Senators tout Russia sanctions bill as ‘sledgehammer’ for Trump to end war in Ukraine
CNN
The legislation, which would allow the president to levy a 500% tariff on imports from countries that purchase Russian uranium, gas and oil, has gained momentum in the Senate as Trump has signaled he will escalate US action against Russia.
Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham and Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal are urging quick action by the US as Russia escalates its war in Ukraine, including the passage of a bipartisan bill they’ve introduced implementing sanctions on Moscow that they say could be the “sledgehammer” President Donald Trump needs to end the conflict. The legislation, which would allow the president to levy a 500% tariff on imports from countries that purchase Russian uranium, gas and oil, has gained momentum in the Senate as Trump has signaled he will escalate US action against Russia. “(Blumenthal) and I have got 85 co-sponsors in the United States Senate for congressional sanctions with a sledgehammer available to President Trump to go after Putin’s economy and all those countries who prop up the Putin war machine,” Graham said on CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The two lawmakers just returned from Rome, where they attended a conference focused on Ukraine’s recovery and met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and other European leaders. Blumenthal said European allies expressed to the lawmakers that any potential US sanctions would “have to be tough and rigorous to change behavior.” Russia conducted its largest drone assault on Ukraine since the start of its full-scale invasion last week, launching 728 drones and 13 missiles in strikes that killed at least one person, according to Ukrainian officials. Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters last week that he could bring the bill to the floor by the end of the month, something he had indicated he would not do without the Trump’s approval.
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