said Robinson.
And with education, "we're going to talk about making changes to bring accountability at the top rate in education and bringing back classical education," while giving parents the right to choose, he added.
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Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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