Trump Waives Russia Sanctions Required by Graham Act, Drawing Bipartisan Backlash

On October 17, 2026, President Donald Trump signed an executive order waiving a broad set of sanctions and tariffs on Russia that were required under the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act, which Trump himself had signed into law the previous month. The legislation would have imposed tariffs of up to 100% on goods from the five largest importers of Russian crude oil or gas, targeting revenues funding the Kremlin's war machine. Trump exercised the waiver authority one day before the October 18 deadline, stating he had certified to Congress that the waiver 'is in the national interests of the United States' without specifying why. The move drew a sharp bipartisan response: twelve senators — including Republicans Mitch McConnell, Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, Thom Tillis, John Cornyn and Alan Armstrong — urged Trump to rescind the decision and implement the sanctions. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the waiver as 'wrong,' saying it undermined the pressure needed to end Russia's war. Trump doubled down, calling it 'a very good decision.' The move continued to dominate political coverage on October 19 as lawmakers debated possible legislative responses.