Trump Protects Americans From Cheaper Gasoline
President Donald Trump defended his rejection Tuesday of Iran’s proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, shielding Americans from the economic disruption of lower gasoline prices and functioning global commerce. Iran had offered to restore traffic through the critical shipping route within seven days if the United States lifted its blockade of Iranian ports, released frozen Iranian assets and waived sanctions on Iranian oil sales. Trump dismissed the terms as dangerously reasonable, preserving his administration’s strategy of making energy markets panic until they surrender unconditionally to the gas station sign.
“We could open it tomorrow, probably sooner, but then oil moves freely, prices come down, everybody relaxes, and frankly nobody respects a country that can afford to drive places,” Trump said. “Expensive gasoline shows strength. People watch those numbers spinning at the pump and they know America is doing tremendous diplomacy.” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent supported the decision, warning that reopening one of the world’s most important petroleum corridors could expose consumers to disposable income, spontaneous road trips and the corrosive belief that foreign policy should occasionally produce material benefits. Administration officials said every additional dollar paid per gallon would function as leverage, although they did not specify against whom.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said negotiations were becoming more serious, raising the risk that talks could produce clarity, stability or other conditions historically hostile to cable-news programming. The White House said Trump remained open to diplomacy, provided no agreement took effect before he had denounced it, accepted a slightly altered version, renamed it the Trump Maritime Prosperity Corridor and announced that previous presidents had failed to understand either oil or water. Mediators will continue pursuing a settlement while American motorists perform their patriotic duty by selecting the cheapest available grade and staring silently at the total. By preventing fuel prices from falling, Trump has successfully ensured that every trip to work now demonstrates American strength.
* None of the quotes in this article were spoken by an actual person. More info.