Trump Waives Key Penalties in Lindsey Graham's Russia Law Weeks After Saying 'Lindsey, We Love You'

President Donald Trump has waived the new tariffs and sanctions on Russia under the law named after the late Senator Lindsey Graham. Trump signed the order on Friday, 16 October, two days before the penalties were set to take effect. Eleven weeks earlier, Trump had told mourners at Graham's funeral, 'Lindsey, we love you.'

Graham's law aimed to cut the energy income funding Russia's war in Ukraine. It would have raised tariffs, the taxes paid on imported goods, by 500 per cent on most Russian imports. The five largest importers of Russian oil and gas, including China and India, would have faced 100 per cent tariffs on goods from their countries if they knowingly made new purchases from 18 October. Senior Republicans condemned the waiver.

What the Order Switches Off

Graham, a South Carolina Republican, died on 11 July aged 71, days after Trump let Republican leaders schedule a vote on the bill. The Senate passed the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 by 86 to 11, and the House passed it by 262 to 159. Trump's order waives the new tariffs on Russian goods. It also waives tariffs on goods from the five largest importers of Russian crude and gas and from the five countries helping Russia dodge sanctions the most

The order also waives the Graham Act's new sanctions on Russian officials, banks, and other companies. Trump certified to Congress that the waiver was 'in the national interests of the United States.' The order says he also sent lawmakers a report explaining his reasons, but it doesn't set out any of them. Older executive-order sanctions stay in force, and the waiver has no end date. China and India had raised concerns about the law.

How Graham's Allies and Kyiv Reacted

Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine's president, said the decision would only encourage Moscow, coming as Russian strikes hit more than 15 Ukrainian power plants and grid sites on Friday. He called the strikes one of the largest attacks on Ukraine's energy system. He wrote that Graham had visited Ukraine shortly before he died, and thanked both American parties for passing his bill. His verdict on the waiver came in the post on X below.

'It definitely helps only the Russians,' Zelenskyy wrote. Texas Senator John Cornyn said Graham 'would be appalled', and fellow Texas Republican Ted Cruz called the waiver a mistake on Fox News. Darline Graham, the senator's sister, replaced him in the Senate and has Trump's endorsement. Campaigning on Saturday, she said she would have decided differently. Kirill Dmitriev, Vladimir Putin's economic envoy, hailed 'an important and truly historic moment' on X.

What Happens Next

The waiver came a week after the administration paused sanctions on Russian diesel exports until April 2027, amid shortages linked to the US war in Iran. Trump is pushing for cheaper diesel before the 3 November midterms.

Cornyn backed calls for a congressional inquiry into the decision. Richard Blumenthal, the Connecticut Democrat who co-wrote the bill with Graham, said the waivers 'have nothing to do with our national security.' The Russia provisions run until 2031, and Trump can reinstate the penalties without a new vote.