“To me, it means that we have to take that step back from being hand in glove with the defense,“ Murkowski said, adding: “I heard what Leader McConnell had said; I happened to think that that has further confused the process.”

McConnell has vowed to work with the Trump White House on the president’s defense.

“Everything I do during this, I’m coordinating with the White House counsel,” he told Sean Hannity on Fox News on Dec. 12. “There will be no difference between the president’s position and our position as to how to handle this.”

McConnell also told Hannity: “I’m going to take my cues from the president’s lawyers.“

Murkowski, who has at times charted an independent path in the Senate, was critical of the way House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had handled the impeachment process but also said she took seriously her role as an impeachment juror.