Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski calls for Trump to resign: 'I want him out'

As calls continue to rise for President Trump to resign, be impeached, or be removed from office via the 25th Amendment, one Republican senator is publicly on board.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) said on Friday that Trump should step down following his role in Wednesday's Capitol siege. "I want him to resign. I want him out," she told Anchorage Daily News. She also said if Republicans don't all vocally split from Trump, she's not sure she can continue to be a member of the party.

"I think he should leave," Murkowski said. "He said he's not going to show up. He's not going to appear at the at the inauguration. He hasn't been focused on what is going on with COVID. He's either been golfing or he's been inside the Oval Office fuming and throwing every single person who has been loyal and faithful to him under the bus, starting with the vice president. He doesn't want to stay there. He only wants to stay there for the title. He only wants to stay there for his ego. He needs to get out. He needs to do the good thing, but I don't think he's capable of doing a good thing."

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Murkowski, who last year voted against convicting Trump in his impeachment trial, blamed him for inciting his supporters to riot and break into the Capitol building, which led to five deaths. She believed "there may have been many, many, many, many good Americans who came to Washington, D.C., because they felt strongly in support of this president," but said Trump ordered them to fight. "How are they supposed to take that? It's an order from the president," she said.

The Alaska senator joins top Democratic leadership in calling for Trump's exit, along with fellow Republican Sen. Ben Sasse (Neb.) who said he would consider impeachment.