Florida Sen. Rick Scott has admitted that it is “worth” a spike in gasoline prices thanks to Donald Trump’s war with Iran.
Scott, an ally of the president, was questioned on CNN Thursday about rising fuel prices, a problem exacerbated by restricted oil tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, which carries about one-fifth of the world’s oil supply.
When confronted by how Floridians are paying an average of $1.24 more per gallon since Trump’s war began, the Republican senator acknowledged the “terrible” spike, but said having increased prices was just the cost of living in a world where Iran wouldn’t be able to drop a nuclear bomb on Americans.
“When the people are unhappy about paying $1.24 more, what do you tell them about how long they‘re going to be paying more for gas?” The Source anchor Kaitlan Collins asked.
“Well, you know, Kaitlan, my background—I grew up in public housing. I watched my parents struggle for food and struggle for jobs. So I think gas prices—I hate them going up. But here‘s what‘s fascinating: I mean, Democrats don‘t care about high gas prices. They tried to cause it to make sure we all bought an electric vehicles. Trump‘s tried to get gas prices down. He did his first term. He‘s done it this term,“ Scott said.
“But there‘s a trade-off right now,” he continued, echoing what Trump said earlier in the day. “I want my family, your family, to be safe. And is there a cost right now? It‘s terrible that we have higher gas prices, but the trade-off is we‘re going to live in freedom and democracy and we don‘t have somebody—a lunatic—that‘s going to drop a nuclear weapon on us. I don’t know what the price tag is, but it’s worth it to me."
The national average for a gallon of gas was $4.30 as of Thursday—even with many gas stations keeping prices artificially low, according to NBC News.
Two months ago, before Trump began the war, the average was under $3, meaning prices have jumped more than 40 percent. Energy Secretary Chris Wright told CNN last week that he didn’t expect gas prices to fall below that threshold again until at least 2027. Trump called him “totally wrong.”
The Daily Beast has reached out to the White House for comment. Spokesperson Taylor Rogers previously said in a statement: “The president brought oil and gas prices down to multi-year lows at record speed, and as traffic in the Strait of Hormuz normalizes, these energy prices will plummet once again. President Trump has always been clear that these are short-term, temporary disruptions.”
