Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski on Trump’s domestic policy bill

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a moderate Republican from Alaska, has a reputation for bucking her party.

Murkowski sat down with All Things Considered host Juana Summers to discuss her memoir, her thoughts on Trump’s sweeping domestic policy bill and the future of democracy.

This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

Interview highlights

And there is much in it, quite honestly, that I really like. There are many aspects contained in the bill that I think are going to be important from a border perspective, from a defense perspective and from an energy perspective.

But having said that, where’s the bulk of the attention right now? It’s on Medicaid, the impact to Medicaid. We in Alaska, are a very high cost state when it comes to health care and, quite frankly, very limited access to care for many.

So, Medicaid is very important to so many in our state. I want to make sure that as we are looking to address some of the concerns that we know exist in Medicaid.

We can always do more when it comes to oversight and areas of reform. But I want to make sure that it works for those who are in greatest need.

It is the benefits of public broadcasting that allows people to not only get their news, but to communicate with one another, to be given alerts as to storms and what is happening with tides and landslides and the fishing report.

So for me, I am looking at this and saying the threat to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting is very real with this rescission. And it’s not something that I support. And likewise, within some of the global health programs, we have seen the benefit. One of the ways that we are able to help in many ways avoid conflict is through humanitarian efforts that our nation is engaged in. And so the role that we will play is important.

As an appropriator, I look at these accounts. These were all authorized and appropriated by Congress. Now you have an administration coming in and saying, “We don’t like this. Get rid of it.”

We have a role as the appropriators. We can listen to their advice … but Congress has a role here. And I think we need to make sure that everybody remembers that ultimately it is the Congress that has the power of the purse, has the power to determine those appropriations.

I think part of it is because we see within our own institutions greater politicization, greater politicization in the courts.

But when people stop believing in the integrity of their institutions. That’s when I think there is fear about the fundamentals of our democracy.

It is not something that I would say, “It’s all over.” Absolutely, positively not.

It’s when you stop speaking up that those of us who are in a position to listen start to think, “Well, maybe your silence means you think everything is OK.”

And if you don’t think it’s OK. It is your obligation to speak up. I’ve never been to a protest as a protester.

What we saw the weekend before last with marches around the country where people were speaking up in some of the smallest villages in Alaska. We had people that were speaking out and maybe they were just speaking out to their neighbors. But I think that that’s some of the best part of who we are. We’re in a country where you feel like you can speak out, do it peaceably, do it without violence.

I need to send a voice of — I hope — positivity. And I think this is where I hoped people would be after reading my book, that there is a glimmer of hope. There should be a desire to be involved in your community, in your state, in helping others be better people.

You should want to do this. In fact, there’s an obligation for you to do it at some different level. And you may think it requires a specific resume or a specific background. It doesn’t. It just requires a heart to try to make a difference. You do that and we’re going to be OK.