Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, stepped into a key role on Wednesday morning to help resolve the nation's fiscal crisis, appearing on NBC's "Today" to offer a call for national unity and a harsh critique of Republican resistance in the House only hours before a settlement was reached.
"This should not be about someone's speakership," Murkowski said, according to an article Politico. "This should not be about the next election. This should be about, really, the future of our country. It ought not be about the politics of the game or whether or not someone keeps their leadership. I want to support (House Speaker) John Boehner in any way that I can, but we need to be pragmatic. This is not going to be a Republican solution or a Democrat solution. This is going to be a solution that is good for the country."
Murkowski appeared with other GOP women senators Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H. The women are part of a promising bipartisan deal to end the government shutdown and raise the debt ceiling to avoid default and put furloughed federal employees back to work after two weeks. Senate leaders reached a deal about 9 a.m. ADT to end the government shutdown and avoid a possible U.S. default, according to CNN. A formal announcement is due in a few hours.
Contact Alex DeMarban at alex(at)alaskadispatch.com