The White House is urging Republican Senator Lindsey Graham to soften his sanctions bill against Russia, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on June 6, citing congressional staffers.

The bipartisan sanctions bill, introduced on April 1 by Graham and Senate Democrat Richard Blumenthal, seeks to impose a 500% tariff on imports from countries that continue purchasing Russian oil and raw materials.

In recent weeks, Trump administration officials have contacted Graham’s office with requests to water down the legislation, congressional aides told the WSJ.

The White House reportedly asked Graham to insert waivers into the bill allowing Trump to choose which entities get sanctioned and changing the word “shall” to “may.” Removing the mandatory language from the text would essentially defang the bill, staffers said.

Blumenthal confirmed that negotiations with Trump officials were taking place behind the scene but did not comment on the substance of the talks.

“We’re moving ahead and the White House is included in our conversations,” he told the WSJ.