Energy Secretary Chris Wright acknowledged Sunday that Americans may have to wait three years for gasoline prices to fall back below $3 a gallon, a dramatic shift from earlier predictions and a stark contrast to the Trump administration's campaign pledges.
During an appearance on CNN's State of the Union, Wright was pressed by host Jake Tapper on whether 2027 was a realistic timeline for sub-$3 gas. Rather than deny the possibility, Wright seemed to accept it, though he attempted to soften the blow by invoking inflation-adjusted comparisons. "Under $3 a gallon is pretty tremendous in inflation-adjusted terms," he said, adding that "we will get back there, for sure."
The acknowledgment stands in sharp contrast to Wright's earlier public statements. In mid-March, he told NBC's Meet the Press there was "a very good chance" gas would drop below $3 by summer. Just days later on March 8, he assured Tapper that any price surge would be "a weeks" matter, not months.
Trump campaigned aggressively on an energy agenda that promised dramatic price relief. During a September 2024 rally, he pledged to drive gasoline "below $2 a gallon" and used energy prices as a hook for broader economic messaging. "That means we're going down and getting gasoline below $2 a gallon, bring down the price of everything from electricity rates to groceries, air fares, and housing costs," he said.
The current situation reflects a sharp reversal from those promises. Gas prices sat at $2.98 a gallon in late February, just before the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran. Iran's retaliatory response, which included twice closing the Strait of Hormuz, sent prices climbing. By late March, the national average had jumped to $3.98 a gallon. Prices have since stabilized above $4.
Wright credited a conclusion to the Iran conflict as a path to lower energy prices but offered no mechanism or timeline for achieving the sub-$3 target he suggested might not arrive until 2027. He maintained that "prices have likely peaked and they will start going down" without elaborating on when or how far they would fall.
Public frustration is evident. An NBC poll released Sunday showed that 67 percent to 68 percent of more than 32,000 adults surveyed disapproved of Trump's handling of both the Iran situation and the domestic economy, citing inflation and cost-of-living concerns.
The Strait of Hormuz remains a critical chokepoint for global oil supplies, meaning any escalation in regional tensions could further pressure prices. Analysts point out that the war has already rippled through other consumer costs, from electricity to groceries, reinforcing public anxiety about affordability.
Author James Rodriguez: "Wright's 2027 timeline is essentially an admission that campaign promises on gas prices won't materialize anytime soon, and the shifting explanations only underscore how little control the administration has over global energy markets."
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