Donald Trump’s deeply unpopular war with Iran is already costing taxpayers billions. But the true costs of the war are hitting working Americans right where it hurts: higher gas prices, utility bills, housing costs, and travel costs – with more to come as food prices and plastic goods absorb spiking oil prices and the conflict threatens to hike inflation and drag down global economic growth. Trump’s war with Iran is hitting home right as Americans are already dealing with GOP policies that have led to mass layoffs, zero job growth, and raised prices on everything from health insurance premiums – all to give billionaires more tax breaks, and themselves golden ballrooms and taxpayer-funded private jets. Read more about the true cost of Trump’s war with Iran for American families:
TRUMP’S WAR ON IRAN IS HIKING PRICES FOR WORKING AMERICANS
- Trump has completely dismissed Americans’ concerns about high gas prices, telling reporters, “I don’t have any concern about it…if they rise, they rise.”
- Crude oil prices are up 25% since the start of the conflict, costing American consumers billions at the gas pump
- Top oil exporters have warned they may halt energy exports entirely within weeks, which would spike oil prices an estimated 67%.
- The national average cost of gasoline has risen 27 cents – around 11% – since last week to $3.25 per gallon.
- Diesel prices are now over $4 a gallon – threatening consumers with sticker shock on anything that travels by truck – from food to furniture.
- Rising oil and gas prices will cause utility bills to spike, since 44 percent of American electricity is generated from natural gas and oil products.
- Airlines are warning that fare increases are imminent as jet fuel costs double, with United Airlines’ CEO warning fare increases will “probably start quick.”
- Global shipping costs are rising with the price of oil, wartime route changes, and supply chain disruptions.
- Analysts warn that Trump’s war could raise inflation.
- Mortgage rates are climbing, with the 30-year fixed rate climbing back to 6.13% in just days – effectively raising the average mortgage payment by $1,275 a year.
- Food costs could spike within months as fertilizer prices go through the roof, up 33% and diesel prices soar right as crop planting season begins.
- The cost of plastic goods could spike within months as tons of plastic-based consumer products absorb high petrochemical prices.
BACKGROUND: Trump’s war with Iran is rapidly spiking oil and gas prices and constraining supply. After the U.S. launched strikes, Iran announced it was closing the Strait of Hormuz and “would burn any ship” trying to pass. Nearly a third of seaborne crude oil flows through the Strait, as does a fifth of the world’s natural gas exports. The Strait also handles about one-third of the world’s fertilizer, and its closure could constrain supplies and lead to price increases. Qatar, which exports 20% of all global liquefied natural gas (LNG), halted LNG production entirely on Mar. 2 after Iranian drones struck energy facilities in the country, prompting the largest single-day increase in gas prices since 2005. Even when the country eventually resumes production, it will take weeks to ramp back up to pre-war levels. Days later, Kuwait began cutting oil production as a result of the conflict with Iran, as did Iraq. Attacks against Saudi Arabia and Bahrain’s oil infrastructure are already limiting production elsewhere. The war has even prompted China, the world’s largest oil importer, to halt some fuel exports.
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