“Tonight, the House took action to support our brothers and sisters in democracy, the Ukrainian people.  The American people are ready to make sacrifices if it means helping fight back against Vladimir Putin’s unprovoked, unjustified, criminal, and immoral invasion of Ukraine.  Banning the importation of Russian oil, coal, and gas – the lifeblood of Putin’s regime – is the right thing to do.  It will go a long way toward helping compel Putin to end his war of choice against the people of Ukraine, who want only to live free in their sovereign country, with its boarders secure and its people safe.   “This decision, however, will have an impact, at least in the short term, on energy costs here at home and for our allies.  Americans, Canadians, and Europeans will end up paying more for gasoline, for heating, and for oil with Putin’s price increase.  I have no doubt, however, that Americans are ready to do our part.   “The American people understand that when a fellow democracy is attacked, when a free people come under unprovoked assault, when a tyrant seeks to overturn the international order, when he engages in a criminal invasion of a neighbor – that this is a question of right and wrong, and Americans want to stand firmly on the side of right.  History has taught us that freedom threatened anywhere is a threat to freedom everywhere.   “While this bill would ban Russian oil, coal, and natural gas, it goes even further.  It calls for Russia’s removal from the World Trade Organization, and it reauthorizes the Global Magnitsky Act, which enforces sanctions against those who violate human rights and engage in corruption.  This will help protect Russians who do not want any part of Putin’s war.  Putin is as great a threat to the freedom of Ukrainians as he is to the freedom of Russians, who have suddenly found themselves living in a totalitarian state with little access to a free press and no right to free speech.   “Tonight, Americans are standing with those who are on the front lines of the battle between democracy and despotism, between freedom and captivity, between hope and fear.  We are coming together tonight with this legislation to show Ukrainians, Russians, and everyone around the world that Americans will not shrink from this fight.”