Impatience is growing in the U.S. Senate over sanctions against...

Impatience is growing in the U.S. Senate over sanctions against russia.

A bipartisan bill from Senators Lindsey Graham (R) and Richard Blumenthal (D) already has 81 backers out of 100. In today’s Washington, that’s a supermajority miracle.

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2/ The bill includes:
— Direct sanctions
— Secondary sanctions
— A 500% tariff on imports from countries buying russian oil, gas, uranium, etc.

It’s aimed primarily at China. “Without China’s support, Putin’s war machine would grind to a halt,” they say.

3/ But there’s a catch.

Republicans are waiting for a green light from Donald Trump. Senate GOP Leader John Thune says they won’t move without him. Some Republicans agree. Others are done waiting.

4/ Senator Kevin Cramer: “I respect Leader Thune. But at some point, you just can’t ignore 81 signatures.”

Senator Todd Young: “I don’t need anyone’s permission. I’ve waited long enough. Putin’s been stringing us along for months. It’s time to act.”

5/ Senator Joni Ernst added a sharper jab:
“We want to move forward — so that Putin knows we mean business. He’s messing with President Trump’s head. We don’t like that.”

6/ Many expected sanctions after russia once again refused a ceasefire in Istanbul. Instead, after a call with Putin, Trump said:

“I think there’s a chance for progress… sanctions could make things worse. Though that might change.”

7/ Secretary of State Marco Rubio backed that up during Senate hearings:
“If you start threatening sanctions, the russians will stop talking to us.”

8/ But Graham and Blumenthal are not backing down.
If there’s no serious ceasefire plan from russia in the coming days, they say: the Senate will act.

Some senators are already eyeing a sanctions vote right after Memorial Day (May 26).

P.S. Original reporting by Ostap Yarysh.