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BIG JOBS DEAL PUTS McCRORY IN THE SPOTLIGHT: The Charlotte law firm Moore & Van Allen, where Gov. Pat McCrory was employed until just days before taking office, helped the New York-based insurance company negotiate with state and local governments to receive more than $94 million in taxpayer-funded incentives in return for the promise to add more than 2,600 jobs in the next three years. The connection raises questions in the minds of Democrats about McCrory’s role in the deal and again shines light on his employment at the law firm, which also runs a lobbying practice in Raleigh. Republicans used similar concerns to reject a major economic development project under Democratic Gov. Bev Perdue, citing how the company hired a Raleigh law firm that employed her son.

TODAY IN POLITICS: McCrory will tout the MetLife deal at another event in Charlotte Friday. The U.S. Labor Department reports the national unemployment rate fell to 7.7 percent, a four year low. The full N.C. Mining and Energy Commission meets Friday as the debate about what to do with fracking waste remains unresolved and lawmakers are getting involved.

Thanks for reading the Dome Morning Memo. Much more on the MetLife deal and the political implications below. Send news and tips to dome@newsobserver.com. Have a good weekend and Go Heels!

As the negotiations on the so-called fiscal cliff enter the final hours, the political positioning among Republicans and Democrats will become increasingly interesting -- especially if there is no deal and the blame game begins.

Here's a look at what U.S. Senator Richard Burr of North Carolina is saying -- and how he's predictably casting all the fault on President Barack Obama as Senate leaders look to negotiate a deal.

From a Burr statement issued Sunday evening: "Negotiations on how to reach a deal to avoid the fiscal cliff have been ongoing since the President was reelected in November.

U.S. Sen. Richard Burr is voicing his support for naming the historic Century Post Office in downtown Raleigh after the late U.S. Sen. Jesse Helms.

Congresswoman Renee Ellmers recently introduced legislation to name it the Jesse Helms Federal Building and United States Courthouse but encountered opposition from some who called it "morally wrong to reward intolerance," a reference to the senator's record.

"Jesse Helms was a transformative figure in our state’s history who placed service to his constituents above all other priorities in his public life," Burr said in a statement issued by his office Thursday. "Whether they agreed with him on political issues or not, North Carolinians had a dedicated advocate in Washington in Jesse Helms, and this bill will help to commemorate his legacy and his service to our state."

U.S. Sen. Richard Burr announced Friday he would abandon his bid for the No. 2 Republican post in the Senate.

The Winston-Salem lawmaker said he began in realize in recent weeks that a leadership post wouldn't allow him to purse his policy reforms. "These efforts require serious attention, and they simply cannot be pursued with the focus they demand while also serving as a member of leadership," he said in a statement. "As interested as I am in the Whip position, these legislative and policy efforts are of primary importance to me, and being in leadership wouldn’t provide me the ability and flexibility to commit the time and energy to them that they deserve."

In his campaign for Senate GOP whip, Burr was considered the underdog to Sen. John Cornyn of Texas. If choosen by his colleagues for the position, Burr would have served as the right-hand man for Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. For more background on Burr's bid, read here.