2016 ELECTION/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The White House on Sunday [7-23-17] indicated President Donald Trump was likely to support legislation that would punish Russia for interfering in the 2016 election, after months of questioning assertions about Moscow’s involvement.
The Trump administration’s response to the sanctions bill is being closely watched, because a failure to sign it could prompt criticism that Mr. Trump is siding with President Vladimir Putin amid investigations into the Russian interference in the election and into possible ties between Mr. Trump’s associates and Russia.
Mr. Trump’s, son, Donald Trump Jr., his son in law, Jared Kushner, and his former campaign chairman Paul Manafort are scheduled to appear before Senate committees this week in connection with Russia. The House is scheduled to vote on the sanctions package on Tuesday.
‘We support where the legislation is now,’ White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said on ABC’s ‘This Week.’ Ms. Sanders had said previous versions of the bill contained provisions that eroded the president’s power to conduct diplomacy.”
-Michael C. Bender and Natalie Andrews, “White House Signals Support for Bill on Russia Sanctions,” The Wall Street Journal online, July 24, 2017 09:28am