It’s Trumpian shades of Elizabeth Warren and AOC again. 
Trump this morning
Truth Social: Mike Wirth, Chairman and CEO of Chevron, just gave, in an interview with the fabulous Maria Bartiromo, all of the reasons that his company is doing so well. The only thing he conveniently forgot to mention is that, without the genius, foresight, strength, and stability, of the TRUMP Administration, the Oil Industry, and our Country itself, would be DEAD! As an example, they threw Mike and Chevron out of Venezuela, but now they’re back, far bigger and stronger than ever before, expecting to make a fortune! That goes for other Oil Companies as well…and get your consumer (retail!) Oil Prices DOWN, NOW! Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DJT
Aug 03, 2026, 7:50 AM
Trump This Afternoon
Trump says there’s nobody bigger than him as a free enterprise guy.
” I don’t like it. They are making too much money. I should be the last one to say it because I am a big free enterprise guy. Nobody bigger. … Chevron, too much money. Exxon Mobile, too much money. They ought to give some of that back to the public.”
Breakdown of What Drives Pump Prices
Retail gasoline prices typically consist of these main components (percentages vary over time and by region, based on U.S. Energy Information Administration data):
- Crude oil (~50-60%): The largest factor. Crude is a globally traded commodity priced on international markets based on supply and demand. Events like geopolitical tensions, OPEC+ decisions, production levels, and economic growth heavily influence it. eia.gov
- Refining costs and profits (~15-20%): Refineries process crude into gasoline. This includes operational costs, margins, and occasional disruptions (e.g., hurricanes or maintenance). Refiners are largely “price takers,” responding to market conditions rather than dictating final prices. afpm.org
- Distribution, marketing, and retail costs/profits (~10-20%): Transportation from refineries to terminals and stations, plus station operating expenses (labor, rent, credit card fees, etc.). Most gas stations are independently owned (major oil companies own very few—often less than 5%). Retailers set their own pump prices to stay competitive while covering replacement costs for the next fuel delivery. api.org
- Taxes (~15-25% or more): Federal excise tax (18.4 cents/gallon) plus varying state and local taxes/fees. These differ significantly by location (e.g., much higher in California than in some Southern or Midwestern states)
Who Actually Decides the Price You See?
- Retail station owners/operators set the final price at the pump. They buy wholesale gasoline (often from distributors linked to refiners) and adjust based on local competition, wholesale costs, volume sold, location, and the need to afford the next delivery. Prices can vary block-to-block due to these factors. usoga.org
- Upstream players (oil producers, refiners, wholesalers) influence wholesale costs but don’t directly control retail pricing.
- Market forces (supply/demand, futures trading, global events) drive the biggest swings. No central authority or cartel sets daily U.S. pump prices.
In short, it’s a free-market system where thousands of independent decisions and global dynamics interact. Stations compete fiercely, which helps keep margins thin at the retail level (often just cents per gallon after expenses). Prices rise or fall as costs propagate through the chain—retailers react more than they dictate.
Gouging Claim Silliness
- Retail stations (mostly independent) set the pump price. They buy at wholesale, and their margins are thin. They adjust based on replacement cost (what they’ll pay for the next load), local competition, and operating expenses—not just today’s crude spot price.
- There are built-in lags in the system: Crude → refining → distribution → retail. Wholesale gasoline prices (RBOB futures, etc.) move faster than pump prices. When crude drops sharply, it can take days or weeks for the full effect to reach consumers, especially with inventory already in the pipeline.
- “Gouging” claims like this are common from politicians on both sides when prices don’t drop instantly. But evidence of widespread illegal gouging is rare; it’s usually just market dynamics (supply chain timing, regional differences, taxes, retailer caution during volatility).
Gasoline is a complex, decentralized market. Blaming “Big Oil” is ridiculous.
But hey, if you like Elizabeth Warren and AOC you should be cheering Trump today.
Related Posts
May 18, 2025: Trump Blasts Walmart on Price Hikes, Sounds Just Like Elizabeth Warren
Republicans should be seriously embarrassed by Trump.
November 13, 2025: Three Statements on Price Gouging: Who Said What? Trump, Warren, or Biden?
I list three statements. Tell me who said them.
