Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin met with senators on Tuesday, urging them to allow the Trump Administration to ease sanctions on certain Russian aluminium companies, including major Russian manufacturer Rusal.
The meeting came ahead of a Senate vote to advance a resolution which would bar the administration from easing any sanctions on Russia. The vote was ultimately advanced, though it has not yet been passed as law.
The Treasury Department sanctioned Rusal and the other companies for having ties to Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska. Rusal has agreed to make Deripaska cede control of the company, and has replaced their CEO and seven board members in an effort to comply with US demands.
Mnuchin’s argument is that the Treasury Department, having issued some very specific demands as conditions for sanctions relief, needs to be able to deliver on that sanctions relief if the demands are met. Some Democrat senators, however, are arguing that any sanctions relief is in effect a “gift for Putin,” and that US sanctions must remain in place no matter what.
Broadly, imposing new sanctions is popular within Congress, while sanctions relief is viewed as a sign of weakness, irrespective of the justification.
Rusal is the world’s second largest aluminium company, behind only China’s Hongqiao Group. The company accounts for 6.2% of all primary aluminium production on Earth. Deripaska is a major investor in the company, along with others, but ran afoul of US sanctions after he was accused of having ties to former Trump ally Paul Manafort.
How can Congress take over foreign policy from the President? And the link between Manaford and Deripaska is significant how? Manaford ran afoul of registration act, not the first one to violate it, but only thise with “wrong” political links get punished, ithers, like many notable democrats get a pass. Things getting crazier by the day.
Congress cannot take over foreign policy from the President, Bianca, it violates the Powers of the Three Branches Clause of the US Constitution. It’s stated quite clearly in this Clause what the powers of the 3 Branches are, and foreign policy is the sole power of the Chief Executive, not to the Legislative Branch.
Congress can call for a sitting President to either do something or not to do it, as it did when Obama took it upon himself to intervene in Syria back in 2011 by sending warships to the Syrian port of Tartus and openly funding and supplying ISIS and other Jihadists. Both Congress and the American public issued an outcry against this intervention, forcing Obama to retreat. That wasn’t taking over foreign policy from Obama, like today’s Congress taking over Trump’s foreign policy. Both House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer violated the 3 Branches Clause by taking over Trump’s foreign policy. They must return that authority to him.
Actually the constitution grants congress the power: ” To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;”
Article 1 section 8
The carrot-and-stick approach to negotiation is fundamentally flawed. It becomes truly stupid when the carrot is taken away also. Inevitably, eventually that means the only way forward is for the sticks to get broken or taken away. Such is the Roman Senate, where increasingly all connection to reality is lost to insanity.
You’re right, it is fundamentally flawed; and it becomes utterly stupid when the carrot’s taken away also. Inevitably, eventually that means the only way forward is for the sticks to get broken or taken away. Such is the Roman Senate, where increasingly all connection to reality is lost to insanity.
I like the way you compared the current US Senate to the ancient Roman Senate .. that’s a brilliant one on your part 😉
Thanks… the Romans had lead pipes, what’s our senate’s excuse?! I guess a system that structurally encourages the scum to rise to the top.
The only reasonable thing this clown’s come up with.