President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” was passed by the Senate Tuesday after Republicans secured the vote of a hesitant Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK).
Speaking to reporters after the vote, Murkowski described the decision as “agonizing,” and admitted the bill does not have her full support, despite getting her vote.
“We do not have a perfect bill by any stretch of the imagination,” she said. “My hope is that the House is going to look at this and recognize that we’re not there yet.”
Murkowski said she supported the bill only after securing key concessions for her state, including added flexibility in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), more funding for rural hospitals and the removal of a tax on solar and wind projects.
“Did I get everything I wanted? Absolutely not,” she acknowledged. “I had to look on balance, because the people in my state are the ones that I put first.”
Murkowski also criticized what she called the “artificial” rush by the White House and GOP leadership to pass the bill by July 4, saying she’s urged them to instead send the legislation to a conference committee for further negotiation.
“I’ve urged the White House that I think that more process is needed … because I would like to see a better outcome for people in this country,” she said.
Murkowski explained her vote as a pragmatic step to keep negotiations alive:
“Kill it and it’s gone,” she said. “There is a tax impact coming forward. That’s gonna hurt the people in my state.”
Murkowski has gained notoriety for her moderate politics and willingness to publicly disagree with certain Trump initiatives, leading Trump to accuse her of “suffering from Trump Derangement Syndrome” when she voted with Democrats to repeal tariffs levied against Canada.
“We are all afraid,” Murkowski said in April. Before she opposed Trump’s tariffs, she’d already earned his ire by voting against cabinet picks including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and FBI Director Kash Patel, and speaking out against Trump’s renaming of Mount McKinley from its Indigenous name, Denali.
The bill, which advances key Trump priorities including extending the 2017 tax cuts, now heads to the House, where debate is expected to continue.
Originally published on Latin Times
