GOP panics as Trump admin desperately spins soaring fuel prices: 'Can't message that away'
The price of diesel fuel in the US hit another record high on Saturday, as data published by the American Automobile Association showed the average cost for a gallon of diesel now stands at $5.88.
According to a Saturday report from Axios, incumbent Republicans are fretting about the impact that skyrocketing gasoline and diesel prices will have on the 2026 midterm elections, particularly since their own internal polling shows voters are placing blame for the price hikes on President Donald Trump’s illegal war with Iran.
“Diesel’s at an all-time high,” one GOP operative told Axios. “Gas is about $4 a gallon. We can’t message that away.”
Another Republican source told Axios that GOP candidates don’t even have the option of distancing themselves from the president and his unpopular war given the iron grip he has on voters they will need to turn out in crucial races.
“We have no choice,” said the source. “We’re stuck on the boat with him whether we like it or not.”
US Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy tried to spin the record-high diesel prices as something outside the president’s control during a Saturday interview on Fox News.
“When you look at diesel, you have to look at Russia and Ukraine,” Duffy said. “Russia was a major exporter, the second-biggest exporter in the world, on diesel. They stopped their exports, so that puts pressure on the global market. But President Trump has pushed American energy dominance, we are producing more energy now than in the past.”
Duffy added that “it’s only President Trump who’s trying to drive these prices down,” even though the president’s war has been the primary reason they’ve been going up.
Fox & Friends weekend host Charlie Hurt gives Trump credit for record high diesel prices: "Uhhh, they'd be a lot higher if it wasn't for the efforts of the administration"
"When you look at diesel, you have to look at Russia and Ukraine," Duffy replies 🥴 pic.twitter.com/Wm5bLJ6exA
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 5, 2026
As a report published Friday by The Associated Press explained, the cost of diesel has a particularly strong impact on the price of food since the fuel is used to power both farm equipment and the trucks used to deliver food to grocery stores.
“Fuel accounts for roughly 15% to 30% of the total cost of food, according to the Independent Grocers Alliance, a grouping of 7,500 global supermarkets,” reported the AP. “So higher diesel costs often result in more expensive groceries, although it can take a while for energy shocks to wind their way through the supply chain.”
The rising cost of groceries has been a major source of stress for US consumers for years, and Trump during the 2024 presidential campaign vowed that prices on groceries would come down starting on his very first day in office.