Q&A on the News

The U.S. House passed sanctions against Russia 419-3. Who were the three congressmen who didn’t vote in favor of the bill? Any reason why?

— Raymond King, Conley

A: On July 25, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly “voted to strengthen sanctions against Russia and rebuked President Donald Trump ... by preventing him from unilaterally lifting penalties,” Bloomberg reported.

The bill, which also imposed new sanctions on Iran and North Korea, must still be reconciled with the Senate, which passed its own version earlier this summer.

After voting against the sanctions bill, Republican Rep. Justin Amash of Michigan said on Twitter that the Russia part of the bill was too broad and undefined. He also said the bill included money for “Ukraine energy and Fourth Amendment-violating H.R. 5602 from 2016.”

In a statement posted on his Facebook page, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) said he voted against the “vague, expensive and reckless sanctions” included in the bill. The Daily Independent in Ashland, Ky., reported that Massie was concerned there was no accountability for millions of dollars the bill authorized for the “Countering Russian Influence Fund” and that it threatened businesses and jobs, among other things.

The Knoxville News Sentinel reported that Tennessee Republican Rep. John Duncan voted no on the sanctions bill against Russia, Iran and North Korea because he “had an issue with putting additional sanctions on all three powers.”

“Overall, though I think we should stop trying to rule the whole world. We are $20 trillion in debt, and we have enough problems at home,” Duncan said in a statement.