Bolton, Democrats Urge Russia Sanctions If Bounty Reports Are True

Democrats and a leading Republican hawk on Tuesday called for U.S. President 👤Donald Trump to consider imposing new economic sanctions on Russia if a reported Russian effort to pay the Taliban to kill U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan was confirmed.

Trump has been under pressure over a New York Times report on Friday that a Russian military intelligence unit had offered bounties for U.S. and allied soldiers and later reported that he received a written briefing on the matter in February.

After Trump initially said he was not briefed on the matter, the White House said Trump was not “personally” briefed but did not address whether he had received a written report, read it, and why he had not responded more aggressively if so.

“The President was never briefed on this, this intelligence still has not been verified, and there is no consensus among the intelligence community,” White House spokeswoman Kayleigh McEnany told reporters.

The shifting statements have generated controversy among Trump’s fellow Republicans as well as Democrats as he seeks re-election on Nov. 3.

House of Representatives Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, a Democrat, said Trump should take action against Moscow.

“We should be considering what sanctions are appropriate to further deter Russia’s malign activities,” he told reporters after a briefing for House Democrats at the White House.

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden called Trump’s handling of the matter a “dereliction of duty.”

And Republican hawk 👤John Bolton, Trump’s former national security adviser, told Reuters if the allegations were true it was “tantamount to an attack on Americans directly.”