US President Donald Trump instructed gas retailers to cut prices immediately, warning of 'big trouble' otherwise.
In a post on his Truth Social platform on Monday, Trump said, 'Gas retailers must cut their prices IMMEDIATELY.' The president wrote, 'If retailers don't do it, big trouble is coming. Start targeting about $2.50 a gallon.'
Trump also singled out California, calling on the state to lower its gas taxes. 'Soon the tax will be higher than the product itself, and the US won't allow it, just as the people of California, exploited by these ridiculous taxes and their own government, won't allow it,' he said.
Democratic California Governor Gavin Newsom is known as one of Trump's harshest critics in his second term. California is also focusing on renewable energy and aims to have a carbon-neutral electricity grid within 20 years.
However, with gas prices rising since the US-Israel war on Iran, the Trump administration is encouraging more domestic fuel production and has invoked emergency powers to restart an oil pipeline in California that was shut down after a major leak in 2015.
Last week, Trump also announced he has launched an investigation into major oil companies over high gas prices. In a June 24 Truth Social post, he said, 'Big Oil companies are not lowering pump prices in line with the exact falling prices they pay for oil. These prices are falling like a rock. In other words, customers are being ripped off. I have instructed the Department of Justice to begin investigating this immediately.'
Trump's demand for lower gas prices came as he faces criticism over opening a war on Iran and the impact on costs for millions of Americans, with midterm elections approaching in November. The president has repeatedly said fuel prices will 'fall like a rock' after the conflict with Iran ends, but economists dispute Trump's claims and predict longer-term economic repercussions due to the war.