January 10, 2026: Trump to Set Credit Card Interest Rates, Adopts More Elizabeth Warren Ideology
On credit card and food price gouging, Trump is carrying out Elizabeth Warren and AOC policy mandates.
April 20, 2026: Trump and Elizabeth Warren Share the Same Price Gouging Belief on Beef
A price gouging witch hunt is underway on food and fertilizer.
Long: Trump 5D Chess
Short: Mish TDS
….winning
If anybody needs a windfall profits tax it’s Nvidia.
It’s ok, they’re saying we’ll have a deal today or tomorrow… Iran his signal its enthusiasm with dual extended middle fingers, which I hear is a thumbs up in their culture.
Golden age is right around the corner!
At first glance, I read your post “dual extended missle fingers” lolz
That’s gonna show up in one of their Lego videos now.
What his (alleged) Wharton school ghostwriters didn’t pass on to him, from his Econ and Business 101 classes ….
Is it a surprise?
Guy who thinks he is the center of the universe wants to control everything, focusing on those things that spoil his image of greatness
Dear Leader looks at China and decides that state capitalism is the way forward. Let a thousand flowers bloom. Doesn’t matter if a cat is black or white as long as it catches mice. MAGA is the new CCP. Let the running dogs howl. Hahaha!
Comrade Cletus! Comrade, Jethro! Comrade, BillyBob! Rejoice!
It took around 5 months for the United States military to assemble and place the military assets needed to invade and conquer Iraq. The invasion and conquering of Iran, because its population and terrain, would likely require a somewhat larger force. Of course, Trump has treated our allies with massive amounts of love and respect, so they will all send tens of thousands of their boys to the glorious fight. There’s plenty of oil in storage, so time is on our side.
U.S. has used ‘virtually all’ of its long-range precision missiles during Iran war: Reuters
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/08/04/us-has-used-virtually-all-of-its-long-range-precision-missiles-report.html
So, add a couple more weeks to the 5 or so months. Good thing we have all our energy needs covered with our vast oil and gas storage. Time is on our side.
So change “Peace thru Strength” with “Peace thru Exhaustion”
Of course, Iraq wasn’t raining rockets onto he heads of our troops during that staging process, not to mention attacking our navy while they were sailing through the Strait to deploy those troops and their equipment.
They wouldn’t do something as despicable as that!
BREAKING: A source close to Iranian officials says Tehran has documented a pattern of oil market manipulation tied to Axios reporting and Trump administration insiders, including evidence of a $9 billion insider trading operation linked to Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff.
https://x.com/HormuzLetter/status/2084386306419999104
There is absolutely no way on the face of the earth this could be true. They’re not Bidens.
Thank God I didn’t have coffee in my mouth. The Trump Crime Family dwarfs all other presidential family graft, inflation adjusted, in total, since this country was founded. It probably exceeds totals when including European leaders as well.
the hand rubbing intensifies
Of course Trump and his cronies are profiting off of this.
What does anyone propose to do about it? Trump could expose himself to little boys, live on CNN, and Team R would insist that this was standard presidential behavior. Team D would clutch their pearls, but they like it when Trump does their and Israel’s dirty work.
For some reason everyone forgets the years stock holders took losses. CVX is up about 85% in 10 years while the market is up 350%.
Who’s taken losses since 2009 and the Obama “stonks look pretty good here” low?
Only “paper hands” have taken loses….”diamond hands” making money hand over fist
Stonks Hit Record Highs
…I just can’t, anymore 😂😂😂
Let’s get real. The price of golf and hotel stays are too expensive, and the owners are making too much money. Government should slap a windfall profits tax on them. sarc
Secret service accommodations and catering at premium prices for weekend golf junkets are bailing out the Trump Organization.
I put Squawk Box on this morning. Every month that program is more insufferable. You’d think Trump had cured childhood cancer the way they were talking, and allowing Bessent to run his mouth about nonsense. I definitely became stupider from watching so I turned it off as soon as I realized that. Unreal, imagine the short bets they had in place for that $5 CL move down right there?
I gave up on CNBC almost 2 decades ago…it was unwatchable then and apparently still is….I await the day Joe Kernan and Jim Cramer are hanging from lamp posts
I think this is Bessent lending his ‘credibility’ to pump up the markets because Trump’s is low. Trump probably demanded that he do this. Markets responded with a huge surge in stocks. I remember hearing during Trump’s first term that at one point he demanded that Pence be more supportive of his agenda and insisted Pence hand over his phone, whereupon he sent out posts under Pence’s name that were obviously written by Trump.
