James E. Risch

“The law requires Congress to be told about certain weapons sales before they happen. I am asking to print these notices in the official record so all senators can see them.”

“Mr. President, section 36(b) of the Arms Export Control Act requires that Congress receive prior notification of certain proposed arms sales as defined by that statute. Upon such notification, the Congress has 30 calendar days during which the sale may be reviewed. The provision stipulates that, in the Senate, the notification of proposed sales shall be sent to the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. In keeping with the committee’s intention to see that relevant information is still available to the full Senate, I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record the notifications that have been received. If the cover letter references a classified annex, then such an annex is available to all Senators in the office of the Foreign Relations Committee, room SD-423. There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:”

“I am asking to print notices of planned weapons sales in the official record. Senators have thirty days to review them, and the secret files are open to any senator in our committee office.”

“Mr. President, section 36(b) of the Arms Export Control Act requires that Congress receive prior notification of certain proposed arms sales as defined by that statute. Upon such notification, the Congress has 30 calendar days during which the sale may be reviewed. The provision stipulates that, in the Senate, the notification of proposed sales shall be sent to the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. In keeping with the committee’s intention to see that relevant information is still available to the full Senate, I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record the notifications that have been received. If the cover letter references a classified annex, then such an annex is available to all Senators in the office of the Foreign Relations Committee, room SD-423. There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:”

“I want the Senate to pass this bill. It puts strong sanctions on Russia's oil ships, energy projects, and military supply chains. Cutting off this money will hurt Russia's economy, help end the war in Ukraine, and protect American interests.”

“Mr. President, I want to join my colleague, the distinguished ranking member of the Foreign Relations Committee. We are in the same spot on this bill and on the amendment. Just last week, I stood in this Chamber and asked my colleagues to join me in moving this bill forward, and many of them--from both sides of the aisle--did so. That vote was successful with a margin of 86 to 12. That is a rare vote at this time in the Senate. That same night that we voted in tremendous support of Ukraine, a number of us welcomed Ukraine’s President back to the Capitol, where he gave us a fulsome update on Ukraine’s battlefield successes. He expressed how Ukraine sorely needed this sanctions legislation to magnify the impact of Russia’s battlefield losses by imposing crippling economic costs on Russia’s economy. This could finally bring Russia to the negotiating table and end this conflict, which we all want to see happen. But to be clear, while this legislation would help Ukraine counter Russian aggression, it also protects Idahoans--all Americans--but Idahoans, who I focus on here, as all of us focus on our own constituents, and that is always each of our priority. Peace and stability in Europe are in America’s interests. In the interconnected world we live in, prosperity in Europe only helps us here at home. Like everyone here, I always view what we are doing here through the lens of: How will this affect my constituents at home? How will it help them? And bringing an end to this conflict will allow us to return to issues that Idahoans care about: lowering prices, unleashing domestic energy, protecting public lands, and building a better future for the next generation. This legislation brings us much closer to that end and an end to this conflict. It will make a decisive impact that goes beyond what can be achieved on the battlefield. It will cut off the flow of cash that powers Putin’s war machine. I have worked with my colleagues on this bill for more than a year, including my friend from New Hampshire; with Senator Blumenthal; and, of course, with Senator Lindsey Graham, who was very focused on this bill; and with the President. I have worked particularly to include sanctions in this bill against Russia’s illicit shadow fleet that it uses to evade these sanctions and prop up its energy sector. These ships and the oil sales they facilitate directly fuel Russia’s war machine and threaten American and European security. They enrich Russia, China, and Iran. This bill will go a long way to stopping that shadow fleet. I have also worked to include provisions taking aim at Russia’s defense supply chains and a number of key energy projects, causing real pain to Putin and those who keep him in power. They will do that. These tools will give the United States and our allies the leverage we need to force Russia back to the negotiating table and end this conflict. I would be remiss if I didn’t note that this bill was a culmination of many, many hours of work from my staff, Senator Shaheen’s staff, Senator Blumenthal’s staff, Senator Lindsey Graham’s staff, all of them and other staffs worked on this. And we usually don’t thank them here on the floor, but they really need thanks on this because this went on so long and was so technical. Finally, I would be remiss if I didn’t note that this bill was a passion project for our friend Lindsey Graham, and it is fitting that we will see it move through the Senate today. I hope to, once again, see a strong majority of my colleagues join us in this bill--in passing this bill right here and right now.”

“The law says Congress must be told before the government sells certain weapons to other countries. I am adding these weapon sale notices to the official record so all senators can read them.”

