What could be worse for the president than the criticisms is that the announced ceasefire has had little effect on the price of diesel, which continues to sit below its record highs but still well above $6 a gallon.
Meanwhile, as the latest twists in the Russia-Ukraine conflict unfolded, new violence in the Middle East threaten to further strain global energy markets, regardless of what happens with Russian oil.
A wave of Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, including strikes on airports and energy infrastructure that killed at least 13 over the weekend, have threatened to escalate a decade-long conflict that had been simmering throughout the US-Iran war.
“This is the Houthis sending a message that it’s not just military targets, it’s not just energy infrastructure, they’re going to strike at civilian airports that could kill a lot of people,” Michael Ratney, former US ambassador to Saudi Arabia, told the BBC.
The US-Iran war was a conflict that none of the Arab nations in the region wanted, he said, and the latest Houthi offensive was a foreseeable result. With the US and Iran currently in an extended stand-off, any new hostilities could lead to more regional conflict and send oil prices soaring once more.
“I do think it gets uglier before it really deescalates,” he said.
In recent weeks, Trump has pointed to Ukraine, not the Middle East, as the primary source of the world’s energy woes. He cites increased oil tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, which had been effectively shut by Iran’s military threat.
That may, however, be wishful thinking – an attempt to convince the American public to direct their energy-related anger toward a conflict that began under a different president’s watch.
There is only one president at a time, however. And when American voters casts their ballots they tend to hold those who are currently in power responsible.
After a rough weekend that again proved there are no easy fixes to the global energy crisis, that may be the worst news of all for the US president.
