News-Record.com

We would have preferred to interview Vernon Robinson alongside his opponent in the 13th District, Congressman Brad Miller.

But Robinson has been tough to reach for an appointment. So we interviewed Miller -- who originally had consented to a joint session with Robinson -- by himself two weeks ago.

We do have a sit-down with Robinson scheduled for Monday afternoon.

Of course, we'll ask him about his ads, which have stirred all kinds of controversy, as his in-your-face campaigning typically does.

Robinson continues to press on such issues as homosexuality and immigration.

We are in "a cultural war," Robinson told me three years ago. He obviously still believes that.

I have known Robinson for more than 20 years from my time in Winston-Salem and I'm struggling to remember if he has always been so outrageous in his rhetoric and tactics.

The short answer is no. In the old days he had a tendency to drop by the office with with interesting but not always conveniently timed observations on politics and public policy. He could drive you crazy with his persistence and his aversion to short conversations. Today, the views seem more extreme. And the volume and the venom have shifted into overdrive.