Schumer: If Trump agrees Russia behind hacking, let’s boost sanctions

Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) says that now that President-elect Donald Trump is pointing at Russia for political hacking, there’s no reason not to sanction the Kremlin.

“One thing we now all agree on is that Russia is behind the hacking of our election. Even the president-elect has now just said it,” Schumer said on the Senate floor on Wednesday.

“That makes it even more important that we not only keep the existing sanctions in place, we institute a new, tough sanctions regime in response so Russia can’t get away with what they did and other countries will know as well that they will suffer penalties if they try to interfere with our elections.”

{mosads}Trump earlier Wednesday offered his first acknowledgment that hacks of the Democratic National Committee and other political targets were likely conducted by the Russian government. 

“As far as hacking, I think it was Russia,” the president-elect said.

A bipartisan sanctions bill announced Tuesday would codify sanctions President Obama made by executive order and add sanctions against investments in Russian energy concerns and business with Russian intelligence agencies or hacking related personnel.

The bill is helmed by Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Ben Cardin (D-Md.), with the support of Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham (S.C.), Rob Portman (Ohio), Marco Rubio (Fla.) and Ben Sasse (Neb.), as well as Democratic Sens. Bob Menendez (N.J.), Amy Klobuchar (Minn.), Dick Durbin (Ill.) and Jeanne Shaheen (N.H.).

Schumer also used his Wednesday speech to raise concerns about Rex Tillerson, Trump’s nominee for secretary of State. During a committee hearing earlier in the day, Tillerson declined to call Russian President Vladimir Putin’s attacks against civilians in Aleppo war crimes.