Oil prices soared on Monday amid the ongoing conflict between the United States, Israel, and Iran. The price of Brent Crude, the world’s benchmark for crude oil, reportedly climbed to $120 a barrel for a period on Monday before later dropping to around $110. Oil prices are now “50% more expensive” than before the conflict began.
The increase reportedly marks the highest oil price since the COVID-19 pandemic in 2022.
With oil prices rising and people beginning to express their displeasure with the soaring costs, President Donald Trump took to Truth Social to address these concerns, calling it a “small price to pay” for the greater good of “peace” in the world.
“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,” said Trump. “ONLY FOOLS WOULD THINK DIFFERENTLY!”
During an interview on Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union” with Jake Tapper, U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright spoke about the increase in oil prices. He expressed optimism that it would be only a short inconvenience and that prices would eventually return to pre-war levels. He made the comments after Tapper mentioned record-high gas price increases this week.
“Two of the ten-largest single-day price increases in history happened this week,” said Tapper. “The price of oil jumped 36%, the largest one-week spike since 1983. President Trump told Reuters about gas prices, ‘if they rise, they rise.’ Is that really the message of the Trump administration to consumers who are already struggling?”
After noting the previous lows in gas prices during Trump’s second term and the administration’s commitment to lowering fuel and energy costs, Wright said he envisions costs dropping again in the near future.
“Gasoline today is still $1.50 a gallon cheaper than it was in the middle of the Biden administration,” Wright said. “But you’re right, we want it back below $3 a gallon, and it will be again before too long.”
Wright elaborated when Tapper questioned what he meant by “before too long.”
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“You never know exactly the time frame of this,” Wright said. “In the worst case, this is a weeks, this is not a months thing.”
“Iran has continued to build up their capabilities,” he said. “First, a massive expansion of their missile program, so that they can shield the completion of their nuclear program.”
“It is simply unacceptable for the United States, for the Middle East geography, and for the world economy, to have a terrorist regime with nuclear weapons and a gigantic missile arsenal,” Wright added. “They raised energy prices for Americans for decades. It’s finally going to come to an end.”
