Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), a vocal critic of President Donald J. Trump and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) within the Republican Party, addressed a potential primary challenge funded by DOGE frontman Elon Musk during a press conference in Juneau, Alaska, on Tuesday. Murkowski, known for her Republican-in-name-only (RINO) stances that often frustrate her Senate Republican colleagues, struck a defiant tone regarding a potential primary threat.
“It may be that Elon Musk has decided he’s going to take the next billion dollars that he makes off of Starlink and put it directly against Lisa Murkowski,” the Alaska Republican said, referring to herself in the third person. Murkowski continued: “And you know what? That may happen. But I’m not giving up one minute, one opportunity, to try to stand up for Alaskans.”
Sen. Lisa Murkowski said at a presser in AK yesterday that Elon Musk may “take the next billion dollars that he makes off of Starlink and put it directly against” her.
Adds that GOP colleagues are silent because they’re “afraid they’re going to be taken down” or “primaried.” pic.twitter.com/pBwGvJFI0P
— bryan metzger (@metzgov) March 19, 2025
Murkowski also commented on what she perceives as her GOP colleagues’ reticence to voice opposition to President Trump and his White House, attributing this silence to fears of facing primary challenges. “They’re looking at how many things are being thrown at me, and it’s like, ‘Maybe I just better duck and cover,'” she remarked.
Regarding DOGE, Murkowski reiterated her disapproval of recent cost-cutting measures, citing them as a source of undue “anxiety.” She criticized the supposedly indiscriminate and, in her view, sometimes unlawful termination of federal employees in Alaska, claiming they are “traumatizing people” and “leaving holes in our communities.”
Notably, Murkowski has faced little political opposition in Alaska since her write-in defeat of Republican Joe Miller in 2010. Alaska’s ranked-choice voting system—which Murkowski pushed to implement—gives her an additional edge in the state, allowing her to draw support from political moderates and Democrats.
Nonetheless, she acknowledged the potential influence of Musk’s capital, with his super PAC—America PAC—declaring its intent to actively participate in future primaries aimed at unseating Republicans who are insufficiently aligned with Trump’s Make America Great Again (MAGA) agenda.