Two Democrats cross aisle to help tee up final vote on Russia sanctions bill

The House on Tuesday advanced legislation that would grant President Trump tariff authorities on countries who purchase Russian energy and extend existing sanctions on Iran, clearing a major procedural hurdle.

The rule, teeing up a final vote on the legislation, appeared headed for defeat until two Democrats — for the second time in as many weeks — broke precedent and voted to advance the measure. Reps. Jared Golden (Maine) and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (Wash.) also broke with Democrats on a rule vote earlier this month, shocking House Democratic leaders . Rule votes are typically seen as a test of party loyalty, and it is unusual for Democrats to cross the aisle in support of them.

Their votes brought the tally to 214-211 on the rule that included the Russia sanctions bill —championed by the late Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) — teeing up a debate and final vote on the legislation.

The rule vote served as a victory for the bill’s backers, like Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), who overcame pushback from both inside the GOP and from Democrats. Before Tuesday’s vote, the resistance left some predicting the bill was “dead again” following nearly a year and a half of negotiations.

Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.), who voted with Democrats against the bill, told The Hill he got an agreement with GOP leaders to take action on the issue of fuel cost reduction.

“I just want to make sure America gets some reduction in fuel costs, and the greedy fuel companies are sticking it to us, and we don’t have the guts to do anything about it,” he said. He added that GOP leaders promised they would get a measure on the floor to deal with the matter. “They’re going to do something. Let us vote on something that would hopefully reduce the price of fuel, but we’ll see,” Burchett said.

In remarks during a Monday House Rules Committee hearing, McCaul framed Tuesday’s vote on the Russia sanctions bill as critical in sending a message to Russian President Vladimir Putin about U.S. support for Ukraine and warning Chinese President Xi Jinping against attempting aggression against Taiwan.

“Senator Lindsey Graham understood these global threats well, and that’s why he spent more than a year working on this legislation, which I promised him I would introduce in the House,” the Texas representative said.

He continued, “Lindsey Graham was my friend. He was my mentor. He understood the threats facing this country and had the courage to stand up and confront the.”

“We shared a fundamental belief that America is strongest at home when it projects strength abroad …This is a moral issue that requires moral courage. When we look back on this moment, I want us to be able to say that we did everything possible to end this war,” McCaul concluded.

Democratic opponents, despite their support for Ukraine, argued the bill granted Trump tariff authorities the Supreme Court had already shut down.

Democratic Reps. Don Beyer (Va.), a senior House Democrat of Congress’s Joint Economic Committee; Gregory Meeks (N.Y.), the ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee; and Richard Neal (Mass.), the ranking member of the House Ways and Means Committee, argued in a joint statement last week that the bill would do “more harm than good.”

“This bill would dramatically expand presidential tariff authorities while failing to mandate sanctions on Russia, both of which are unacceptable. These flaws would raise Americans’ prices while undermining support for Ukraine in the long term. We continue to seek bicameral, bipartisan negotiations to craft a bill that can win strong support in both chambers and deliver on our promise to Ukraine,” they wrote.

But even some of Trump’s most outspoken critics, who are opposed to giving the president tariff authorities, said defeating the bill would actually harm U.S. support for Ukraine and embolden Putin.

“The positive symbolism of it passing outweighs the negative symbolism of it failing. If it fails, Putin will cheer & Ukrainians will be disappointed,” Michael McFaul, who served as U.S. ambassador to Russia during the Obama administration, posted on social platform X .

“I also have no illusions that Trump will actually use the authorities in the legislature to impose ‘crippling’ sanctions on Russia. He won’t,” he added.

The vote on the bill is taking place during the “Ukraine Action Summit,” a major lobbying initiative over the course of the week, bringing more than 600 constituencies from 50 states and Puerto Rico advocating for Congress to pass the Russia Sanctions Act.

“The Sanctioning Russia Act is the number one priority for Ukraine advocacy right now,” summit organizer Eugene Goncharov, the American Coalition for Ukraine’s policy director, said.

Goncharov voiced support for the latest version of the bill, saying it expands the list of sanctions on Russian military figures and foreign suppliers, bans new U.S. investment in Russia, targets Russia’s shadow fleet of oil tankers — used to evade sanctions — and tightens restrictions on exports to Russia that could be used by its military.

The bill further includes sanctions authority for those responsible for the abduction of Ukrainian children and extends sanctions on Iran.

“This is the bill that is likely to pass and be signed into law, and when that happens, it will make this war harder and more expensive for Russia to keep fighting,” Goncharov said.

This story was updated at 5:44 p.m. on Sept. 15, 2026.