Washington. US President Donald Trump said the United States would reap significant benefits from rising oil prices caused by the war with Iran, drawing criticism from some lawmakers who accused him of caring only about the rich.
Oil prices rose more than 9 percent to $100 a barrel on Thursday as the US-Israel war against Iran intensified.
Two oil tankers went up in flames in an Iraqi port after being hit by what were suspected to be Iranian boats laden with explosives, while dozens of other vessels were stranded due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
“The United States is by far the largest oil producer in the world, so when oil prices go up, we make a lot of money,” Trump wrote on social media. He added that preventing Iran from getting nuclear weapons was much more important.
Democratic Senator Mark Kelly responded that American workers were being harmed by the war Trump had started.
“The only ones benefiting from skyrocketing gas prices are the big oil companies,” Kelly, a potential 2028 presidential candidate, wrote via his X account. “But it makes sense that Trump would be happy about it, because he’s only cared about the rich.”
At least two other Democratic lawmakers, Reps. Mark Pocan and Don Beyer, made similar comments on X.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on his criticism.
Republican Sen. Thom Tillis said that while the president and his administration may be taking a broader view of the war and its costs, most Americans are faced with weekly budgets.
