02.01.13

With Sequestration Looming in a Month, Murkowski Demanding Clarity From Administration

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski today urged the heads of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee to hold a hearing as soon as possible to get hard, precise numbers from the Administration about the $85 billion in across-the-board spending cuts to many federal agencies set to begin on March 1st. With the federal government accounting for one-third of Alaska's economy, these cuts have significant meaning for every region and every industry in the state - and no specifics have been announ… Continue Reading

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02.01.13

Murkowski Co-Sponsors Bill to Fight Violence Against Women

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Lisa Murkowski has joined a bipartisan team of Senators in introducing the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) reauthorization bill to continue to support efforts and programs nationwide to combat and police domestic violence, as well as providing services and care for victims. A similar version of the bill - which originally became law over twenty years ago - passed the Senate last year, but stalled in the House of Representatives despite Murkowski urging the other cha… Continue Reading

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01.31.13

Murkowski: “Not All American War Heroes Were Americans”

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski today introduced a bill to bring Hmong volunteers who made major contributions to the American cause in the Vietnam War out of the shadows of covert warfare, and into our national cemeteries as a permanent, lasting honor. During the Vietnam War, the CIA conducted covert operations in Laos utilizing thousands of Hmong volunteers - a minority group persecuted by communists - to perform stealth operations in the "secret war" on the Ho Chi Minh trail and cros… Continue Reading

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01.31.13

Murkowski: Vote Will “Curb Our Appetite for Spending”

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Lisa Murkowski today voted to allow the United States to pay our debts while requiring the U.S. Senate pass a budget for the first time in nearly four years, offering the following statement afterwards: "I have been telling Alaskans and Americans for years that we are on a reckless path, borrowing money from other countries and future generations to stay afloat today. It is clear we absolutely must rein in our finances, using a comprehensive approach of targeted spen… Continue Reading

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01.30.13

Murkowski, Udall Again Lead Bipartisan Seating Push

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski was joined by Senator Mark Udall (D-CO) today to renew their push for members of Congress to set aside partisanship for an evening and sit together during the president's State of the Union address. The two wrote a letter (attached) directly to U.S. Senate and House of Representative leaders, encouraging support for this small but meaningful gesture. Last year, the two Senators were able to build enough momentum that over 200 lawmakers sat side-by-side… Continue Reading

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01.30.13

Murkowski Introduces Anchorage Land Transfer Bill to Boost Economic Development

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Lisa Murkowski today introduced legislation to transfer permanent title of three parcels of federal land located in downtown Anchorage to the Municipality. The 2.7 acres in downtown Anchorage had been given to the city - which has always been surrounded by federal lands - by the federal government between 1922 and 1982. The parcels were initially transferred to Anchorage to ensure that the local government had sufficient land resources to provide services for the grow… Continue Reading

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01.29.13

Murkowski Receives U.S. Navy’s Highest Civilian Award

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Lisa Murkowski today received the United States Navy's Distinguished Public Service Award from U.S. Navy Secretary Ray Mabus for her "selfless service to the Nation's Sailors and Marines [that] ensured they were provided the resources necessary to support and defend the Nation's interests around the globe," according to the certificate. The Navy also recognized her Arctic leadership that guarantees "our combat forces are prepared to meet the challenges of a dynamic op… Continue Reading

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01.29.13

Murkowski Introduces Bill To Rename Mt. McKinley Denali

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Lisa Murkowski today announced she has filed S.155 to officially restore the traditional name of the nation's highest peak, Mount McKinley, to its traditional Interior Alaska Athabascan Name: Denali. "I have nothing against President McKinley, whatsoever, but I would rather have this peak be called by the name it has gone by for centuries by Alaskans than a man who never set foot in our state," said Murkowski. "This is the tallest mountain in North America and we des… Continue Reading

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01.28.13

Murkowski on Fishery Disaster Funding: “I Intend to Push Until the Relief is Provided”

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski today cast her vote to deliver $50.5 billion in federal funds to hurricane-struck Atlantic coast communities buffeted by Hurricane Sandy last year, which passed 62-36. After the vote concluded, Senator Murkowski was joined by a number of her Senate colleagues on the Senate floor expressing frustration that fishery disasters in Alaska and other states were not included in the disaster relief bill. In Senator Murkowski's first set of remarks (clip one), sh… Continue Reading

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01.28.13

Senator Murkowski Welcomes Fairbanks Student as Senate Page

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Murkowski today welcomed Kathryn R. Robinson of Fairbanks to Washington, D.C. as her selection for United States Senate Page Program - her first nomination since earning the seniority to sponsor a Senate page. "Serving as a Senate Page is a great experience, and for me to be able to select an Alaskan high school junior every semester and summer is an investment in our next generation," said Senator Murkowski. "It is students like Kathryn, taking part in the opportunit… Continue Reading

