GOP Scrambles Over Fuel Prices, Urges Trump to "Halt Diesel Exports"

[Financial News, New York = Lee Byung-cheol, Correspondent] Republican Party (GOP) lawmakers are pressing the Donald Trump administration to halt diesel exports. The calls come after U.S. diesel prices surpassed $6 per gallon for the first time ever amid the fallout from the war with Iran. With fuel costs surging particularly in agricultural regions that rely heavily on trucks and farm machinery, more Republicans are demanding additional measures, including a temporary fuel-tax waiver, with fewer than 50 days remaining before the midterm elections.
According to The Wall Street Journal and other outlets on the 21st, Ashley Hinson, a Republican congresswoman running for the U.S. Senate in the State of Iowa, called on the Donald Trump administration that day to temporarily suspend diesel exports. Hinson also advocated a temporary waiver of federal fuel taxes, saying, "Iowans should not have to bear the cost of the war with Iran at gas stations or grocery store checkout counters." She added that the war with Iran must "end successfully and immediately."
Republican Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, also from the State of Iowa, likewise called for an end to diesel exports and relief from fuel-tax burdens. Miller-Meeks emphasized, "If a patient is injured, you must stop the bleeding first and then treat the cause." Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley also urged President Donald Trump to ban diesel exports, arguing, "High diesel prices are killing farmers' incomes." John Thune, the Republican Senate leader, said a diesel-export ban could also be considered.
GOP lawmakers have gone so far as to propose the drastic measure of banning diesel exports because the rise in fuel prices has become alarming. According to the American Automobile Association (AAA), the average U.S. diesel price stood at $6.51 per gallon as of the 20th, up 76% from $3.70 a year earlier. Gasoline prices also rose about 40% to $4.48 per gallon, from $3.19 a year earlier. The burden is especially severe in agricultural regions, where the use of farm machinery increases during the harvest season.
The war with Iran, which began in February, is at the root of the problem. Disruptions to crude oil supplies and transportation in the Middle East have driven up fuel prices, passing the cost of the war on to American consumers through higher costs at the pump and increased living expenses. Fuel prices have emerged as an election issue, particularly in traditional GOP strongholds such as the State of Iowa and Nebraska. In Iowa, Miller-Meeks and Rep. Jack Nunn joined Democrats last week in supporting a resolution to limit President Donald Trump's authority over the war with Iran.
Concern is also growing within the GOP. Republican Sen. John Neely Kennedy said, "Voters are not satisfied, and we are the ones in power now." After recently campaigning for GOP candidates in Iowa, Nebraska and Kansas, he added, "Six months ago, I would not have believed that I would have to spend time in these three states." President Donald Trump won all three states by double-digit margins in the 2024 presidential election.
The Donald Trump administration, however, remains cautious about banning diesel exports. Doug Burgum, the U.S. Secretary of the Interior, said the administration would consider an export ban if it could actually lower prices, but that it did not appear to do so at present. While restricting exports could increase domestic supply in the short term, critics argue that it could discourage refiners from producing fuel and drive up international prices, ultimately placing the burden on American consumers. Time is also running short. Only two weeks remain in the Senate session before the midterm elections, and no schedule has been set for votes on a fuel-tax waiver or a diesel-export ban.

[email protected] Lee Byung-cheol, Correspondent Reporter