Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) speaks with reporters after a vote at the U.S. Capitol, May 9. (Getty)
Senator Richard Burr will be a major part of the highly-anticipated James Comey testimony on Thursday.
After all, the senator from North Carolina is the chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, and although he is a Republican, he has not shied away from asking tough questions during his committee’s investigation of the Donald Trump campaign’s possible ties to Russia.
In his personal life, Senator Richard Burr is married, and he has two children. Here’s what you need to know about the family of Richard Burr.
1. He Is Married to Brooke Burr
Brooke Burr. (LRB Real Estate)
Richard Burr has been married to his wife Brooke for over 30 years.
Brooke Burr is a real estate agent and partner of Leonard Ryden Burr Real Estate in Winston-Salem, North Carolina; she has worked in real estate for about two decades.
According to the Charlotte Observer, Richard and Brooke went to the beach on their first date. Burr plans to retire in 2022, not seeking re-election that year, and he says that this is partly because of his wife.
“It helps me at home to announce it because I’ve got a bride who’s put up with it for 22 years, and she would like to know that the light at the end of the tunnel is not a train,” Burr told the Charlotte Observer.
Brooke Burr is involved in a number of philanthropic organizations, and she helped establish an affiliate of the Susan G. Komen breast Cancer Foundation in North Carolina.
2. His Father, David, Was a Pastor
Richard Burr. (Getty)
Richard Burr is the son of Martha and David Horace White Burr, and Richard’s father was a pastor.
David Burr was a pastor at the First Presbyterian Church in North Carolina for 23 years until his retirement in 1986. He died in 2011 at the age of 91 after a short period of declining health, according to the Winston-Salem Journal.
“His service to the community extended far beyond the walls of his church,” Richard Burr told the Winston-Salem Journal at the time. “Dr. Burr touched the lives of countless individuals and families including those who were members of his congregation as well as many who were not.”
David Burr was also a member of the Navy underwater demolition during World War II.
3. He Is a Distant Relative of Aaron Burr
Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) speaks during the Senate (Select) Intelligence Committee hearing at the Hart Senate Building on Feb. 9. (Getty)
Richard Burr is actually a distant relative of a former vice president.
Richard Burr is a distant relative of Aaron Burr, the third vice president of the United States who shot Alexander Hamilton in a duel. Senator Burr himself says that his ancestor was a brother of Aaron Burr.
”Yes, we’re related,” Richard Burr said in 2004, according to National Review. “But there are no direct descendants of Aaron Burr left. My ancestor is one of his brothers.”
When asked if he is proud of the fact that Aaron Burr is a distant relative of his, the senator said, “Yes, I am, though history has proved to shine a different light on him, because of the treasonous acts.”
4. His Son is Tyler Burr
Richard Burr holds a news conference on March 29, 2017 in Washington, DC. (Getty)
Tyler Burr is the son of Richard Burr.
Tyler currently works as the vice president of Brand Intelligence Group, an internet marketing research company which is located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
According to McClatchy, from 2011 through 2014, Richard Burr’s campaign reported spending $29,550 renting office space from the Brand Intelligence Group. A spokesperson for Richard Burr told McClatchy that the payments were legal and reported to the Federal Election Commission.
5. His Other Son is William Fauth Burr
Senate intelligence Committee Vice-Chair Mark Warner and Chairman Richard Burr during a June 2017 hearing. (Getty)
Richard Burr’s other son is William Fauth Burr.
William Fauth Burr was married to Virginia Tyler Hetzer in 2014. The wedding took place at the home of the bride’s family in Hot Springs, Virginia, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
William attended Forsyth Country Day School, and he received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, according to the Richmond Times–Dispatch. He works for the Department of Defense in Quantico, Virginia.