Bipartisan group of senators says Trump's move to allow Russian diesel imports breaks 2022 law

Six U.S. senators, three from each party, are urging President Donald Trump to undo his administration's decision to let Russian diesel enter the country, saying it runs afoul of a 2022 ban on Russian energy, according to the Indiana Capital Chronicle and the Arizona Mirror.

Both outlets reported that the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control eased sanctions covering Russian diesel sales and imports following an Oct. 9 phone conversation between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. That permission remains in force through April 7, 2027, they reported.

Democrats Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut joined Republicans Susan Collins of Maine, John Curtis of Utah, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Thom Tillis of North Carolina in a Sunday statement. The group said the White House never consulted lawmakers, a step the statute requires, the two outlets reported.

Congress approved that statute with no Senate opposition and a 413-9 House vote, and Biden signed it in April 2022, weeks after Russian forces entered Ukraine. Under its terms, a president may end the ban only after talking with Congress, and only once Russia has left Ukraine, accepted Ukrainian independence and stopped threatening NATO countries, according to the outlets.

Rep. Lloyd Doggett of Texas, the Democrat who wrote the measure, issued his own statement Monday calling the decision unlawful. "Trump is directly violating that law," he said, as reported by the Indiana Capital Chronicle.

Trump has framed the step as relief at the pump. "Lower prices for Americans, especially our Great Farmers, Ranchers, and Truckers, is my Greatest Priority," he posted Friday, the Arizona Mirror reported. According to the outlets, he did not describe anything Russia agreed to give in return.

Accounts of the deal's scale vary. The Ohio Capital Journal said Trump described Russian shipments totaling over 4 million tons for world markets, about 30 million barrels, and noted that Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries cast doubt on whether that amount can be delivered. Cleveland 19 described an initial 300,000-plus tons, followed by 500,000 tons in November and 1 million more later. That station also said Trump declared an "energy ceasefire" between Russia and Ukraine on Sunday.

Federal Energy Information Administration data cited by the outlets put last week's U.S. average for diesel at $6.20 per gallon, a 67% jump, or $2.49, over twelve months. The Indiana Capital Chronicle linked the increase to the U.S. conflict with Iran.

In related coverage, the Ohio Capital Journal reported that trucking associations doubt a separate Trump order expanding access to untaxed dyed diesel will help, and some have told members to hold off until Treasury issues guidance.

According to the Indiana Capital Chronicle, neither the White House nor Treasury answered its inquiries Monday.

Compiled by True News from reporting by Indiana Capital Chronicle, Ohio Capital Journal, Cleveland 19 and Arizona Mirror. Each outlet's original story is linked below.

Originally published by True News: https://truenews.bagleyenterprises.net/stories/90