It’s hardly surprising that gas prices are up in the United States. After a showdown with Iran ended in attacks that spread to other Gulf states, the Strait of Hormuz is a dangerous place to be, and shipping crude from the world’s biggest producers of energy is going to be a perilous business for a while.
As of Monday, the national average for a gallon of gas was $3.54, according to the AAA’s national average, up $0.62 from a month ago.
A barrel of oil briefly surpassed $100 for the first time since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, as CNBC noted, before falling once it looked as if the conflict wouldn’t be prolonged. It’s currently at $84.27, still up from pre-hostility levels of between $60 and $70 for most of the prior months.
It’s perfectly natural for Americans to be worried about oil prices at the moment while realizing what the endgame is — as President Donald Trump pointed out in a message on Truth Social earlier this week.
“Short term oil prices, which will drop rapidly when the destruction of the Iran nuclear threat is over, is a very small price to pay for U.S.A., and World, Safety and Peace,” he wrote on Sunday.
“ONLY FOOLS WOULD THINK DIFFERENTLY!” he added.
“ONLY FOOLS WOULD THINK DIFFERENTLY!” – President Trump pic.twitter.com/HjldnKcVoY
— An0maly (@LegendaryEnergy) March 8, 2026
Agreed. And unlike the war in Ukraine — a completely avoidable conflict via deterrence, if the Biden administration had projected any kind of strength in terms of foreign policy — there was eventually going to be conflict with Iran, at least with the mullahs in Tehran on the trajectory they’re on now.
The question, therefore, isn’t whether you want a blip in gas prices. It’s more a matter of whether you want that blip now or later.
At this point, Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs haven’t just been obliterated. The people who ran them have been as well — all this through a decapitation strike and limited warfare from Tehran in return.
What would happen if this occurred down the road, under a different administration far more reticent in regard to making sure Iran didn’t get nukes or increase its ballistic missile stocks? Would this spike gas prices even more? Likely so, particularly if you look at the fallout from Ukraine.
Furthermore, assume that no attack was undertaken: Iran would likely get nukes and increase its conventional weaponry, something that was effectively ensured by Barack Obama’s flawed nuclear deal.
How would Iran use these weapons? We’ve had some preview of that counterfactual for the past few weeks. It would be bad for the world and worst for the U.S. and the Middle East. If they didn’t, they’d make the missile and drone strikes against the United Arab Emirates and Qatar look like child’s play — a bigger shock to gas prices, one would think.
And then you have building up for that eventuality. How have successive administrations dealt with American refining capacity? We’ve seen how Obama and Biden fared. Meanwhile, Trump is charting a different course:
Donald J. Trump Truth Social 03.10.26 04:17 PM EST
America is returning to REAL ENERGY DOMINANCE! Today I am proud to announce that America First Refining is opening the FIRST new U.S. Oil Refinery in 50 YEARS in Brownsville, Texas. THIS IS A HISTORIC $300 BILLION DOLLAR DEAL —…
— Commentary Donald J. Trump Posts From Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) March 10, 2026
Yes, regime change would be nice. It’s also highly dependent on the Iranian people being capable of effecting it, as President Trump has said. The important part is that Iran stops pursuing both nuclear and conventional weapons programs designed to assert dominance over the Middle East.
There might be a temporary blip in gas prices, sure. The key word is “temporary” if the strikes are controlled and the administration’s timeline is more or less accurate. While these statements are conditional, the administration has made a point of averting protracted foreign engagements.
It’s a solid investment to decapitate the leadership and military capacity of one of America’s biggest adversaries when they’re at their most vulnerable — and, yes, only fools (and Democrats, but I repeat myself) would think differently.
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