Trump is simply stalling for time.
The grim reaper draws ever nearer.
Not really. Israel does not care if the rest of the world burns, as long as it destroys Iran.
Trump does not care if the rest of the world burns, as long as The Files remain secret.
Trump Says Iran Faces ‘Decapitation’ If It Doesn’t Sign A ‘Good’ Deal
…strike to start at 4:01pm this Friday 😂😂😂
Trump is simultaneously shaking down oil companies and winning political points with a dwindling number of supporters.
8 KEY INSTANCES OF THREATS AND CANCELLATIONS
1. MAR 21–23
Threat: Obliterate Power Plants.
Outcome: Postpone strikes, 5 days.
2. MAR 22–25
Threat:Target Water Desalination.
Outcome:Extend deadline, 10 days.
3. MAR 30
Threat:Strike Oil Wells, Kharg Island.
Outcome:Action remains SUSPENDED.
4. APR 5–7
Threat:Tuesday: Power Plant Day, Bridge Day.
Outcome:Two-week ceasefire.
5. MAY 17–18
Threat:”Devastating strikes, nothing left.”
Outcome:Strike CANCELLED, Islamabad talks.
6. JUNE 6–11
Threat:Close the Strait, NEVER RETURN.
Outcome:HOLD OFF on direct strikes.
7. JULY 25–27
Threat:Massive strike, UNDERGROUND FACILITIES.
Outcome:Diplomacy must work FAST.
8. AUG 1
Threat:Locked & Loaded,World War III levels.
Outcome: Cancel the attack (at request of MBS).
Oops… Oil prices are up again today. ☹️
Trump is trapped in a Sisyphean farce: trying to inflate a punctured balloon.
Every breath brings a fleeting bulge; every pause brings total collapse.
In this battle between a man’s ego and the laws of physics, guess who suffocates first?
Prediction for the next headline:
“Trump resorts to crowdsourcing tactics to suppress oil prices.”
If he really wants to fix the leak, he’d have better luck blowing directly into an SPR tank.
Too busy blowing Israel
Groundhog Day — day 158
I don’t think he’s stupid. I think he’s using this as a threat to Big Oil to feed his political engine and line his pockets.
Between meetings and phone calls that nobody has record of he will suddenly forget to exercise windfall profit taxes. Oldest trick in politics
At least this implies Trump thinks voters’ views count to some degree (so they need to be misled, his default solution for everything). But the whiff of desperation suggests he may concoct some even weirder end run around voters as his “October surprise.”
Trump’s October surprise…
“I shall not seek, and I will not accept, the nomination of my party for another term as your President.”
Republican Party, look what you have become.
Protectors of our first incontinent pedophile President. Supporting diversity in a way the Democrats never will!
Maria Butt Aroma? The sane one that cost Fox nearly a billion dollar settlement for lying?
RICO Act time for Fox/Newscorp and the entireTrump crime family!
Iran “Begging for a deal”:
https://x.com/i/status/2084454604788642104
They have run out of other things to beg with, so they are begging with missiles aimed at tankers
Trump flirting with AOC is not something new, it has happened before a few times. And when he saw her in the NY parade with that Indian colonialist, something clicked inside him pretty bad.
She’s a hottie… makes me click too.
“We estimate approximately 6 million tons of polyethylene capacity or around 20% to 25% of Middle East supply sustained damage from the conflict and will not restart until at least 2027.” (CEO & Executive Director Vanacker)
“But hey, if you like Elizabeth Warren and AOC you should be cheering Trump today.”
LOL. He can easily turn on a dime and start saying the exact opposite thing the same day!
As an investor with a primary focus on energy, I have mentioned several times here that when oil or gasoline prices get too high, and oil companies start making record profits, then governments often bring in windfall profits taxes. This happened after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The UK and several European countries enacted windfall profit taxes.
In the US, Biden did NOT bring in a windfall profits tax. He decided to tap 180 mb from the SPR to help get oil and gasoline prices lower. He let the US oil industry benefit.
