The leaders of the top House and Senate Committees that are in charge of overseeing the nation’s trade policies have officially announced official bipartisan legislation that seeks to suspend normal trade relations with Russia and Belarus due to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine being carried out by Russia.
Craig Caplan, the CSPAN Capitol Hill Producer, has reported that House Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal (D-MA) and Ranking Member Kevin Brady (R-TX), while teaming up with Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Ranking Member Mike Crapo (R-ID) came together to announce the agreement this past Monday.
“As Russia continues its unprovoked attack on the Ukrainian people, we have agreed on a legislative path forward to ban the import of energy products from Russia and to suspend normal trade relations with both Russia and Belarus,” stated the two pairs of congressional leaders in a release on Monday, claimed Caplan. “While Congress needs to do more, as congressional [leaders with] jurisdiction over our nation’s trade policy, we are committed to using the tools at our disposal to stop Russia’s unconscionable & unjust war on Ukraine & hold Belarus accountable for its involvement.”
Neal/Brady/Wyden/Crapo: "As Russia continues its unprovoked attack on the Ukrainian people, we have agreed on a legislative path forward to ban the import of energy products from Russia and to suspend normal trade relations with both Russia and Belarus."
— Craig Caplan (@CraigCaplan) March 7, 2022
Neal/Brady/Wyden/Crapo:"While Congress needs to do more,as congressional ldrs w/jurisdiction over our nation’s trade policy,we are committed to using the tools at our disposal to stop Russia’s unconscionable & unjust war on Ukraine & hold Belarus accountable for its involvement."
— Craig Caplan (@CraigCaplan) March 7, 2022
This statement was officially confirmed by Brady who made an appearance on “Mornings with Maria,” from Fox Business. “Congress is moving and I expect bipartisan legislation to be introduced very soon, as early as today, that would both ban Russian imports of energy to America and would suspend normal trade relations with both Russia and Belarus,” stated Brady in his interview with host Maria Bartiromo. “We ought not to be providing any financial support to the Russian economy in this war, nor should we be giving them favored trading status for their products coming into the United States, and so I think this sends a clear signal to [Russian president Vladimir] Putin that this war is unacceptable and that we stand with the people of Ukraine.”
.@RepKevinBrady: "Congress is moving and I expect bipartisan legislation to be introduced very soon, as early as today, that would both ban Russian imports of energy to America and would suspend normal trade relations with both Russia and Belarus."@MariaBartiromo @FoxBusiness pic.twitter.com/xpIVL7S3c1
— Mornings with Maria (@MorningsMaria) March 7, 2022
Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic Speaker of the House, also put forth her own comments on Sunday that seemed to indicate that the house was also putting forth a ban on Russian oil imports. “[The] House is currently exploring strong legislation that will further isolate Russia from the global economy,” Wrote Pelosi as part of a dear colleague letter. “Our bill would ban the import of Russian oil and energy products into the United States, repeal normal trade relations with Russia and Belarus, and take the first step to deny Russia access to the World Trade Organization. We would also empower the Executive branch to raise tariffs on Russian imports.”
The administration of Old Uncle Joe has still not made any decisions in regards to a potential import ban. “No decision has been made, at this point, by the president, about a ban on … importing oil from Russia,” stated White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki as part of the daily press briefing held on Monday. “Those discussions are ongoing internally, and also with our counterparts and partners in Europe and around the world.”
President Biden has not decided whether to ban Russian oil imports to the U.S., Psaki says, but discussions are taking place https://t.co/EuEZ3fa4YH pic.twitter.com/JGH8bId91s
— Bloomberg Quicktake (@Quicktake) March 7, 2022
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