GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham says there’s been progress on moving his bipartisan Russia sanctions resolution and predicts there will be a breakthrough on it by Wednesday, as pressure grows for congressional action.
“There will be a plan here coming out in the next few days, I think, to act on this bill, and I think it will help in this war. That’s my hope,” the South Carolina Republican told reporters, noting he spoke to House members on Monday.
“We’ve worked very closely with President Trump. I think by Wednesday, we’ll have our differences resolved about how the waiver works,” Graham added.
The South Carolina Republican’s resolution, which has over 80 Senate co-sponsors, would allow the president to levy up to a 500% tariff on imports from countries that purchase Russian uranium, gas and oil, and have not contributed to Ukraine’s war effort.
House and Senate Republican leadership have previously said they are waiting for the White House to give them the green light to hold a vote on the measure, but pressure is mounting, particularly among some Senate Republicans, to move ahead on the floor.
“Europe needs to do more. But quite frankly, it’s time for the Congress to legitimize or confer this authority on the president,” Graham said.
“I think the legislation I’ve been working on with Sen. Blumenthal would be a strong signal to Russia, to China, to Europe, that America, not just President Trump, is behind the idea of holding those accountable who prop up Putin’s war machine.”
Graham emphasized that Europe and the US will have to pursue sanctions together.
“We’ve sanctioned Russia to death. We could add sanctions to Russia. It won’t matter. The theory of the case is to go after his customers, to get him to the table, because people won’t buy his oil and gas,” he said.