In 2026 Trumps war with Iran has caused a mess in the oil markets and prices shot up again. He has already tapped the SPR, but that is almost done now. He has also talked prices down by repeatedly insisting that the war was almost done, and a deal was about to be signed. His next step “could” be to bring in a windfall profits tax.
That’s “one” of the reasons I am invested more in Canadian oil stocks, than US oil stocks. I do not expect Carney to bring in a windfall profits tax (though I would have expected that from Trudeau).
One interesting aspect today is that oil is not very expensive, but gas and diesel prices are high in comparison. This is because there is a bigger shortage of gas and diesel compared to oil. This is a refinery problem.
It starts with the Persian Gulf. While some oil is still getting out, very little gas and diesel are exiting. 3.5 mbpd of refined product are not being refined as several refineries have been shut down for several months now.
Next is Russia. Ukraine has been hitting their refineries and Russia has lost 2 mbpd of refining output. As such, they have stopped all diesel exports. Normally Russia provides 11-12% of the world’s diesel. On the plus side, Russia is trying to export the oil that can’t be refined in the compromised refineries. This extra oil helps lower oil prices, while the lack of diesel exports, raise the global price for diesel.
Third is China. China banned gas and diesel exports for several months (though they are now allowing some exports again). China normally exported up to 1 mbpd of refined products. As a result, China stopped importing around 4 mbpd of oil (2 mbpd for refiners, and 2 mbpd to the Chinese SPR). Again, this helped keep oil prices down, while gas and diesel went up globally.
In the US, gasoline inventories are 6% below the 5 year average and diesel inventories are 12% below the 5 yr avg. But it isn’t because of a refinery problem in the US.
US Refineries are making as much gas and diesel as possible because the crack spread is at historically high levels. Normally, refiners earn about $10-$20 per barrel of oil refined into gas and diesel. Today that number is $60. And a lot of this gas and diesel is being exported because the world is so short on these products. And NO, the refiners don’t get to set the price; they are price takers selling into the market for whatever people will pay them.
Another possibility, is for Trump to put in an export ban (like China and Russia did). This is less likely and would actually be very counterproductive. But then, the war on Iran was also very counterproductive.
Great summary! Also, estimates are that flows out of the Black Sea may be down about 1/3 from capacity. This is also affecting exports of Ukranian grains. So we can just pay more for our food.
The US does not need Ukrainian grain, but much of the world does.
Russia is a larger grain exporter than Ukraine. However, Ukraine happens to be useful at the moment, which is why important people pretend to care about Ukrainian grain exports.
Another great post, thanks again for sharing your knowledge on this topic!
Would love to hear which Canadian stocks you are buying these days as oil prices are dropping…the same as earlier?
More verbal vomit by our deranged taco.
What mephitic irony that at the 250th anniversary of our founding, our ruling figurehead is the epitome of everything the Founding generation tried to guard against in designing the Constitution and the libertarian spirit with which it was created.
Mephitic! Love these obscure words you throw out there!
You must admit, Quatloo, that it does stink. I’m trying hard to avoid using the profanity I feel.
No, it isn’t!
If it were a free market, then the worldwide price of a barrel of oil would not be the same.
The USA costs to pump a barrel of oil out of the ground did not change after the Feb attack on the Iranian Regime. There was no sudden shortage of oil in North America.
Yet the wholesale commodity price changed everywhere to the same level. WHY?
Our prices should have stayed the same as they were!
Look up the word fungible and then come back and apologize.
Very bold to assume Jojo the circus monkey can read.
I reads good enugh to know yu r stoopid!
One upvote for a pretty funny post.
I know what fungible means. Explain how it applies to oil pricing.
A gible is a toy you play with for fun. While you play with your fun gible, our dear leader drives the price of oil up with fun bombs while blaming everyone else.
Don’t get your gibbles in a bunch.
Or your flabbers will be gasted!
And don’t forget arbitrage.
Why would you assume that crude production costs in one location influences the local sales price of a globally traded commodity? If prices are higher elsewhere the cheaply produced oil will get sent there for higher profit. That will continue until the local sales price has risen enough to stop the outflow. That is what happens in a free market.
You forgot the part about transportation costs will keep some price difference in place
Which explains nothing related to the question I posed.
