Economic

3 min

Consumers Say Gas Prices Have Gone Up, and Blame Trump

Written by Eli Yokley

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More voters oppose U.S. military action against Iran (47%) than support it (43%), and half say the effort is not worth the cost while believing the United States is already at war. As the administration scrambles to build a Strait of Hormuz escort coalition and gas is up 26% in a month, Trump is facing the bulk of the blame for the latest cost-of-living problem.

  • 48% blame the Trump administration for rising gas prices — more than oil companies (16%), global markets (13%) and Biden-era policies (11%) combined.
  • 3 in 4 voters expect the strikes to push gas prices higher. 70% expect inflation to increase. 53% say the action will harm the economy overall.

The politics are bad for pro-war members. Voters who say they’d punish a member for supporting the strikes (36%) outnumber those who'd reward them (29%), suggesting less energy on the supporting side.

Gas blame and cost pressure

Nearly half of voters (48%) point the finger at the Trump administration for gas prices — a plurality that dwarfs every other option. 81% noticed prices change in the past two weeks; among them, 96% say prices went up.

The behavioral response is already showing: 49% say they're driving less. Two-thirds expect prices to keep rising. Only 17% expect a decrease — roughly the share of Americans who think Wright's "few more weeks" timeline holds up.

Who's most responsible for gas prices?
Trump administration48%
Oil and gas companies16%
Global markets / OPEC13%
Biden-era policies11%

Opposition to military action

More voters oppose the Iran campaign (47%) than support it (43%), and the opposition's reasons are almost entirely economic. Among opponents, 63% cite gas price fears, 63% say it could escalate into a broader war, and 56% say Congress never authorized the strikes — a live issue as Democrats push a privileged war-powers vote this week.

Support vs. oppose U.S. military action against Iran
Strongly support23%
Somewhat support20%
Total support43%
Somewhat oppose16%
Strongly oppose31%
Total oppose47%

The intensity gap matters: "strongly oppose" (31%) outpaces "strongly support" (23%) by 8 points. Among undecideds who were pushed, they break 2-to-1 toward opposing.

Expected economic damage

Voters see this hitting everything. Majorities expect the strikes to increase gas prices (74%), raise inflation (70%), increase terrorist risk (69%), and harm the economy (53%). About half expect them to hurt U.S. global standing (48%) and damage American companies abroad (46%). Only 21% think the action will improve the economy.

Expected impact of Iran action on...Will increase/harmWill decrease/improve
Gas prices74%7%
Inflation / cost of living70%6%
Terrorist attack risk69%13%
U.S. economy overall53%21%
U.S. global standing48%30%
U.S. companies globally46%21%

That's not a mixed verdict. That's a consensus that the war is making things worse across the board.

Duration and endgame

The country is split on strategy — 43% want diplomacy now even if Iran retains some nuclear capability, 42% want to keep going until the program is permanently dismantled. But only 30% are willing to sustain operations "as long as it takes," and another 30% say the U.S. shouldn't be involved at all. 62% think full-scale war is likely.

Summary

More voters oppose U.S. military action against Iran (47%) than support it (43%), and 48% blame the Trump administration for rising gas prices.

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