Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) is one of the few Republican senators who has been willing to buck the Trump Administration, in both its first and second incarnations. She voted against Canada tariffs and the confirmation of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. In Trump’s first term, she voted against Trump’s attempt to repeal Obamacare and against the confirmation of Justice Brett Kavanaugh. She voted against conviction in Trump’s first impeachment, but voted for conviction in his second, and was the only one of the seven Republican senators who voted for conviction to face voters in the next cycle.
More recently, Murkowski has been critical of Trump’s approach to Russia and Ukraine, as well as the cuts to the Department of Defense (DOE).
BREAKING: In a shocking video, Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski says every Republican Senator is AFRAID of Trump: “I’m oftentimes very anxious myself about using my voice, because retaliation is real.” These cowards should be removed along with Trump.
— CALL TO ACTIVISM (@CalltoActivism) April 17, 2025
The daughter of a former senator and governor from Alaska, Murkowski comes from a prominent Republican family in the state, and has never seriously considered switching parties. Murkowski, in 2022, defeated a Trump-backed primary challenger and has proven popular within Alaska’s idiosyncratic political culture. In 2010, long before Trump’s rise, Murkowski won an election as a write-in candidate against a Tea Party candidate, marking the first time a Senate candidate had won that way in 50 years.
Stay up-to-date with the latest news!
Subscribe and start recieving our daily emails.
But this week, Murkowski made some surprising comments about fears of retaliation from the Trump Administration.
Per Politico, Murkowski is “oftentimes very anxious” about speaking up about Trump, and that “fear of retaliation under President Donald Trump’s administration is rising to levels she’s not seen before.”
Trump rules by negative peace enforcement.
That’s what Murkowski is saying.
Negative peace is coercion by way of intimidation.
It’s no way to govern.
Welcome to the New America.
Watch what you say.https://t.co/43Vl7zitav— Allen Raymond (@A_B_Raymond) April 17, 2025
“We are all afraid,” she added.
The comments came at a conference in Alaska for nonprofit and tribal leaders.
“We’re in a time and place where — I don’t know, I certainly have not — I have not been here before. And I’ll tell you, I’m oftentimes very anxious myself about using my voice because retaliation is real. And that’s not right. But that’s what you’ve asked me to do and so I’m going to use my voice to the best of my ability,” the senator said.
Featured image via Political Tribune Gallery
