WASHINGTON, D.C. On Friday, Senator Richard Burr’s office pushed back on challenger Deborah Ross’ claims that the Senator was neglecting his duties on the Senate Armed Services Committee. Ross and the N.C. Democratic Party cited attendance records from 2009 and 2010 that marked him absent at 67 to 70 percent of open committee meetings. Their numbers did not track closed meetings. “Senator Burr is asking North Carolinians to reelect him to a job he barely showed up for,” said Matt Kravitz, press secretary for the North Carolina Democratic Party.When asked for a comment, Burr’s press secretary, Taylor Holgate, said that in 2009 and 2010 Burr was leading hearings on the Veterans Affairs Committee and was required to attend bill markup because he was the top Republican on the committee. The Veteran’s Affairs Committee meetings were regularly scheduled to start at the same time as the Senate Armed Services Committee. Having served five terms in the U.S. House, Burr is in his second term in the U.S. Senate. In addition to now chairing the Senate Intelligence Committee, he also sits on the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee and the Finance Committee. “As a member and now chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Senator Burr has worked tirelessly on behalf of those who work to keep Americans safe, and protect us, our communities, and our nation from terrorists and others who would do us harm. He has had a near perfect record of attendance at Intel Committee hearings, both open and closed,” she said in an emailed statement. “Sen. Burr is proud of the work he has done on every one of his committee assignments, as well as his 97% voting record.”A poll out on Tuesday from the Civitas Institute showed a seven-point lead for Burr over Ross with just two weeks to go until election day.
