Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski urges House to reject Trump’s tax bill despite voting for it Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski—who played a crucial role in the Senate’s approval of Donald Trump’s "One Big Beautiful Bill" on Tuesday—now urges the House to refrain from passing it. The Alaskan senator called her affirmative vote on the president’s sweeping tax breaks and spending cuts bill —which squeaked by with a mere one-vote margin—"agonizing" and now wishes the House to return it to the Senate for additional revisions. "My hope is that the House is gonna look at this and recognize that we're not there yet," Murkowski expressed to reporters. Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT The narrow 50-51 victory of the bill came after a hectic all-night session which saw Republicans overcome resistance not just from Democrats but from within GOP ranks as well. Late into the evening, Murkowski was spotted walking the Senate corridors alone, visibly troubled. John McEnroe urges Wimbledon star to retire immediately after speaking with his wife Nightmare map shows which US cities would vanish underwater if 'doomsday glacier' melts

Her GOP peers realized that securing her vote was their best shot at pushing the legislation through. When inquired if she had made up her mind on supporting the bill, Murkowski answered decisively with a "No," shaking her head and gesturing with her hand to avoid further queries. However, 12 hours later, having persuaded Senate leadership to amend the bill to Alaska’s advantage and casting her vote in its favor, Murkowski reflected on the experience as "probably the most difficult and agonizing legislative 24-hour period that I have encountered." "And you all know," she addressed the press following the vote on Tuesday at noon, "I've got a few battle scars underneath me." Murkowski, with almost 23 years in the Senate, is known as a centrist Republican who frequently diverges from her party line. Murkowski harnessed the intense lobbying for her vote to secure various initiatives for her predominantly rural state, including specific exemptions for Medicaid and food support. Ultimately, Vice President JD Vance was called upon to deliver a decisive tie-breaking vote after three Republicans sided with all Democrats in opposition to the legislation. In the vast 887-page document, California is referenced thrice, Texas twice, yet New York not once; however, Alaska’s interests are mentioned 19 times. The bill outlines everything from fresh oil and gas leases in Alaska to tax deductions for its fishing and whaling industries to tribal concessions regarding work stipulations. Despite the numerous Alaska-focused measures, Murkowski wrestled with her decision until just hours before the vote, when she became the center of Senate attention—as her Republican colleagues exerted pressure on her to endorse the bill, thereby nudging their party towards handing Trump a legislative victory. She had been a proponent of the bill’s tax cuts and extensions but harbored deep concerns regarding the impact of Medicaid reductions in her state and nationwide. Murkowski ultimately cast her vote in favor after the Senate parlimentarian sanctioned provisions for several states with high error rates in their food stamp programs, including Alaska, to delay shouldering more costs for federal benefits, coupled with the GOP’s introduction of a $50 billion reserve to support rural hospitals endangered by Medicaid slashes. "This was one of the hardest votes I have taken during my time in the Senate," penned Murkowski on X following the ballot. "My goal throughout the reconciliation process has been to make a bad bill better for Alaska, and in many ways, we have done that." She elaborated: "Let’s not kid ourselves. This has been an awful process-a frantic rush to meet an artificial deadline that has tested every limit of this institution. While we have worked to improve the present bill for Alaska, it is not good enough for the rest of our nation-and we all know it. "