President Donald Trump on Sunday urged Congress to expand a bipartisan Russia sanctions bill to include Iran, framing the move as a tribute to the late former Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who authored the legislation before his death.
"Republicans should add Iran to the Russian Sanctions Bill," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "That's what Lindsey wanted to do, and it was going to happen. IMPORTANT!!!"
The bill, formally titled the Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025, was first introduced in April 2025 and had stalled while the White House pursued negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine. Graham had announced a breakthrough shortly before his death, securing White House support to move the package forward.
Trump's call to include Iran coincides with a sharp escalation in U.S.-Iran hostilities. Over the past week, the administration has resumed military strikes against Iranian targets, breaking off negotiations that had aimed to end the conflict that began with joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran in late February. The U.S. military launched retaliatory attacks Saturday after Iranian strikes killed two American service members in Jordan—deaths Trump called "a very sad thing." For more on the escalation, see our coverage of the conflict's intensification.
U.S. Central Command said the latest strikes were designed to further degrade Tehran's ability to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and to "punish" the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps units responsible for the missile and drone attacks on U.S. forces in Jordan. The troop deaths in Jordan are detailed here.
Trump's push to broaden the sanctions comes as he signals increased support for Ukraine, even as Putin refuses to end the war. The administration recently licensed Patriot missile production for Kyiv, and Ukrainian forces have struck deep inside Russia, as reported in our earlier story.
Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) have both said the bill would be a fitting tribute to Graham's legacy. Thune noted that lawmakers have "been interested in it for a long time." Shaheen and Graham were part of a bipartisan group that secured White House backing for the bill before Graham's death.
Democrats, however, have raised concerns about the bill's text, which grants the president sweeping tariff authorities—an issue that was the subject of a pending Supreme Court case. The latest version also codifies sanctions already imposed through executive orders, making it far harder for a future president to terminate them unilaterally.
Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei has denounced Trump's ceasefire efforts as "worthless," as renewed U.S. strikes continue. The political landscape remains fluid, with figures like Senator Jon Ossoff going on the offensive against Trump, sparking 2028 speculation, while former President Ford blasted Trump over wildfire criticism.
The coming days will test whether Congress can unite around the expanded sanctions package, and whether the administration's dual track of military action and diplomatic overtures can achieve its aims in both Iran and Ukraine.
