A bipartisan push to impose sweeping new sanctions on Russia and its trading partners is facing fierce opposition from Kentucky Republican Senator Rand Paul, who has labeled the proposed legislation “the most ill-conceived bill I have ever seen in my life.”
The bill, which has garnered support from over 80 senators, aims to pressure Russian President Vladimir Putin into peace talks with Ukraine, but, according to Paul, risks triggering a global economic war.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune indicated Monday that the upper chamber may consider the new Russia sanctions legislation in June.
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The bill, introduced by South Carolina Republican Senator Lindsey Graham and Connecticut Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, proposes a drastic 500% tariff on dozens of countries, including economic giants like China and India, that continue to purchase Russian oil, gas, and other exports.
Furthermore, the legislation mandates that the tariff rate on goods from these trading partners imported into the United States would double every 90 days.
Senator Paul, a libertarian-leaning Republican known for his dissenting views on foreign policy, expressed profound concern about the potential ramifications.
“People who think tariffs are disruptive, can you imagine a 500% tariff on 36 countries?” Paul told reporters. “If they don’t [stop trading with Russia], basically we’re at war with these countries. A 500% tariff is war. It’s an economic war with a country. It is literally the most ill-conceived bill I’ve ever seen in Washington.”
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He added, “I can’t believe it’s 82 people on it. They’re not thinking through what would happen with this. This would shut down all trade in the world unless they immediately bent the knee to America and said, ‘We are not buying Russian oil.'”
The renewed push for sanctions comes as peace talks between Russia and Ukraine have stalled, despite efforts by President Donald Trump to broker an end to the conflict.
Senator Thune defended the need for new sanctions, echoing the sentiment of many colleagues that Putin appears more interested in prolonging the war than pursuing peace. This sentiment was further underscored by a recent large-scale Ukrainian drone attack deep inside Russia on Sunday, which reportedly damaged Russian military aircraft.
“President Trump has invested considerable time in working to end the bloodshed in Ukraine, but Vladimir Putin appears more interested in prolonging the war than in pursuing peace,” Thune stated on the Senate floor.
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While there is strong bipartisan support for the bill, Thune also cautioned that the Senate may wait for the President’s sign-off before moving forward. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, however, urged Thune to bring the legislation to a vote “as soon as possible.”
“They’re [White House] still hopeful that they’ll be able to strike some sort of a deal,” Thune commented to reporters. “But as you might expect, there’s a high level of interest here in the Senate — on both sides of the aisle — in moving on it, and it very well could be something that we take up in this work period.”
The debate over these potentially unprecedented sanctions highlights a significant divide in Washington regarding the most effective strategy to address the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and its global economic implications.
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