House Democrat introduces bipartisan bill to block Trump’s Russian diesel deal
Por Pavan Acharya — POLITICO – TOP Stories
A House Democrat introduced legislation Friday to block President Donald Trump’s proposed deal to buy Russian diesel after a week of bipartisan pushback.
The Prohibit Corrupt Russia Oil Deals Act from Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, would reverse a general license issued by the Treasury Department allowing for the sale and importation of Russian diesel into the United States through April 2027. It’s the latest instance of Hill lawmakers protesting Trump’s proposed deal, which the president announced last week in a bid to bring down domestic fuel prices that have reached record highs following the administration launching attacks against Iran.
Meeks’ bill includes 16 Democratic co-sponsors, including California Rep. Jim Costa, who led a bipartisan letter on Thursday urging Trump to scrap his administration’s diesel deal with Russia and implement the Russia sanctions legislation he signed into law last month. It also includes Republican Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), a frequent Trump critic.
The bill would prevent Treasury from issuing licenses allowing companies to buy Russian diesel that is currently under sanctions and block the U.S. International Development Finance Corp. from investing in Russian energy.
“This deal won’t lower costs for the American people, who are already paying for Trump’s failed war of choice in Iran,” Meeks said in a statement. “It will hand Putin millions of dollars to continue slaughtering Ukrainian civilians with impunity.”
Diesel prices are averaging around $6.33 per gallon nationally as of Friday, according to the American Automobile Association. Experts have said that the amount of diesel volumes Trump announced that Russia would bring into the market is not nearly enough to make a serious dent on prices.
Several Republicans have publicly admonished the White House’s deal with Russia. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania said last week that he would also introduce a bill called the Ronald Reagan Peace Through Strength Act that would “block any and all purchases of Russian oil.” Fitzpatrick’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the status of that potential legislation.
Earlier this week, a group of Senate Democrats and Republicans — including vulnerable incumbent Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) — similarly asked Trump to rescind the deal, which they labeled “a gift to our adversary and a betrayal of our Allies.”
Trump last week announced that Russian President Vladimir Putin had agreed to supply hundreds of thousands of tons of diesel fuel “to the American and Global Marketplace.” But in recent days, Trump has softened his messaging, saying that the Russian diesel is “not for us” but for the global marketplace.
Diesel costs have reached record highs on account of the U.S.-Israel war with Iran and Ukraine’s destruction of Russian fuel refineries, pushing the Trump administration to search for ways to rein in high prices.
Earlier this year, the Trump administration also issued a temporary waiver allowing the sale of Russian crude that was already loaded on tankers in an effort to increase global oil supplies. Meeks’ legislation also targets that license and ones like it.
Fonte: POLITICO – TOP Stories