>
Article snippet: An effort to slap new financial penalties on Russia ahead of the midterms is facing pushback from Senate Republicans who question whether that's the best approach. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are under pressure to act amid growing concern that Moscow is trying to influence the November elections, with control of Congress hanging in the balance. MORE’s probe and reports of Russian hacking efforts against Democratic senators have increased scrutiny on what action, if any, Congress will take to respond. But GOP senators are becoming increasingly skeptical that passing a new bill — roughly a year after Congress imposed stiff penalties on Moscow — will be enough to deter Russian President Vladimir Putin from interfering with congressional campaigns. ADVERTISEMENT “Obviously what we want is a change in behavior, right?” said Sen. MORE (R-Tenn.), the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee. “We’ve inflicted a lot of pain but thus far there’s been no change in behavior.” Senators emphasize that while they want to prevent Russia from interfering in U.S. elections, they aren't sure how to accomplish that. They’re also questioning if sanctions legislation should be the only option for the U.S. “I think we need to increase our pressure on Putin and those around him to modify behavior,” said Sen. MORE (R-Kan.). “But are there other tools that we have besides sanctions that also could be included in that?” he said, pointing to export controls and restrictions on ... Link to the full article to read more