Again, it cost $X to produce a barrel of oil in the US on Feb 27, 2026. On Feb 28, 2026 we bombed Iran. The price of oil increased WORLDWIDE, even though, for example, OUR costs did not change. There was no logical reason that a “free” market should operate like this. This is not the first time I have posed this question. So far, no one has been able to explain the mechanics. Assume you are talking to a 5th grader.
Also explain why the price the eggs does operate under the same model. If China has a shortage of eggs due to chicken disease or whatever, should the price of OUR eggs also increase in sympathy?
OK, let’s take the perspective of the oil producer, who sells their oil on the market. They have cost X, and will sell at the highest profit they can get. This is what business do.
The highest profit is provided by the buyer that offers the highest price after correction for transportation and trading costs.
Now something happens in the world which reduces supply from competitors (such as strait of Hormuz closure). The production costs for our producer do not go up. But a significant amount of buyers elsewhere in the world cannot get the oil they would usually buy, because the strait is now closed.
These buyers will now look elsewhere for supply, and will have to compete with the existing buyers to their share. That competition will be on price – they will try to outbid the current buyers. This in turn provides our producer with a more profitable sale than they would have gotten in an unchanged world.
As much oil as possible will be sent to the new buyer that is offering higher prices. That will keep happening until the original buyers will meet the new price level that stems from the newly competing buyers. As soon as they are willing to pay equal, or at least enough to match the higher profit our producer would have gotten from selling to the new buyer, the flow of oil to the new buyer will stop.
Some demand may have ceased to exist due to higher prices (people driving less, or using heat less for example), so some oil will still be sent abroad to the new buyer in the new normal. A new equilibrium is achieved.
As you can see, the cost level of a single producer does not need to change for the price to go up for those that used to purchase their oil at the original seller.
You are trying to explain economics to a human with less sense than a chimp, but more ideological motivation than Goebbels or Andrei Vyshinskii.
Perhaps Jojo should get some air. It seems his brain is oxygen starved…
I guess I wasn’t let in on the provisions of that trade agreement, The Secret Protocols of the Elders of North American Oil Cartel Trade.
But when would your guy TACO ever deem to follow an agreement anyway? Thursdays and every other Saturday?
Our prices should have stayed the same as they were!
Holy what the fuck? And it’s calling people stupid! It’s an idiot.
Bless your heart lil jojo. That dunce cap looks good on your head. Here’s some homework – https://www.eia.gov/finance/markets/crudeoil/
Not sure you’ve vetted this idea very well, or at all. There are numerous prices for crude. WTI is $78, Brent about $84, and if you want delivery today in SE Asia, I bet it’s $110 or more. So thanks for proving the opposite of your intended point.
The worldwide price of oil is not the same. That’s why there is the Brent price, WTI price, a few in the middle east and others. The price isn’t the same because oil isn’t the same. Heavy, sour crude requires lots of refining and is therefore cheaper than light, sweet crude. But the issue is Exxon is going to sell oil where it can get the best price and therefore the highest profit, and that might not be the USA. So, in the end, you might have to pay the same price as someone in Korea or Brazil because they have to pay more for some reason. It’s a global market, not an American market.
He is growing desperate as the mid-terms approach, cost of living is going up and there is no exit in sight for the quagmire he dove into head first with Iran.
He is so out of options that the military leadership is asking the troops for suggestions on how to punish and pressure Iran.
So yeah, him trying to pressure the oil companies to lower prices is not an unexpected thing for him to do. That is what fools do when they don’t know what else to do.
meanwhile: Speaking of withdrawal, I was more than a little surprised to see Joe Kent’s views featured at Fox News:
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-declare-iran-victory-withdraw-troops-former-counterterror-official-argues
Fom Fox on the pause in U.S. attacks on Iran that I found uncharacteristically subdued in tone:
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-declare-iran-victory-withdraw-troops-former-counterterror-official-argues
Perfect. Let’s “finish the job”. And let’s start by defining what “the job” is: regime change / strait open again / nuclear power control / sooth Trump’s ego / enrich Trump’s cronies / obey netanyahu / other / etc. It would be silly to start a war without clear objective. But of course Trump is the silliest of silly, so here we go.
You overlooked ” distract from Epstein”.
Pence is an irrelevant Q-Tip. Get back to your Fox propaganda feedbag!
Perhaps if millions of school kids sent cards with KABOOOOOM YER DEAD! Written on them to Iranians, they’d finally realize they’re defeated.