Who in US helped pass the "sanctions from hell" bill and who it could punish

For the first time in more than a year and a half of Donald Trump’s presidency, a bill imposing sanctions on Russia will reach the president’s desk for his signature, having made it through difficult debates and votes in both chambers of Congress.

This was the last week in which the bill could be passed swiftly. For Ukraine’s lobbyists, it was crucial that the House of Representatives approve the bill without any amendments, which is exactly what happened.

The ball is now in the US president’s court. There are good reasons to expect Trump to sign a bill designed to undermine Russia’s ability to continue waging war.

Read more about why Democrats, who are mainly pro-Ukrainian, sought to block the initiative, what these "sanctions from hell" entail and whom could they target besides Putin in the article by Olha Kovalchuk and Sergiy Sydorenko: Are 'sanctions from hell' becoming a reality? How the US Congress punished Russia and what Trump will do next.

On Wednesday, the House of Representatives approved the Graham bill by a substantial margin, 262 votes to 159. The legislation is named after its co-author, the late Senator Lindsey Graham. Among other provisions, it introduces "punitive" tariffs on countries that are the largest buyers of Russian energy and could become a key tool for increasing sanctions pressure on Russia.

House Democrats insisted on amendments to the bill. In practice, however, those changes could have derailed its passage.

The Democrats’ main concern was the expansion of presidential powers to impose tariffs – a favourite instrument of Donald Trump’s foreign policy.

The bill was passed with the help of two Democratic members of Congress: Jared Golden of Maine and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington.

The two lawmakers said they voted in favour of the bill because they wanted to support Ukraine.

However, it is possible that the real reason behind their rebellion was different. The two congressmen had defied their party’s position for the second time since the beginning of September. Their previous defiance, which also angered other Democrats, had nothing to do with Ukraine.

This suggests that the dispute may reflect a broader, more systemic conflict with the party – one that happened to benefit Ukraine.

The Graham bill is best known for introducing "secondary tariffs" – effectively declaring a trade war on countries that continue to purchase Russian oil and gas.

Trump would have considerable freedom in waging these tariff wars, which was, in fact, the main reason for Democratic opposition. If enacted, the bill would give the president the authority to impose tariffs of up to 100% on countries importing Russian energy, allowing him to set a specific rate for each country at his own discretion.

The president would also be granted a separate power to impose tariffs on all goods imported into the United States from Russia. In this case, the maximum tariff rate would be 500%.

However, it would be a mistake to assume that this is the bill’s only significant strength.

In addition to its tariff provisions, the legislation includes a list of mandatory sanctions targeting Russia’s leadership, banks, the energy sector, individuals cooperating with Russia’s defence industry and those involved in its shadow fleet.

The bill does, however, allow the president to waive measures against specific individuals. This power would not be unlimited: the White House would have to submit a report to Congress explaining why the decision was necessary for US national security.

Another important provision is that the Graham bill would codify – meaning give the force of law to – all sanctions already imposed by the US government in response to Russia’s full-scale invasion.

This limits the president’s ability to lift or ease those sanctions.

For now, there are indications that Donald Trump will sign the bill.