Alaska Rep. Don Young, a Republican, aligned himself with the House majority voting against a Democratic debt ceiling plan floated by the Senate on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Alaska U.S. Sens. Lisa Murkowski, a Republican, and Mark Begich, a Democrat, both expressed their frustration with the lack of a compromise measure in remarks on the Senate floor.
Young said of the Democratic plan: "This bill is nothing more than phony math and political high jinks."
"I will only vote to raise the debt ceiling if there are greater or equal real spending cuts attached and taxes are not raised on the American people," said Young.
Begich spoke on the Senate floor of the damage that more uncertainty and a government default would cause to small businesses.
"Are we supposed to kick the can down the road for six months, or do we plan for the long term, get our economy more stable and more certain so businesses can invest and do the right thing?" Begich asked.
Murkowski said, "The one thing we have managed to do on a bipartisan basis here in this Congress over the past few days is to incite fear in the American public."
Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Georgia, had outlined a proposal that would integrate ideas of leaders of both parties, said Murkowski. "We should be working to find areas where we agree because those areas are in fact in place," she said.
In votes Friday on a rival debt ceiling bill pushed by House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, Young joined the House majority in voting for the measure, sending it on to the Senate; the Senate promptly voted to table it, with Begich siding with the tabling motion and Murkowski opposing it.
