WASHINGTON — Rep. Chris Deluzio, D-Pa., said Monday that he voted against the Russia sanctions bill because he thought it was foolish to give President Donald Trump more power, and that Trump has now “waived all the bill’s sanctions on Russia.”
The Post
Deluzio posted the following on X at 3:55 p.m. on Oct. 19, 2026, in full:
“I voted NO on this sanctions bill because I thought it was foolish to give even more power to Donald Trump. And look what he just did with it: he waived all the bill’s sanctions on Russia, a total gift to Putin.
This undermines our friends in Ukraine, who have fought valiantly for their sovereignty.”
The Report He Responded To
The post linked a report headlined “Trump puts new Russia sanctions that he recently signed into law on hold, citing national interest.” It said Trump signed an executive order on Friday putting on hold a sweeping sanctions package targeting the Russian economy, telling Congress the pause was in the national interest.
The report said Trump signed the legislation last month and acted two days before a deadline set in the law itself. It said the decision drew sharp condemnation from congressional Democrats. The legislation, named after the late South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, sought to clamp down more quickly on the flow of financial resources fueling Russia’s war against Ukraine.
The package, also drafted by Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., sought to sanction Russian officials, banks and a shadow fleet of tankers that moves Russian energy. It also directed Trump to impose tariffs of up to 100 percent on the top five importers of Russian oil or natural gas, with an exception for countries that import less than 15 percent of Russia’s natural gas exports and have taken significant steps to reduce those imports.
Blumenthal said the waivers had nothing to do with national security and everything to do with “sucking up to Vladimir Putin.” Rep. Don Beyer, D-Va., said he and others had warned Trump might make such a move, and called on Congress to fix what he described as a flawed law.
The report said the White House did not immediately explain how pausing the sanctions was in the national interest. It said the order was posted late in the evening, and that the notification said a report explaining the decision had been submitted to Congress.
The decision followed Trump’s announcement a week earlier of a deal to buy Russian diesel. The report said Russia would supply more than 300,000 tons immediately, followed by 500,000 tons in November and 1 million tons “immediately thereafter.”
The Vote on the Graham Act
The House passed the Graham Act on a 262-159 vote, with dozens of Democrats breaking from party leaders to join most Republicans. The Senate had passed it 86-11 the month before. Deluzio said in his post that he was among the House members who voted no.
Reuters reported that opposing House Democrats said the bill gave Trump too many new tariff powers and made it too easy for him to skip sanctions by declaring them contrary to the national interest. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said the bill contained so many loopholes that sanctions harming Russia might never be applied.
What the Order Does
The executive order, published by the White House on Oct. 16, cites Section 115 of the Graham Act, which lets the president waive sanctions and duties after certifying to Congress that doing so is in the national interests of the United States. Section 4 of the order waives the duties in sections 112 and 113, the sanctions provision in section 102(d) and a list of other sanctions sections.
The order says sanctions already imposed under existing executive orders on Russia are unaffected. It states the waivers remain in effect until the president or the Secretary of State determines further action is appropriate.
The report noted that the sanctions had become a campaign centerpiece for Sen. Darline Graham, who was appointed to her late brother’s seat. She said in a debate earlier this week that the law gives the president tools to use “if he so chooses,” and that whether to use them was up to him.