North Korea following last week's nuclear test, showing overwhelming support for a measure that would mostly target non-U.S. companies.The sanctions bill was backed by Democrats and Republicans alike in the 418-2 vote Tuesday.
The legislation, H.R. 757, would authorize sanctions against companies that contribute to North Korea's nuclear program and ballistic missile development, send luxury goods to the country, help its censorship efforts or aid human rights
...which often include carefully measured allowances of
freedomat the convenience of the state...
abuses, according to a House Foreign Affairs Committee summary. The president would have the authority to waive penalties for as long as a year.
"The latest test demands a response," Representative Eliot Engel, a New York Democrat and co-sponsor of the bill, said on the House floor Monday. "North Korea has become more and more savvy at evading sanctions and that is why this bill broadens our sanctions."
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said Tuesday that he plans to schedule floor time on a companion measure, S. 2144, sponsored by Colorado Republican Senator Cory Gardner, which McConnell said will be considered soon by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. The White House has yet to comment on either bill.
It's difficult to say what companies would be affected by the legislation and whether any are in the U.S., said Bruce Klingner, a senior research fellow for Northeast Asia with the conservative Heritage Foundation. That's because any entities being sanctioned would have to already be in violation of U.S. law, he said.