Freshman Republican Sen. Richard Burr might be back at the bottom of the totem pole, but his basement office is right next door to the office of the suddenly famous Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill.
And Burr’s new committee assignments could help him push issues important to North Carolina.
The former U.S. representative has been assigned to four committees — Indian Affairs, Veterans’ Affairs, Energy and Natural Resources and the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.
Burr’s spokesman, Doug Heye, said one of the senator’s priorities will be Lumbee tribe recognition. Burr likely will work with Sen. Elizabeth Dole, R-N.C., who introduced the bill last session.
“The assignments are really strong ones for him,” Heye said. “They allow him to not only complement the work that Senator Dole is doing, but they allow him to really focus on North Carolina.”
Burr’s position on the Veterans’ Affairs committee could prove useful in representing the large number of military personnel in the state.
Dole, who is on the Armed Services Committee, also will spend some time representing the state’s military interests, especially during the next round of base realignment and closings.
Her other assignments are the Aging Committee and the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee.
Her influence on the latter committee will help promote the state’s growing banking industry, said Katie Norman, a spokeswoman for Dole. The senator also is going to continue work on reforming housing government-system enterprises such as Fannie Mae and Freddy Mac.
