Chris Van Hollen: “after a discussion that we will have on the Senate floor, I intend to ask unanimous consent that the Senate pass S.…”

“after a discussion that we will have on the Senate floor, I intend to ask unanimous consent that the Senate pass S. 1060, which is a bipartisan piece of legislation called the DETER Act. What is the DETER Act? The DETER Act is legislation that I introduced with Senator Rubio. It has bipartisan sponsorship, and it is designed to send a very clear and simple message to Russia or any other countries that are thinking about interfering with our elections and undermining our democracy that, if we catch you, you will suffer a severe penalty. It won't be a few sanctions against a few of the oligarchs. It will hit big parts of your economy. It will hit your banking sector. It will hit your energy sector. It will hurt, so you better think before you try to interfere in any future election. Now, Senator Rubio and I introduced this legislation a number of years ago, and in response to concerns that were raised, we made a number of important changes, but despite those changes, we are still here in the U.S. Senate with less than 1 year to go before a national election, and we have not passed this bill to deter foreign interference in our elections. We know what Vladimir Putin's ambitions are. He wants to sow division in our electorate. He wants to make our political process even more polarized. He wants to undermine the public faith in the democratic process. That is not just my conclusion. That is the unanimous verdict of the U.S.…”