The impact of federal funding freezes and job cuts on Sitka’s economy topped the list of concerns when Senator Lisa Murkowski visited the Southeast island community on Wednesday (3-19-25). But community concerns extended beyond that, as was highlighted in a protest the same day of Murkowski’s visit, when over 200 Sitkans marched in opposition to a wide range of actions taken by President Donald Trump in recent weeks.
Murkowski held a joint interview with local radio station KCAW and paper, the Daily Sitka Sentinel. She spoke about the economic implications of the Trump administration’s actions and the United States’ shifting position on the war in Ukraine.
Murkowski said it’s unclear how far-reaching the ripple effects from Trump’s trade war will be after imposing tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China. And she lamented the harm to the close relationship between Alaska and Canada.
“We’ve always had a very, a very cooperative, very collaborative relationship with our Canadian neighbors. And I think it’s fair to say that there’s now a very chilling effect that we’re seeing. How might that impact tourism? I think that remains to be seen. But I do think folks are going to start seeing the prices of of of materials and consumer products increasing as a result of these, these tariffs,” Murkowski said.
“You mentioned China,” she continued, addressing The Sentinel, “And the impacts on seafood and fisheries. That is something that, again, we’re not seeing the impact right here, right now. But is that coming at us? I think absolutely so.”
She said the cost of living and inflation under the Biden administration were big factors in how people voted in November. But tariffs likely wouldn’t be the answer.
“They want to see prices drop. And so, we’re not seeing that happen now. In fact, what we’re hearing is that, well, with tariffs, it might actually further the pain that families are feeling with what they’re paying,” she said. “And so when, when we ask about things like recession and could we be headed towards one? I think if I were those in the administration, I’d be watching this very, very carefully.”
While Murkowski was in Sitka, President Trump was talking with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky after a phone call with Vladimir Putin of Russia the day before.
Murkowski expressed frustration about the “confused” and “inconsistent” message the administration has taken in its stance on the war. She said she wants the war to end, but not on Russia’s terms, and she was hopeful that Trump’s conversations with Putin and Zelensky earlier this week went well and the countries were closer to brokering a peace agreement.
“We need it. The world needs it, but it must be on terms that that Ukraine helps to set, for the right reasons,” she said.
During her visit, the senator spent close to two hours meeting with local city and tribal government, school and nonprofit leaders to discuss the state of Sitka’s economy in the face of challenges at the federal and state level.
After her roundtable discussion, Murkowski hit a few more stops, visiting the US Coast Guard base, the Sitka Sound Science Center, and speaking at an event honoring Louis Minard, a Tlingit code talker in World War 2, awarding the late veteran a posthumous Congressional Medal of Recognition.
