Gasoline Prices Surge to $4.55 as Travel Season Begins
The national average for a gallon of gasoline is $4.55, as America heads into one of the busiest travel weekends of the year.
Objective Facts
The national average gasoline price reached $4.55 per gallon as Americans headed into Memorial Day weekend, marking a four-year high. U.S. retail gasoline prices jumped more than $1.50 per gallon—about 45% higher—since late February when the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran, with the conflict leading to the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly 20% of the world's oil consumption flows. Despite high prices, AAA estimated a record 45 million Americans would travel over the weekend. GasBuddy forecast prices could average $4.80 per gallon from Memorial Day through Labor Day, with the possibility of all-time highs if the Strait of Hormuz remained closed for a significant portion of the summer. President Donald Trump faced mounting political pressure as households grappled with higher energy costs.
Left-Leaning Perspective
Senate Democratic leadership stated that Trump 'illegally launched a war with Iran' and 'American families are paying for it this Memorial Day Weekend— at the gas pump, at their family BBQs and vacations, and at the kitchen table,' with 'Families, farmers, and small businesses across the country feeling the strain.' Democratic Rep. Dwight Evans of Pennsylvania argued that 'American drivers have paid $40 billion more for gas since Trump's war of choice began.' Trump drew Democratic ire after dismissing the gas price spike, saying 'This is peanuts' and 'I appreciate everybody putting up with it for a little while. It won't be much longer.' The Center for American Progress characterized it as the Trump administration's choice to wage war on Iran setting off price shocks for gasoline, diesel, and airfare. House Democratic Whip Katherine Clark of Massachusetts insisted that families 'can't afford Trump's skyrocket gas prices.' Trump told reporters 'I don't think about Americans' financial situation' and 'I don't think about anybody. I think about one thing: We cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon.' Democrats seized on this remark as evidence of being out of touch. New Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen argued that 'peanuts' isn't how her constituents would describe the spiking gas prices, noting 'POTUS isn't paying for this war. Middle class Americans are, and he couldn't care less.' According to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, Americans have paid over $39 billion more to oil companies since prices began rising after the war started, with a Brown University study finding the increase amounts to more than $300 per household. Democratic framing emphasized that 'For the first time in years, every single state in America now has average gas prices above four dollars a gallon' and 'California drivers are staring at more than $6 a gallon, and analysts warn we could soon see national averages hit record highs if the Strait of Hormuz remains shut down during the ongoing conflict with Iran.' The left's coverage omits discussion of the legitimate national security concerns Iran's nuclear program poses and downplays any discussion of temporary nature of price disruptions or Trump's strategic rationale for the conflict.
Right-Leaning Perspective
Secretary of State Marco Rubio defended the strategic calculus, arguing 'If Iran had a nuclear weapon and they decided to close the straits and make our gas prices like $9 a gallon or $8 a gallon, we wouldn't be able to do anything about it, because they have a nuclear weapon. A nuclear-armed Iran could do whatever the hell they want with the straits and there's nothing anyone would be able to do about it.' Trump sought to recast the higher costs as a necessary trade-off—a short-term burden in service of eliminating the threat of a nuclear-armed Iran. Trump reiterated his stance, saying 'You cannot give Iran a nuclear weapon. Because they will use it on a place called Israel very quickly, and they would use it in the Middle East, and they'd use it in Europe, and I guess we'd be next. And it's not going to happen.' National security-based arguments emerged from some Republican strategists that the latest prices are a small price to pay in order to harm Iran's nuclear capability. Conservative outlets pointed to statements from sanctions expert Miad Maleki on Fox News that 'the combined military and economic pressure currently placed on Iran by the U.S. is pushing the regime to a breaking point not seen since the 1980s,' with 'the coordination between the War and Treasury departments has significantly degraded Iran's military and weakened the regime both politically and economically.' White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers said Trump and his energy team anticipated the war's disruptions and prepared mitigation plans, stating 'The ability to supply both the United States and our allies with reliable, affordable, and secure energy has long been a key strategic objective of President Trump, and his successful efforts to unleash American oil and gas has achieved this objective.' Some Republicans pivoted to argue this wasn't as high as under the previous administration, with Republican strategists arguing the most reasonable argument is stressing that the uptick is only temporary, noting that despite the high prices, they still have not reached the $5 per gallon apex experienced during summer 2022 under Biden. However, conservative outlets note that national security arguments about preventing Iranian nuclear weapons compete with electoral concerns, and some Republicans in competitive districts avoided direct engagement with the price issue.
Deep Dive
The $4.55 gasoline surge reflects the intersection of military conflict with global oil markets. U.S. retail gasoline prices jumped more than $1.50 per gallon—about 45%—since late February when the United States and Israel attacked Iran, as the conflict led to the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly 20% of the world's oil consumption flows. However, prices are the highest since 2022 when Russia invaded Ukraine, but unlike that conflict, costs appeared unlikely to fall sharply by summer's end. The Strait of Hormuz closure and its disruption to global oil supply, refinery dynamics, approaching Atlantic hurricane season, OPEC production, and declining global inventories created compounding upward pressure, with the possibility of $5 per gallon or higher if the Strait remained closed, and even after full reopening, sub-$3 gas was unlikely to return for many months—possibly more than a year. The rising costs weigh heavily on Trump politically, particularly after he campaigned in 2024 on lowering prices for consumers, with Trump accused of making 'a political art form of telling people one thing while reality is something else,' though this approach doesn't work when it comes to family budgets. An AP-NORC poll published on May 20 showed 67% of Americans disapproved of Trump's handling of the economy, with a New York Times/Siena poll finding 64% disapproved. Left-leaning analyses emphasize the war was discretionary and preventable, while right-leaning defenses pivot to preventing worse scenarios (nuclear Iran closing straits indefinitely). Both sides acknowledge the political vulnerability, though they diverge sharply on whether the national security justification legitimates the economic cost. Trump's core stated war aims—Iran abandoning its nuclear program, halting ballistic missile development, and ending support for proxy forces—remain unmet three months into the conflict. Key unresolved questions include whether negotiations will reopen the Strait, whether Trump will resume military action, and whether $5 gasoline will materialize before summer. Prices are unlikely to fully normalize until well into 2027 even if Hormuz reopens. The political trajectory hinges on whether prices stabilize below $5 per gallon—a psychological threshold analysts and voters alike have cited as a crisis point—and whether either side can credibly claim responsibility for resolution.