New York Sens. Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand criticized President Donald Trump's decision to waive duties and sanctions under a newly enacted Russia and Iran law, saying the move weakens pressure on Moscow. The Oct. 16 executive order cites authority in the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, which the president signed Sept. 18.
The order waives several provisions of that law, including additional duties on Russian goods and on goods from countries that buy Russian oil and gas or facilitate sanctions evasion. Gillibrand and Schumer detailed their objections in separate statements.
What the order does
The order describes additional duties of 500% of the value of goods from Russia and 100% of the value of goods from the five largest buyers of Russian oil and gas and the five largest facilitators of Russian oil sanctions evasion. Those duties would be added to existing tariffs, but the order waives their application under the act. For oil and gas buyers, it identifies new purchases on or after Oct. 18 as the trigger that would otherwise apply, subject to statutory exceptions.
The order also waives specified sanctions on foreign persons and restrictions on other persons under the act. The White House says Trump sent Congress a certification that the waivers are in the national interest and a report explaining the basis for them, as the law requires.
The waivers remain in effect until the president or designated Cabinet officials determine further action is appropriate. The order directs the U.S. trade representative, working with other agencies, to monitor Russian oil and gas purchases and sanctions evasion and report circumstances that could warrant additional action.
The order explicitly says it does not change measures imposed under earlier executive orders addressing harmful activities by the Russian government.
Senators object to the waivers
Gillibrand, a member of the Senate Armed Services and Intelligence committees, said the exemption “compromises our national security.” She argued that it would benefit Russian President Vladimir Putin instead of lowering costs for U.S. families.
Schumer, the Senate Democratic leader, also accused Trump of easing pressure on Putin and said Americans need relief from high prices. Gillibrand said Congress had passed the new sanctions measure with bipartisan majorities.
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