Georgetown University Professor E.J. Dionne flagged a troubling “paradox” he believed President Donald Trump had gotten himself into, one that he called a “real problem” for the president that could result in widespread “chaos.”

Dionne, also a senior fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution, spoke with adjunct professor and columnist Carlos Lozada in an episode of The New York Times’ “The Opinions” podcast published on Saturday, during which the two discussed why they believed Trump appeared “afraid.”

“He seems afraid, when he’s reduced to offering people money,” said Lozada, referencing Trump’s recent promise to Americans that he would award them with $5,000 checks should Republicans maintain their congressional majority after the midterms.

Lozada’s remarks appeared to resonate with Dionne: “you really put your finger on something important about the paradox of what Trump was doing,” Dionne said.

Dionne went on to argue that Trump’s plea to GOP voters — to “pretend” that he’s on the ballot — was a demonstration of his confidence, whereas the president’s promise to send out $5,000 checks was an indicator of his “lack of confidence” heading into the midterms.

Another tell of Trump’s fear, Dionne argued, was his aggressive push to impose restrictions on mail-in voting.

“The New York Times had a great editorial arguing that Trump was sabotaging the midterms by using the Postal Service to try to completely turn mail voting into chaos, and I think that’s the real tell,” Dionne said.

“If he were confident in these elections, I don’t think he’d think he has to do that. And the Supreme Court may, at some point — maybe when this goes on the air — have ruled on this, but boy, is that the big tell.”

Diesel prices have spiked so high in parts of the United States that some gas stations can no longer display the correct cost, sparking a fresh wave of fury at President Donald Trump for having launched his deeply unpopular war against Iran.

As reported by the Independent on Saturday, some gas station displays in California have shown diesel prices sitting at $9.99, the "maximum price that gas stations can show on their digital displays, which typically only display four digits.” The average cost for a gallon of diesel in the United States reached its all-time high on Friday at $6.06, up from $5.85 last week and up from $3.71 the same time last year.

“Yes, you did read that right. Diesel prices just hit $10 in California. Good job, Trumpy!” wrote David Stockman, former GOP lawmaker and senior Reagan cabinet official, in a social media post on X.

Global energy prices have increased in recent weeks as the U.S. war against Iran has escalated. Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz reached its lowest levels since May earlier this week, and another global shipping chokepoint, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, may also soon become compromised following military advancements from Yemen’s Houthis.

“Incredible stuff,” noted independent journalist Brad Pearce in a social media post on X. “True Golden Age. Glad Trump solved the Strait of Hormuz situation.”

Majority Democrats, a pro-Democratic Party organization, noted a potential silver lining for Trump regarding gas stations maxing out their price displays.

“[Five] gas stations in California are selling diesel at $9.99/gallon,” reads a statement from the organization published on X. “Fortunately for Trump the price won’t go any higher — because the pumps have hit their limit and literally can't go any higher.”

Fox News’ Johnny Joey Jones struggled on Saturday to calculate how much the average price of gasoline had increased since President Donald Trump launched his deeply unpopular war against Iran, and ultimately conceded that he couldn’t “do math.”

Recent developments in the Middle East conflict have stoked fears that oil prices, which are already far above levels recorded before Trump launched the war, may soon skyrocket. On Feb. 27, the average cost for a gallon of regular gasoline in the United States was $2.98. On Saturday, as noted by Jones, the average cost had soared to $4.31.

“This is where we were before the war started, this is where we are today,” Jones said as a graphic was queued up displaying the price differential. “So, we're up... uh... you know, right at... a dollar and a... almost two full dollars, I guess. Doing quick math here, but quite a bit, quite a bit.”

Jones’ co-host then blurted out “dollar thirty” to correct Jones’ mis-calculation.

“There you go, a dollar thirty-three,” Jones said. “I can't do math! There we go! That's quite a bit.”

Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz — a critical shipping waterway through which 20% of the world’s oil trade historically flowed — reached its lowest levels since May earlier this week. Furthermore, another major global shipping chokepoint, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, may soon become compromised after the Iran-backed Yemeni militant group the Houthis inched closer this week toward controlling the entirety of Yemen’s west coast along the Red Sea.