The National Republican Congressional Committee will be putting its 2010 independent expenditure program in the hands of veteran Republican strategist Mike Shields, a committee source confirmed.

Shields was tapped at the beginning of the cycle to serve as the NRCC’s director of special projects and previously served as chief of staff to Rep. Dave Reichert (R-Wash.).

Shields previously worked at the NRCC as the research director during the 2004 cycle and has also served as communications director for the Republican Party of Virginia and as a spokesman for former Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.).

In his IE role, Shields will be operating behind a firewall to decide where and how to spend the NRCC’s precious resources as staffers at the committees are prohibited by law from being involved in those decisions.

Earlier this week, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee announced that veteran party strategist Brian Smoot will manage its independent expenditure arm.