Trump Shifts Blame for Fuel Prices to Democrats and Ukraine

Former President Donald Trump has shifted blame for rising US fuel prices away from the US-Israel war on Iran, instead pointing to Democratic-led states and Ukraine’s strikes on Russian refineries. In a Truth Social post, Trump claimed that refinery closures in states like California and Ukrainian attacks on Russian facilities were driving up gasoline prices. He stated, "What’s driving up Gasoline is no longer the Strait of Hormuz... but the word, ‘Refineries,’ where Russia’s are being blown up by Ukraine, and where ours are being closed up, in Blue States, like California, by the Dumocrats."

Despite Trump’s claims, data shows that daily exports through the Strait of Hormuz have dropped 97 percent since the war began, significantly impacting global supplies. The average price for a gallon of gasoline in the US is now $4.36, up from $4.14 a month ago and $2.98 on February 28, when the conflict with Iran started. Rachel Ziemba, a senior adjunct fellow at the Center for a New American Security, noted that the conflicts with Iran and Russia’s war with Ukraine are exacerbating oil market disruptions.

In response to the rising prices, G7 countries agreed to release 100 million barrels of diesel and crude from emergency reserves. The US Strategic Petroleum Reserve has hit its lowest level since 1982. Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, reported that some European Union members were pressured to release strategic reserves or face a potential US diesel export ban, which temporarily lowered oil prices.

Ukraine’s attacks on Russia’s energy infrastructure have particularly driven up diesel prices. The Ukrainian Ministry of Defence claimed it has disabled more than half of Russia’s oil refining capacity. Meanwhile, Russian refinery throughput hit its lowest level in two decades, with diesel production falling 30 percent over the past 18 months, according to the International Energy Agency. Trump also blamed refinery cuts in Democratic-led states, where two refineries have shut down, reducing California’s refining capacity by 17 percent.