Trump signs sweeping Russia sanctions bill named for late Sen. Graham

President Donald Trump signed a sweeping sanctions package into law on Friday, cementing what will be remembered as the final legislative legacy of the late Senator Lindsey Graham. The bill, drafted alongside Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, targets Russian officials, banks, and the shadow fleet of tankers that have kept Moscow's energy exports flowing despite years of international pressure. Its stated purpose is direct: to starve Vladimir Putin of the economic resources needed to sustain his war in Ukraine, now in its fifth year.

Graham, a South Carolina Republican and longtime Trump ally, had been working on the legislation for more than a year. He died unexpectedly in July, just after returning from a trip to Ukraine. His sister, Darline Graham, who was appointed to complete his Senate term, released a statement Friday expressing what she believed her brother would have felt. "I wish Lindsey were here to celebrate this historic day," she wrote. "Lindsey believed this bill, which he worked on for well over a year, would help end the war through squeezing Putin economically and forcing his customers to reevaluate their relationship with Russia."

The measure arrived at Trump's desk with unusual bipartisan momentum. It passed the Senate 86-11 and the House 262-159—margins that signal broad agreement across party lines on the need to pressure Russia. The bill's architecture is multifaceted. Beyond sanctioning Russian officials and financial institutions, it directs the president to impose tariffs of up to 100 percent on the five largest importers of Russian oil and natural gas. There is a carve-out: countries that import less than 15 percent of Russia's natural gas exports and have taken meaningful steps to reduce those imports are exempt from the tariff requirement.

Senator Blumenthal, speaking after the House passed the bill Wednesday evening, framed the measure as an expression of strength. "Putin is a thug who understands only force and strength, which is what we must show clearly and unequivocally," he said. He also reflected on Graham's absence. "If he were here today, he would be jubilant about our bill's passage—and already thinking about the next one."

The path to Trump's signature was not straightforward. The White House initially resisted the measure, concerned that it would constrain the president's flexibility on sanctions policy. Negotiations continued until the bill was revised to include a five-year extension of existing sanctions on Iran—a priority for Trump. That addition proved sufficient to secure his support.

Not all lawmakers embraced the legislation. A vocal group of Democrats warned that Trump's newly expanded tariff authority could become a tool for imposing additional levies on the European Union and other trading partners, with unpredictable consequences for American consumers. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York was direct in his opposition. "Why in the world would this Congress or the People's House give this president unfettered authority to visit more tariffs on the world that will have an adverse economic impact on the American people?" he asked. "I can't do it." His objection, however, did not slow the bill's passage.

The signing represents a moment of alignment between Trump and the bipartisan consensus on Russia policy—a consensus that Graham spent his final months building. Whether the sanctions regime will achieve its stated goal of pressuring Moscow to reconsider its war effort remains to be seen. The real test will come in how Trump exercises the tariff authority the bill grants him, and whether he uses it primarily as a tool against Russia or as leverage in other economic disputes.