Trump says Iran war will end after the midterms and gas prices will fall
By Adam Cancryn, CNN
(CNN) — President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he expects Iran will abandon its war effort after the US midterm elections – and he conceded American gas prices are unlikely to fall before then.
Speaking to reporters on his way to the GOP midterm convention in Dallas, Trump asserted that Iran would continue the war into November in an effort to damage him politically.
“I think it’s going to take a little bit longer than the midterm,” Trump said of gas prices coming down. “They’re desperate to try and affect the election so that we can get a nice weak group of people in there and leave them alone and let them have their nuclear weapon.”
But he added that he believes Iran is near collapse and that it would seek an end to the conflict “immediately after the election,” prompting oil prices to tumble downward.
“They can’t hold out any longer,” he said.
Trump’s remarks come as the global benchmark oil price has topped $100 a barrel once again, driven by stepped-up fighting in Iran in recent days that has further jeopardized the flow of crude through the Strait of Hormuz.
The surge in oil prices is likely to further increase fuel costs in the US, which have emerged as a key economic pain point ahead of the midterms. Gas prices on Wednesday jumped 7.3 cents per gallon, the largest one-day increase since May, according to AAA data. The average gas price nationwide is now $4.22 per gallon.
Diesel prices have also soared, with the average hitting a record $5.94 per gallon Wednesday.
Trump and his top aides have repeatedly insisted throughout the war that oil costs would fall precipitously once the fighting is over. At one point, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent predicted that gas prices could be back near the $3-per-gallon level by Labor Day.
But the administration blew past its initial predictions that the war would only last four to six weeks after Iran proved capable of effectively halting traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, prompting a prolonged energy crisis that has driven prices steadily upward.
Now, roughly six months into the fight, the US is still seeking ways to reopen the waterway that once handled roughly one-fifth of the world’s daily oil flow. The Treasury Department last month launched a fresh effort to force Iran into surrendering through economic pressure, threatening sanctions against countries that do business with the regime unless they cut all ties.
Still, the Trump administration in the meantime has struggled to convince oil tankers to transit the strait while Iran is still showing it’s capable of firing on ships.
Pressed Wednesday on the potential political fallout from high gas prices, Trump dismissed any concerns and insisted that Americans remain supportive of the broader offensive against Iran.
“I think it’s very easy to explain to America, all you have to do is say: ‘Will you let Iran have a nuclear weapon?’ And the answer is no,” Trump said.
The-CNN-Wire
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