Sen. Lisa Murkowski said Thursday she felt “more comfortable” with no party label than with “an identity as a Republican,” an escalation of the Alaska senator’s occasional bucking of her party as the chamber readies itself for a slew of confirmation battles over Trump administration nominees.
“I’m not attached to a label, I’d rather be that ‘no label.’ I’d rather be that person that is just known for trying to do right by the state and the people that I serve, regardless of party, and I’m totally good and comfortable with that,” Murkowski said during a discussion hosted by the centrist group No Labels at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington.
Later on during the discussion, Murkowski clarified that she is “still a Republican” and has “never shed my party label.”
“We’ve got a system in the Senate where there are two sides of the aisle, and I have to sit on one side or I have to sit on the other,” she added.
