Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) could be one of the biggest obstacles to President Donald Trumps' "big, beautiful bill" in its current form as it heads for debate in the Senate, the New York Times reported on Monday morning.
In particular, she opposes the $600 billion in Medicaid cuts the bill uses to reduce the cost of tax cuts for the wealthy, and says it's essentially impossible for Alaska to adopt the work requirements the GOP is mandating for all states starting in 2026.
“In Alaska, it’s just a little bit different, if you’re out in a rural area where you don’t have the opportunity for jobs, unless you are to move into the city, or you’re the full-time caregiver for someone in your family,” said Murkowski. “These are considerations that I think need to be taken into account. Having some level of flexibility that is directed by states, as opposed to a national level.”
Nearly 40 percent of children and 24 percent of adults in Alaska receive their health coverage through Medicaid, making it one of the most reliant states on the program. The proposed cuts, she said, would be "devastating."
This is not a one-off for Murkowski, who famously fended off far-right challengers in multiple previous Senate races and is known for bucking the GOP on major votes she perceives as harmful to her remote, resource-rich and rural state. She recently spoke at a state infrastructure conference, where she listed off all the ways the Trump administration has harmed Alaska, including layoffs of federal workers in the area and suspensions of federal grants and programs the state relies on.
“It’s a challenging time right now,” she said. “I could use nice words about it — but I don’t.”
Murkowski has additionally "opposed the confirmations of Pete Hegseth, the defense secretary, and Kash Patel, the F.B.I. director," noted the report.
"She has voted repeatedly to block Mr. Trump’s sweeping tariffs on most U.S. trading partners," the report added. "She has publicly lamented Republicans’ obeisance to Mr. Trump as he tramples on legislative prerogatives, saying that it is 'time for Congress to reassert itself.' She said Mr. Trump’s Oval Office dressing-down of President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine left her 'sick to my stomach,' and recently called his decision to end deportation protections for Afghan refugees 'a historic betrayal.'"
While she had few allies in the GOP on some of these battles, the Medicaid fight could prove a thornier one; other senators, including some fiercely loyal to Trump, have gone on record worrying about the impact of Medicaid cuts to their states.
Others who agree with the cuts are also demanding changes, fearful the bill as written increases the deficit as nonpartisan budget analysts put out forecasts; House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has flatly denied this while offering no credible evidence to the contrary.
