The political world is still reeling from a CNN report that the Republican candidate for North Carolina governor, the current Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, posted racist and explicit messages on a pornography web site message board a decade ago.

North Carolina has been plagued by a stream of jaw-dropping political scandals unrivaled by virtually any other state in the country. Why it matters: Even in an era of sex scandals, real and imagined ballot fraud and fierce partisan feuds,

Donald Trump returns Saturday for a campaign rally in North Carolina, where the former president is confronting a mess he played a key role in making in the critical battleground state.