Trump blames Ukraine and Democrats for rising fuel prices

President Donald Trump on Monday blamed Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries and refinery closures in Democratic-led states for rising U.S. fuel prices, arguing that the Iran war and Strait of Hormuz disruptions were no longer the main causes. The average U.S. gasoline price was about $4.36 per gallon on October 5, according to AAA. In a post on Truth Social, Trump said oil was again moving through the Strait in record numbers and pointed instead to refinery capacity, including facilities in Russia targeted by Ukraine and refineries closed in states such as California. His claim about the cause of higher prices was not independently established in the reports, and the relative effects of the competing supply pressures remain unclear. AAA’s daily tracker put the national average at $4.36 per gallon on October 5, up from $2.98 on February 28, when the United States and Israel began striking Iran, according to the reports citing the figures. One report also cited a price of $4.14 a month earlier. The date and baseline attached to the February comparison differ across reports, so the figures do not establish a single consistent measure of the increase.