Republican Sens. John McCain and Lindsey Graham say sanctions against Russia announced by the Obama administration on Thursday are “a small price” for Russia to pay for interfering with U.S. elections. They say they’ll lead efforts in Congress to impose stronger sanctions.
McCain, of Arizona, and Graham, of South Carolina, called Russian cyberattacks on the 2016 election a “brazen attack on American democracy” and say retaliation measures announced Thursday by Obama are long overdue.
READ MORE: Obama orders sanctions against Russia over US election hacking, expels 35 diplomats
Russian officials have denied the Obama administration’s accusation that the Russian government was involved at the highest levels in trying to influence the U.S. presidential election. U.S. intelligence agencies concluded that Russia’s goal was to help Donald Trump win – an assessment Trump has dismissed as ridiculous.
Obama’s move puts the president-elect in the position of having to decide whether to roll back the measures once in office.