Criticism descended on President Donald Trump on Wednesday after he claimed that the country is actually profiting from the high global price of oil caused by the U.S. and Israel’s war against Iran.
“I never say this, because, and watch, they’ll cut all of this stuff out, and they’ll leave the little sentence,” Trump said at a rally in Arizona on Wednesday. “Our country is making more money than it’s ever made because of the fact that oil is so high.”
Trump then claimed he “cared about the little person like crazy” but said, “we’re making a fortune.”
“But I never talk about it, because I’m not happy until we get the actual price of the oil down,” Trump said.
The president then claimed gas was down to $1.85 per gallon, which it hasn’t been nationally since the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when shutdowns drove global oil prices down.
While Trump is correct that oil companies saw record profits in 2026 thanks to the Iran war and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, polling suggests many consumers don’t share in the president’s jubilation.
The average price currently sits at $4.33 per gallon, while Brent crude, the global benchmark oil price, currently sits at $104 per barrel, up roughly 70% for the year.
Critics on social media were quick to mock Trump’s remarks: