After spending a day in mourning for their colleague Senator Lindsey Graham, the U.S. Senate is getting back to work.
On Tuesday, a group of Senators unveiled a 60+ page bipartisan bill that aims to place new sanctions on Russia.
Before his death, Graham was one of the main sponsors of the bill which aims to put financial pressure on Russia as they continue their war against Ukraine.
CNN provided further details on the new bill:
US senators on Tuesday unveiled their sweeping bipartisan Russia sanctions bill, which they have urged Congress to quickly pass to honor of one its main sponsors, the late Sen. Lindsey Graham.
The legislation, which is meant to pressure Moscow and deprive it of revenue for its war against Ukraine, has been in the works for more than a year. Graham announced on Friday, just a day before his sudden death, that lawmakers reached an agreement with the White House to move forward on the bill.
The more-than-60-page bill, if passed, would impose mandatory sanctions on Russian political and military leaders, including President Vladimir Putin, as well as oligarchs, state-owned enterprises, and foreign companies that support Russia’s defense industrial base.
It would also impose sanctions on Russia’s shadow fleet, its energy projects, and its financial institutions. In addition, it would impose up to a 100% tariff on the top five countries, including China and India, that purchase Russian crude oil and natural gas. It does allow an exemption for countries that import less than 15% of Russia’s total natural gas exports and are “taking significant steps to reduce those imports,” a Senate aide said.
Another Senate aide noted that “the vast majority of Russia’s income, particularly used toward its war of aggression in Ukraine, is made up from its exports of Russian oil and gas,” so the legislation has been “narrowly tailored . to very much focus on that aspect of the Russian economy.”
Here was Senator Chuck Schumer on the Senate floor promoting the bill:
Sen. Schumer calls for the passage of Sen. Lindsey Graham-led sanctions package: "I urge Senator Thune, in honor of Lindsey, to put the Russia sanctions bill on the floor immediately… it will pass overwhelmingly and help our allies in Ukraine." pic.twitter.com/Ia399BrMU5
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) July 14, 2026
Before his death, Graham jokingly said he couldn’t die yet because he still need to pass the Russia sanctions bill.
NDTV reported more on Graham’s statement he made before his death:
“I can’t die now. I still need to do the Russia sanctions, get Iran sorted out and do Israeli-Saudi normalization.”
ADVERTISEMENTThose were among the final remarks made by US Senator Lindsey Graham after he complained of feeling unwell on Saturday evening. Hours later, the 71-year-old Republican lawmaker died after suffering a tear in his aorta.
According to journalist Barak Ravid’s report, Graham began feeling unwell shortly after a phone call with US President Donald Trump on Saturday. A source close to the senator said he was urged to seek immediate medical attention, but Graham chose to put it off until the next morning.
“When the person urged him to seek medical attention immediately, Graham said he would do so Sunday morning after his scheduled appearance on NBC’s ‘Meet the Press,'” the report said.
Even as concerns were raised about his condition, Graham responded with a joke that reflected the foreign policy issues he had been working on in his final days.
“I can’t die now. I still need to do the Russia sanctions, get Iran sorted out and do Israeli-Saudi normalization,” the Trump ally had said, according to the source.
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