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01.28.13

Sen. Murkowski Introduces Bill to Restore Subsistence Harvest of Gull Eggs in Southeast Alaska

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today reintroduced legislation restoring the traditional rights of the Huna Tlingit to gather glaucous-winged gull eggs in Glacier Bay National Park as part of their subsistence hunting activities. "The Huna Tlingit have gathered gull eggs as part of their traditional subsistence activities for centuries - certainly long before Glacier Bay was made into a national park," Murkowski said. "Gull eggs are part of their traditional diet and cult… Continue Reading

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01.25.13

Murkowski Fights Red Tape for Veterans’ Jobs

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski today reached out to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to advocate that it make common-sense changes to its policies in an effort to improve access to commercial driver's licenses (CDLs) for America's veterans who are already fully trained to operate large commercial-size vehicles. Senator Murkowski was the lead Republican co-sponsor of the Veteran Employment Assistance Act of 2010, attempting to craft into law such a provision for o… Continue Reading

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01.25.13

“I Hope Alaskans Remember What We Did”

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski today is releasing her 8th Veteran Spotlight installment featuring Father Norman Elliott, a U.S. Army veteran of World War II. Now nearly 94-years-old, Elliott recalls living in Michigan at age 22 when the war broke out and the calling he felt to defend his country - putting seminary school on hold to join the National Guard and then the U.S. Army in 1941. Nine months later, the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor led the United States to join the Allies in … Continue Reading

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01.24.13

Murkowski Introduces “America Needs Eielson Act of 2013”

WASHINGTON, DC - A day after she brought up the issue of Eielson Air Force Base with Defense Secretary nominee Chuck Hagel and received his assurance he would personally look into it, Senator Lisa Murkowski today introduced S.152, the America Needs Eielson Act of 2013 to reinforce the many ways the nation needs Eielson Air Force Base at its current operational capacity or higher as the Defense Department embarks on a new geopolitical direction, focusing on the Asia-Pacific region. The bill - d… Continue Reading

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01.24.13

Murkowski: It’s “Way Past Time” for Mental Health Conversation

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski took part in the first Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee hearing to focus on America's mental health care since 2007 - saying it was "way past time" for the committee to take up the issue - focusing her attention on Alaska's critical fight against youth suicide and the latest efforts to identify mental and behavioral issues early in childhood to improve outcomes across the country, especially in rural America. In her opening remarks (clip one… Continue Reading

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01.23.13

Murkowski Meets with Secretary of Defense Nominee Chuck Hagel

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski today had a frank and candid meeting with Defense Secretary nominee former Senator Chuck Hagel, discussing his views regarding the Middle East, the Pentagon's strategic shift to Asia and the Pacific and Alaska's geographic superiority when it comes to military basing. Murkowski specifically expressed her concern over the proposed move of F-16 Aggressors from Eielson Air Force Base to Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson. She shared the following statement afte… Continue Reading

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01.23.13

Murkowski Welcomes Angelina Burney to Alaska Team

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski today announced that Angelina Burney has joined her Anchorage office staff, where she will serve the Senator as an executive assistant and scheduler. Burney has over a decade of community relations experience at the state and federal level working with elected officials, governing boards and senior management to implement public policy. "Angelina's value is in her ability to see government from all perspectives - federal, state and as an observer in the … Continue Reading

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01.23.13

Murkowski Leads Bipartisan Senate Effort to Fight Youth Suicide

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski and her colleague Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) today introduced the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act Reauthorization with nine other Senate co-sponsors in an attempt to improve mental health services for young people and prevent youth suicides. The reauthorization will improve access to counseling for at-risk teens and promote the development of statewide suicide early intervention and prevention strategies. It will also increase federal funding for competiti… Continue Reading

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01.21.13

Murkowski Speaks About Martin Luther King, Jr’s Message

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Murkowski today issued the following statement in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: "2013 marks the fiftieth anniversary of the 'I have a dream speech' on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. As our nation honors the legacy of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. today, let us remember the fortitude and resolve Dr. King held towards achieving that dream for his four little children and generations of Americans to come. "This month, as we celebrate the life of thi… Continue Reading

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01.18.13

Sen. Murkowski to Hold Pen & Pad Session on Recent Energy Trip to Asia

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, will hold an on-the-record pen & pad session with reporters on Wednesday, Jan. 23, to discuss her recent trip to Asia. The pen & pad session will be held in the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee's library (enter through Senate Dirksen-370) at 11 a.m. Murkowski met with Taiwanese and Japanese officials during the trip on potential trade opportunities for Alaska's natural gas, and toured the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear react… Continue Reading