WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -
North Carolina senator Richard Burr is causing a stir among Beltway bloggers.
During last fall's banking crisis, after reportedly talking to former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, Burr called his wife on a Friday evening and told her to withdraw cash from their bank's ATM over the weekend.
Burr's actions, according to his critics, showed the senator used insider information to aid his family. On Wednesday, MSNBC's Keith Olbermann chided Burr as the day's Worst Person in the World.
Burr told FOX8 News Thursday the incident has been blown out of proportion.
"I was trying to display and I think those that heard understood that I was trying to display how fragile our financial infrastructure was," said Burr.
He said he was not trying to remove all of his money, just enough to get by.
"The truth is Americans that go and do exactly what i asked my wife to do everyday," explained Burr, "because they keep a certain amount of cash at home. I am not one of those individuals."
Burr said his point is every American should keep some cash on hand and not be totally dependent on ATMs and banks. He said he's shocked the comments are getting any attention at all.
During last fall's banking crisis, after reportedly talking to former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, Burr called his wife on a Friday evening and told her to withdraw cash from their bank's ATM over the weekend.
Burr's actions, according to his critics, showed the senator used insider information to aid his family. On Wednesday, MSNBC's Keith Olbermann chided Burr as the day's Worst Person in the World.
Burr told FOX8 News Thursday the incident has been blown out of proportion.
"I was trying to display and I think those that heard understood that I was trying to display how fragile our financial infrastructure was," said Burr.
He said he was not trying to remove all of his money, just enough to get by.
"The truth is Americans that go and do exactly what i asked my wife to do everyday," explained Burr, "because they keep a certain amount of cash at home. I am not one of those individuals."
Burr said his point is every American should keep some cash on hand and not be totally dependent on ATMs and banks. He said he's shocked the comments are getting any attention at all.
