Sen. Richard Burr, Republican of North Carolina, with some surprising words:

We’re leaving to an elected official the ability at any point now, five years from now ten years from now, to write the rules on mandates in a way the private sector couldn’t compete with the government option, that’s just not a smart thing for the congress to do. It’s ok if you want to have a government option but you’ve got to leave the private sector private.

Clearly, Richard Burr isn't the second coming of Howard Dean, but it is interesting that he's not hung up on the prospect of a public option. Rather, his concern has to do with mandates placed on the private sector, presumably through the health insurance exchange mechanism.

If there is a health care reform bill containing a mandate to buy private insurance (i.e., no public option), expect these sorts of complaints to mount: once you are required by law to purchase insurance from a private insurer (even if co-ops are among the private options), they will do anything in their power to raise prices and reduce the quality.

However, if there were a public option -- a notion Burr seems open to entertaining -- there would be an escape valve for customers who aren't being well-served by private companies. Given that the last thing health insurance execs want is competition of that sort, expect there to be pressure on Burr to "clarify" his position shortly.