Sen. Darline Graham (R-SC) is splitting with President Donald Trump over his decision to gut her late brother’s signature law imposing sanctions on Russia.
Graham pushed back on Saturday against Trump’s move to exempt Russia from the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act, The New York Times reported. Her brother, a longtime Russia hawk, had worked for over a year to line up votes for the measure before he died.
“Personally, I would choose to put the pressure on Russia to end the war and get gas prices down,” Graham told reporters at a campaign stop. “Because I don’t trust Putin, and I don’t trust Russia.”
The comments mark a rare bit of daylight between Trump and the South Carolina Republican, who was appointed in July and is now running for a full term with his endorsement. Graham, who had never held office before joining the Senate, has touted her role in passing the law as one of her biggest accomplishments.
“I was so proud to get the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act passed,” she said during a debate earlier this week, adding that the law “gives the president tools he can use if he so chooses to end the war through economic sanctions.”
Trump opted not to use them. The president has offered no explanation for the waiver, which came one week after his administration briefly eased penalties on Russian diesel amid soaring diesel prices that have turned into a major midterm issue. The law, signed in September, targeted Russia’s energy sector along with oligarchs, officials and banks, but it gave the White House wide latitude to grant exemptions.
Graham said she plans to raise the issue with Trump next week, when he is scheduled to hold a rally for her in South Carolina. She also noted that her brother and the president didn’t always agree.
“They had that relationship where they could agree to disagree sometimes,” she said.
According to The Times, Trump released a video Saturday endorsing Graham in the general election, saying she would be “an incredible, really an unbelievable senator” and crediting “good genetics” shared with her brother.
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