Donald Trump told voters he would cut energy prices in half within 12 months. He repeatedly bragged about gasoline at $1.89 a gallon, and as recently as January proclaimed, “Now we are breaking $1.99 a gallon.”
Today, AAA says the national average is $4.14 a gallon, up from $3.19 one year ago. Labor Day is on track to set a record: the national average has never before been above $4 on Labor Day. The previous record was $3.82 in 2012.
Trump’s war with Iran and disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz have helped drive crude oil back into the $90 range. His administration is now scrambling—calling oil executives to the White House, relaxing fuel rules and touting Venezuelan oil that experts say may take years to substantially increase supply.
I remember gasoline at 17 cents a gallon. I don’t expect to see that again.
But Trump told Americans he could cut their energy costs in half.
That wasn’t a promise. It was a whopper.
AAA reported yesterday that the national average for regular gasoline is $4.14 a gallon, compared with $3.19 a year ago. AAA says this Labor Day weekend is on track to be the most expensive Labor Day ever in nominal dollars, beating the previous Labor Day record of $3.82 in 2012.
The especially damaging part politically is that this isn’t just some unexplained refinery hiccup. Crude is back around $90–$95 a barrel, and the Strait of Hormuz remains disrupted by the continuing U.S.-Iran conflict. U.S. attacks and Iranian retaliation have again pushed oil higher.
And CNN’s “scrambling” description isn’t much of an exaggeration. In just the past few days Trump has:
- summoned refining executives to the White House;
- announced the enormous Venezuelan oil agreement;
- ordered additional strikes against Iran;
- already used huge amounts of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve; and
- relaxed fuel regulations trying to get more product into the market.
The Venezuela announcement is particularly revealing. The White House is selling those 65 billion barrels as something that will “help deliver lower gas prices,” but outside energy analysts say significant new Venezuelan production could take years, not weeks or months. Trump himself conceded he couldn’t say whether prices would fall before the November election.
And Vance gave them another quote that Democrats could put straight into a commercial. Asked when gasoline would get back around $3, he said:
“I’m not going to make a promise about when it’s going to return to $3.”