“Mr. President, section 36(b) of the Arms Export Control Act requires that Congress receive prior notification of certain proposed arms sales as defined by that statute. Upon such notification, the Congress has 30 calendar days during which the sale may be reviewed. The provision stipulates that, in the Senate, the notification of proposed sales shall be sent to the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. In keeping with the committee’s intention to see that relevant information is still available to the full Senate, I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record the notifications that have been received. If the cover letter references a classified annex, then such an annex is available to all Senators in the office of the Foreign Relations Committee, room SD-423. There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:”

“The law says the Senate must be told about planned weapon sales. I am putting these notices in the official record so all senators can see them.”

“Mr. President, section 36(b) of the Arms Export Control Act requires that Congress receive prior notification of certain proposed arms sales as defined by that statute. Upon such notification, the Congress has 30 calendar days during which the sale may be reviewed. The provision stipulates that, in the Senate, the notification of proposed sales shall be sent to the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. In keeping with the committee’s intention to see that relevant information is still available to the full Senate, I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record the notifications that have been received. If the cover letter references a classified annex, then such an annex is available to all Senators in the office of the Foreign Relations Committee, room SD-423. There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:”

“I want the Senate to pass this bill. It puts sanctions on Russia and Iran. It will help stop Russia from secretly shipping oil to pay for its war in Ukraine. Pressuring both countries will help bring peace to Ukraine and the Middle East.”

“Mr. President and fellow Senators, I come to the floor here to support the bill we are going to vote on here pretty quickly, and that is on a Russia and Iran sanctions bill. It is no secret that this thing has been worked on for a long, long time. It is also no secret that this is a bipartisan effort--I think you heard both sides speaking about this--and there is good reason for that. At nearly 4\1/2\ years, Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has dragged on far too long. We all want to see this war end. Now, with Russia’s forces taking heavy losses on the battlefield and its economy showing signs of strain, Putin’s war machine is in crisis. It is time to ramp up the pressure on Russia and finally bring this conflict to an end. To help accomplish this, this bill would impose sanctions against two of our foremost adversaries at the current time-- Russia and Iran--as they deepen cooperation and coordination against U.S. interests. Along with many provisions in this final bill, I have worked to secure language that will target Russia’s illicit shadow fleet ships that are used to prop up its energy sector and fund its war against Ukraine. This has been a very, very significant, ongoing problem. If you can stop them from shipping the oil, you can stop the money flow. This bill gives the President the tools and the leverage he needs to finally bring a lasting peace to Ukraine and work toward ending the fight in the Middle East. For many reasons, peace and stability in Europe are in America’s interests. Russian aggression threatens this stability, and it can’t be tolerated. I urge my colleagues to pass this legislation and send it to the President’s desk as soon as possible. I yield the floor.”

“The law says the Senate must be told about planned weapon sales so we can review them. I am putting the notices we received into the official record so all senators can read them.”

“Mr. President, section 36(b) of the Arms Export Control Act requires that Congress receive prior notification of certain proposed arms sales as defined by that statute. Upon such notification, the Congress has 30 calendar days during which the sale may be reviewed. The provision stipulates that, in the Senate, the notification of proposed sales shall be sent to the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. In keeping with the committee’s intention to see that relevant information is still available to the full Senate, I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record the notifications that have been received. If the cover letter references a classified annex, then such an annex is available to all Senators in the office of the Foreign Relations Committee, room SD-423. There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:”

“My committee approves these nominations. To save money on printing, I ask that we keep the lists at the clerk's desk for senators to read.”

“Mr. President, for the Committee on Foreign Relations I report favorably the following nomination lists which were printed in the Records on the dates indicated, and ask unanimous consent, to save the expense of reprinting on the Executive Calendar that these nominations lie at the Secretary’s desk for the information of Senators.”

“The law says the Senate must be told about planned weapon sales so we can review them. I am putting the latest weapon sale notices into the official record so all senators can read them.”

“Mr. President, section 36(b) of the Arms Export Control Act requires that Congress receive prior notification of certain proposed arms sales as defined by that statute. Upon such notification, the Congress has 30 calendar days during which the sale may be reviewed. The provision stipulates that, in the Senate, the notification of proposed sales shall be sent to the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. In keeping with the committee’s intention to see that relevant information is still available to the full Senate, I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record the notifications that have been received. If the cover letter references a classified annex, then such an annex is available to all Senators in the office of the Foreign Relations Committee, room SD-423. There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:”

“The law requires the government to notify Congress before it sells certain weapons to other countries. I am entering these notifications into the official record so all senators can read them.”

“Mr. President, section 36(b) of the Arms Export Control Act requires that Congress receive prior notification of certain proposed arms sales as defined by that statute. Upon such notification, the Congress has 30 calendar days during which the sale may be reviewed. The provision stipulates that, in the Senate, the notification of proposed sales shall be sent to the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. In keeping with the committee’s intention to see that relevant information is still available to the full Senate, I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record the notifications that have been received. If the cover letter references a classified annex, then such an annex is available to all Senators in the office of the Foreign Relations Committee, room SD-423. There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:”