In an increasingly rare move among Republicans, Lisa Murkowski, a U.S. Senator known for openly disagreeing with former President Donald Trump, is gearing up to release her new book this summer. Titled “Far From Home: An Alaskan Senator Faces the Extreme Climate of Washington, D.C.,” the publication is due on June 24.
In a statement released by Forum Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House, Murkowski stated, “Alaska is always first in my heart, but I believe in working with everyone, compromising for the benefit of all, and sharing the credit. I think that is what most Americans want.”
Murkowski’s political journey began when her father, ex-Governor Frank Murkowski, appointed her to his former U.S. Senate seat in 2002. Known as a moderate Republican, she has occasionally diverged from her party’s stance, engendering widespread support throughout Alaska. Notably, she retained her Senate position through a groundbreaking write-in campaign after losing the Republican primary in 2010. Murkowski’s most recent triumph in the 2022 election was under Alaska’s new voting system, featuring open primaries and ranked choice voting.
Since Trump took office in January, Murkowski has been critical of some of his actions, including his pardoning of January 6th rioters and the renaming of Alaska’s tallest peak from Denali to Mount McKinley. Furthermore, she opposed the nominations of Pete Hegseth and Kash Patel for key government roles. In her upcoming book, per Forum Books, Murkowski is set to narrate “the candid story” of her time in Washington and to emphasize the importance of bipartisan cooperation.
Murkowski has managed to sustain her political career despite many Trump critics within the GOP either losing their positions or opting to step down, a fate experienced by former Rep. Liz Cheney and former Sen. Mitt Romney.
Reflecting on her motivations for writing the book, Murkowski remarked, “My purpose in writing is to show what I learned along the way. I want to revive your hope that it is possible for our democracy to function again as a forum for Americans of goodwill to collectively solve our problems and protect our liberties. And, moreover, that doing so does not require extraordinary efforts by special people. On the contrary, it calls for the everyday dedication of ordinary people with shared values.”
