Mnuchin's Potential Sanctions Treachery

As an obvious gift for Russian thug Vladimir Putin arising from #treasonsummit in Helsinki, Treasury Secretary and arrogant plutocrat Steve Mnuchin is seriously considering lifting sanctions on Russian aluminum producer Rusal. What makes this proposal especially sinister is that Russian oligarch and Putin loyalist Oleg Deripaska has been a major shareholder in Rusal. Deripaska, one of many oligarchs sanctioned by the U.S. as a result of Russia's election meddling, also had ties to Paul Manafort, who owes Deripaska millons of dollars and who provided updates on then-candidate and conspirator Donald "Rump" Trump during the 2016 campaign.

The Treasury Department claims that the sanctions on Rusal are hurting the global aluminum supply, and that several nations and companies -- likely aligned with and being supplied by Russia already -- have asked for sanctions relief for Rusal. Whether this maneuver is one of the assignments given to Rump by Putin in their private meeting isn't known, but would it surprise anyone? If Congress is serious about the sanctions that they voted for overwhelmingly earlier this year, they need to prove they're serious by telling Mnuchin "no deal" on Russian aluminum or anything else.