After the Senate passed the historic $9 billion Trump Rescissions Act without her support early Thursday morning, US Sen.Lisa Murkowski is once again voicing her opposition — this time with a published statement that has a narrow focus on the cuts to Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which is the parent funder of NPR and PBS.
The Alaska Republican had previously criticized the sweeping package before the vote, citing concerns about various foreign aid cuts and her concern about a lack of transparency, as well as public broadcasting.
But in her latest remarks issued after the wee-hours passage of the rescissions act, Murkowski’s emphasis landed squarely on the threat to public broadcasting, a government-subsidized institution that has reliably supported her throughout her long political career, and to whom she has returned the favor.
“I voted against approving this rescissions package for three key reasons,” Murkowski said in a lengthy statement released Thursday. The senator noted concerns about vague budget impacts and executive overreach, but devoted the bulk of her public comments to the risks facing NPR and local radio stations.
“My colleagues are targeting NPR but will wind up hurting – and, over time, closing down – local radio stations that provide essential news, alerts, and educational programming in Alaska and across the country,” Murkowski said, referring to a 7.3 magnitude earthquake and tsunami warning in southwestern Alaska as an example of public broadcasting’s role.
She did not acknowledge that most people in the 21st century get emergency messages from official agencies directly on their phones and that commercial radio stations also broadcast them. Even vagrants living on the streets have smart phones in this era, and alerts are issued without an intermediary radio signal.
Alaska has about 27 public broadcasting radio stations. That’s one for every 27,000 Alaskans. To compare, Florida has 24 public broadcasting radio stations, or one for every one million Floridians.
The rescissions package, backed by the Trump White House and Republican leadership, claws back unspent federal funds from a variety of programs, including foreign aid initiatives, clean technology subsidies, and taxpayer dollars earmarked for public broadcasting. The bill passed 51-48 without the need for Vice President JD Vance to cast a tie-breaking vote.
Murkowski’s latest statement reveals a narrowing political focus. Though she previously raised alarm about cuts to international health programs, her post-vote comments failed to mention foreign aid, instead doubling down on defending public broadcasting, an issue of outsized importance to the senator’s political brand in Alaska.
During the vote, Murkowski unsuccessfully attempted to add an amendment to protect the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. “Disappointingly, it failed,” she said, while she threw shade on her two Alaska congressional colleagues, Sen. Dan Sullivan and Congressman Nick Begich.
She may have spent all her political capital opposing her Republican team in the Senate.
Supporters of the rescissions package, which is part of the Department of Government Efficiency efforts to trim spending, argue it represents long-overdue fiscal discipline, targeting wasteful spending and reducing federal deficits.
With her third Senate term up for reelection in 2028, Murkowski’s outspoken defense of public broadcasting reiterates her willingness to break with her party at any time. She has hinted to the media several times that she may end her relationship with the Republican Party altogether.
That’s five minutes of my life. I won’t get back
Suzanne we all know Lisa is you lady come on now come out the closet
NPR is totally partisan biased and brainwashes gullible listeners with left woke extreme ideology. If it were non partisan it would be different, but it’s not- so cut it all out.
Nancy and I told Lisa to change the title of her book to boost sales. The book just isn’t selling…..new titles:
1. Far Away From Reality.
2. Out in the Tundra (weeds).
3. Appointed and Annointed.
4. M U R K O W S K I, (How I taught Natives
to spell).
5. Censured (by Republicans) and Indentured (by Democrats)
6. Where’s My Daddy?
Princess Murk has built nothing. She is first and foremost an OrangeManBad scold. She’ll finish her 3rd term by overseeing over $30T in debt increase…during her then 26 years in the Senate. Alaskans can’t afford a Princess.
Please leave. You hate Trump anyway and vote with the opposition.
I may be mistaken, but read somewhere that NPR did in fact NOT report the
tsunami warning, it was commercial radio and recorded messages that reached the pubic first. I recall NPR was playing some program and failed to be ‘Johnny On the Spot” till late. Correct me if I error.
That the funds are cut is a good thing for all the right reasons.
Cheers.
Johnson-Ketchikan
It’s past time for this RINO to go away!
Of course the invariably pro-(leftist)-establishment Senator Nepotism Baby would automatically rush to defend National Propaganda Radio.
Always-wrong, always-self-serving Lisa strikes again.
Somebody hit that scowling salmon on the head already.
The local public broadcasting station came up lame years ago, when they ditched their news team and started reading the lame ass newspaper to everybody. Seriously. They are not worthy. Neither is she.
Retire Lisa you are a rino.
Hmmm… Lisa isn’t telling you that the vast majority of Villages in remote Alaska can’t hear the broadcasts from the Hub communities, such as Bethel or Dillingham.
What she’s mad about is that the Hubs are the biggest group of voters that basically control the selection of candidates running for office in remote State Senate Districts. She’s had the perfect propaganda machine in the Bush and knows this has the potential to eliminate any unfair advantage in rural Alaska… Cause we all know that Public Commie Radio does not bite the hand that feeds them.
I can tell you that all the Hubs have access to commercial or Christian radio stations that cover a larger area than PBS, without a single tax dollar being given to them.
I have lived out here in the Bush for nearly forty years and I’m delighted to see this commie propaganda machine shut off from the Federal gravy train.
I humbly suggest those who are serious posters of the “Princess” and her antics, particularly to this subject of NPR, read the following post from “Hot Air” on the topic:
‘https://hotair.com/david-strom/2025/07/16/it-all-depends-on-what-you-mean-by-objective-n3804844