- Twelve U.S. senators from both parties urged President Trump to reverse his deal lifting sanctions on Russian diesel exports.
- Former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Texas Sen. John Cornyn joined four other Republicans and six Democrats in signing the letter.
- The senators called the deal a betrayal of Ukraine and said it would do little to lower fuel prices.
- Trump defended the deal as an America First win, with diesel averaging $6.27 a gallon.
- Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie, a frequent Trump critic, backed the deal, saying sanctions drive up prices for Americans.
President Donald Trump’s decision to lift sanctions on Russian diesel exports has united a dozen U.S. senators from both parties against him, calling the move a betrayal of Ukraine that will barely budge fuel prices. The rare bipartisan coalition—including Republican heavyweights Mitch McConnell and John Cornyn alongside Democratic stalwarts Dick Durbin and Richard Blumenthal—sent their letter to the White House on Tuesday warning that the deal merely fuels Vladimir Putin’s war machine. They acknowledge diesel hit a record high last month yet argue the deal would bring little relief at the pump, while Trump defends the arrangement as an “AMERICA FIRST” win for consumers.
McConnell and Cornyn join Democrats in rare rebuke of Trump
The 12 signatories include Republican senators Susan Collins, Thom Tillis, Lisa Murkowski, and Alan Armstrong, all of whom have voiced alarm over the October 9 agreement. The Democratic side features Jeanne Shaheen, Sheldon Whitehouse, Jack Reed, and Chris Coons. Notably, former Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas)—two longtime pillars of Senate GOP leadership—added their names to the condemnation. Tillis and Blumenthal led the letter for their respective parties.
The senators argue that “granting Moscow the ability to sell Russian diesel freely in global markets damages American security interests and is a betrayal of the people of Ukraine.” They warned that revenues from the deal will help Moscow fund its war in Ukraine and strengthen its security ties with China, Iran, and North Korea, potentially endangering U.S. troops overseas in the ongoing conflict with Iran.
Trump defends deal as relief for farmers and truckers
Trump had already defended the deal on his Truth Social platform Monday, writing: “I made the right choice for the American People – ALWAYS, AMERICA FIRST!” Diesel averaged $6.27 per gallon that day, according to AAA, up from $3.67 a year earlier. Those costs have hammered farmers, ranchers, and truckers, voters Republicans can’t afford to lose with the midterms weeks away, and Trump promised when announcing the deal that prices would be “COMING DOWN, IN RECORD NUMBERS, AND FAST!”
Trump has also noted that the European Union still buys Russian energy despite pledging to phase it out. Europe’s tab since 2022 tops $320 billion, by the count of Russian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Novak. That’s a hefty bill for European allies who were reportedly blindsided when Washington cut its own deal.
Trump critic Thomas Massie comes to the president’s defense
The president found an unlikely ally in Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), a frequent Trump critic who lost his primary this year to a Trump-endorsed challenger. Massie posted on X: “In 2022 I voted against Russia sanctions, pointing out that U.S. citizens would suffer from higher prices. Glad to see Trump came around to that reality this week.”
His stance underscores a simmering divide within the GOP over foreign policy, with Massie and like-minded conservatives asking whether sanctions hurt working Americans more than they hurt Moscow. Massie wants sanctions lifted on all petroleum products and on raw metals like copper and aluminum, a position that puts him at odds with the bipartisan Senate coalition.
The battle over Russian diesel exposes a fundamental rift in Washington: between those who see any concession to Putin as a moral betrayal and those who prioritize immediate economic relief for struggling Americans. With midterm elections just weeks away, Trump appears willing to bet that voters remember the cost of diesel more than the slogans of geopolitical solidarity. The senators concede diesel hit a record high, yet their prescription for the farmers and truckers footing the bill boils down to more sanctions. Voters may decide that’s a betrayal of its own.
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