Washington (CNN) Legislation proposed by Florida's Republican Sen. Marco Rubio and Maryland's Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen gained eight new cosponsors on Thursday, the same day senators and the White House clashed over how to handle Russia and US relations.

The legislation was originally proposed in January but gained new prominence after President Donald Trump's one-on-one meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Finland on Monday -- and after the White House temporarily entertained the idea of sending US officials to be interrogated by Russians in exchange for Russian cooperation with the investigation into its interference in the 2016 US election.

The legislation, called the Defending Elections from Threats by Establishing Redlines -- or DETER -- Act, would require the director of national intelligence to declare whether a foreign government had interfered in a federal election within a month after the election.

Specifically for Russia, if the DNI determines the Kremlin interfered in a federal election, the bill requires sanctions on major sectors of the Russian economy, including finance, energy, defense, and metals and mining.

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