President Donald Trump says he wants to suspend the gas tax to help bring down the cost of oil and gas, which has spiked more than 50 percent in the past 12 weeks since Trump launched his unapproved war on Iran.
But when taking questions from reporters in the Oval Office on May 11, the president spiraled off script when trying to answer a basic question, launching into a senseless tangent about gas from Texas, Louisiana, and Alaska, and predicting repeatedly that oil and gas would “drop like a rock” when his war is over.
Trump Veers Off Script During Basic Gas Tax Question
“Mr. President, are you going to suspend the federal gas tax?” a reporter asked.
That’s when Trump at first seemed like he was going to directly answer the question, but it didn’t take long for him to completely lose his focus.
“Yeah, I’m going to reduce until the, let me tell you, as soon as this is over with Iran, as soon as it’s over, you’re going to see gasoline and oil drop like a rock. It’s going to be dropping down like a rock,” the president insisted.
“I mean, already look, just on the basis of, you know, things have happened. When it first came, about 20% of the oil came out of Hormuz. That’s a lot,” he said before critics pointed out he started talking gibberish.
‘We’re a Big Filling Station’
“But you know, with time, it’s like they go into Texas. They go into Louisiana. They go to Alaska, like Alaska sort of seems like very far away from the, from Asia, but it’s actually a relatively short trip by comparison to other locations they have to go to, to get oil,” Trump nonsensically stated, before really diving off the deep end.
“And they go into Alaska. In fact, our big problem is we’re building bigger docks, docking, you know, docks to fill up, but we have, ah, you know, we’ve become very big on the filling station. We’re a big filling station,” he proclaimed without making any sense.
He continued his tirade, saying he’s spoken to companies and countries that want to continue to go to Texas.
“They like it better. They said, it’s an extra 45 minutes. They like it better. And it’s sort of amazing, you know. It found its way. A lot of people thought oil was going to go to $250, $300 dollars. It’s not. Today, it’s at less than 100 now.”
With no end in sight to his military campaign against Tehran, millions of Americans are struggling to afford the high cost of gas, which may be averaging $4.50 a gallon nationally, according to Triple A, but has jumped to as high as $6.15 a gallon in Western states and Hawaii. Diesel is even costlier.
But a tone deaf president continued his spiel. “Think of that, so when it ends, you’re going to see it drop like a rock.”
Reporters Press Trump Again — and He Still Can’t Answer
The reporter then followed up with a basic question, but Trump again either couldn’t or wouldn’t answer.
“How long are you going to suspend that tax for?”
“Until it’s appropriate,” Trump vaguely stated.
As the cameras zoomed in, though, viewers wondered at how Trump rambled and stumbled his way through such a basic question when he clearly had a notebook full of talking points on suspending the gas tax right in front of him.
View on Threads
“Did he ever answer the question?” a Threads user noted.
The answer? No.
Poster Kevin Pelling basically said what’s on everyone’s mind.
“The lights may be on but……..there is definitely NOBODY home. Does anyone in that room have the faintest idea what this drooling, demented, diapered Douchebag is blathering about?”
Another Threads poster tried to be nice about it. “Um … So he’s saying we should all go to Texas or Alaska to buy gas… I tried my hardest to follow him.”
Americans Crushed By Gas Prices as Trump Promises Relief
One thing to note, Trump can’t suspend the gas tax on his own. Congress has to approve it first.
A second point, analysts are questioning whether suspending the federal gas tax, which is 18.4 cents per gallon of regular unleaded, would even help the average driver.
That’s because, as Kiplinger’s reports, gas prices are based on fluctuating global oil markets, which means prices are based on supply and demand, whether the tax is suspended or not.
And another point, according to the financial outlet, the federal tax is layered on state taxes, and even if the federal levy is removed, companies in the supply chain, including refiners and gas stations, can keep any part of the federal tax for themselves, possibly passing on only smaller savings to consumers.
