The minority of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs published a statement from Senators Jeanne Shaheen, Elizabeth Warren, and Tim Kaine criticising the Trump Administration’s decision to remove Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act sanctions on former Paraguayan President Horacio Cartes. The senators argued the move undermines the Act’s purpose and said the administration failed to provide the statutorily required advance notice to Congress. The statement framed the 2016 law as a bipartisan directive to hold officials engaged in systemic corruption accountable, and cited the U.S. Treasury Department’s prior finding that Cartes had engaged in corrupt schemes. It also pointed to the administration’s use of Magnitsky sanctions against the wife of a Brazilian Supreme Court Justice involved in former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s trial, and the removal of sanctions against former Hungarian official Antal Rogan, urging the administration to implement the law as intended to promote accountability for serious human rights abuse and corruption.
U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs 2025-10-09
U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs minority leaders condemn lifting of Global Magnitsky sanctions on Paraguay’s Horacio Cartes
Senators Shaheen, Warren, and Kaine criticized the Trump Administration's removal of Global Magnitsky Act sanctions on former Paraguayan President Horacio Cartes, arguing it undermines the Act's purpose. They highlighted the lack of required advance notice to Congress and urged adherence to the Act to ensure accountability for human rights abuses and corruption. The statement also referenced the U.S. Treasury Department's previous findings on Cartes and other recent sanctions decisions.