President Donald Trump on Sunday, July 19, 2026, called on Congress to add Iran to the bipartisan Russia sanctions bill as a tribute to the bill’s late author, former Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.). The Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025, initially introduced in April 2025, had been stalled in Congress but recently gained momentum amid ongoing negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine.

Before his death, Graham announced a breakthrough, stating that a deal had been reached with the White House to advance the long-stalled sanctions package. Trump wrote on Truth Social, “Republicans should add Iran to the Russian Sanctions Bill. That’s what Lindsey wanted to do, and it was going to happen.”

The Trump administration has resumed conflict with Iran over the past week, ending negotiations and conducting a series of attacks that began with joint U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February. The U.S. military launched retaliatory strikes on Saturday, July 18, 2026, in response to Iranian missile and drone attacks in Jordan that killed two U.S. service members. Central Command (Centcom) stated these strikes aimed to degrade Tehran’s ability to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and to punish the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces responsible for the attacks.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee ranking member Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) have both expressed that Graham’s bill would be a fitting tribute to his legacy. Thune noted that lawmakers have “been interested in [the bill] for a long time.” Shaheen and Graham were part of a bipartisan group of senators who had previously announced White House support for the bill before Graham’s passing.

Sources