WH Quietly Urges Senate to Temper Russia Sanctions Bill

The White House has been lobbying behind the scenes to temper bipartisan Senate legislation that would enact strict sanctions on Russia.

Trump administration officials have quietly contacted the office of Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., sponsor of the Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025, to urge him to soften the bill by inserting waivers that would allow President Donald Trump to choose who or what gets sanctioned, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday, citing congressional aides.

A provision in the legislation, which has 82 co-sponsors in the Senate, would sanction key Russian officials and sectors as well as penalize countries that do business with Moscow.

The sanctions would be imposed if Russia refuses to engage in good-faith negotiations for a lasting peace with Ukraine or initiates another effort, including a military invasion, that undermines the sovereignty of Ukraine after peace is negotiated, Graham's office said in a May 21 news release.

The legislation could affect Trump's goal of reviving relations between the U.S. and Russia, even as he seeks to end the war in Ukraine, the Journal reported.

Another way to soften the legislation would be to change the word "shall" to "may" wherever it appears in the bill's text, making the sanctions voluntary rather than mandatory, congressional aides told the Journal. But softening such language would take the bite out of Graham's bill, the aides said, noting that Trump already has the ability to impose sanctions at will.

Graham has said he plans to make at least some changes to the bill, the Journal reported, including by adding language that would enable exemptions for countries that are providing military or economic assistance to Ukraine. Such a provision seeks to protect Ukraine's European allies from 500% tariffs the bill would impose on imported goods from any country that purchases Russian oil, gas, uranium, and other products.

But Graham hasn't publicly endorsed the changes the Trump administration has privately pushed him to make.

"I feel good about it. We're working with the White House and our Democratic colleagues and the House," Graham told the Journal on Thursday, adding the measure was "still moving forward."

He declined to comment further.

Trump told reporters from the Oval Office on Thursday that the bill shouldn't move forward without his approval. He appeared alongside German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, an ardent supporter of Ukraine, in a news conference that aired live on Newsmax and the Newsmax2 free online streaming platform.

"I haven't looked at it, but they'll be guided by me," Trump said. "That's the way it's supposed to be. They're going to be guided by me. No, I haven't looked at it. It's a bill on sanctions, etc.

"I'm a very quick study. At the right time, I'll do what I want to do. But it could very well be OK. I'll have to see. But they're waiting for me to decide on what to do, and I'll know, maybe very soon. It's a harsh bill. Yeah, very harsh."

In the House, Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., has introduced companion legislation that has 59 co-sponsors from both parties. With such staunch support in the House and Senate, the bill appears to have enough to reach the two-thirds threshold in each chamber to override a presidential veto.

"There's many members of Congress that want us to sanction Russia as strongly as we can," House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., told the Journal. "And I'm an advocate of that."