WASHINGTON — Republican senators Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska broke with their party and opposed the Senate vote to move ahead on health care.
The two women drew criticism from President Donald Trump, who said their votes were “very, very sad for them.”
Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, the Senate’s No. 2 Democrat, hailed the votes as “an act of political courage” that will be remembered by history.
Collins, in her fourth term, is a moderate known for working with Democrats and announced last year she would not vote for Trump for president.
Murkowski is in her fourth term representing the nation’s largest state and chairs the Senate Energy Committee.
Both lawmakers have expressed concerns about deep Medicaid cuts in the GOP bill.
