Weirdest Endorsement of the Year

 

Last Wednesday, NC Senate boss Phil Berger endorsed Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson for governor, thus dissing the cred of the Phil Graham campaign (let alone the forlorn crusade of Dale Folwell). WRAL’s Will Doran reported that in endorsing Robinson, Berger said, “I just think he’s got a good head on his shoulders. I think philosophically, he’s generally in the right place. I think he has been supportive of many of the things that we’ve done here at the General Assembly.”

Did you notice that generally stuck in there? Like a chicken bone in a dog's throat? "He's generally in the right place"? Seriously? That one word opens a sudden chasm of doubt. Also that phrasing of "he has been supportive of many of the things that we've done here at the General Assembly." That limiting qualifier -- "many of the things" -- is another Berger "tell," as noticeable as a neon bar sign. He doesn't trust the guy, but Robinson is destined to win the primary, and the General Assembly has seized so much of the governor's power already that Robinson will be limited in his flex, and overmatched by the likes of Berger. So why not back the inevitable winner?

If you're reading barometers, you might also note that Berger did not -- rather pointedly so -- endorse Trump at the same time he was endorsing Robinson. He was asked about that and said, patriotically, “Former President Trump is going to be the Republican nominee. And I think he will be the Republican nominee whether I endorse him or not. Whether I endorse somebody else. So I don't know that I'll get involved in that.”

MAGA's gonna hate him for that.