Washington DC - President Donald Trump said that Energy Secretary Chris Wright was "wrong" when he told reporters that gasoline won't drop below $3 a gallon until either late 2026 or early next year.
In an interview with CNN's Jake Tapper on Sunday, Wright said that while Trump's war with Iran "of course has come with short-term disruptions," it is all okay, because "I think we've managed it fantastically."
When pressed on when he thinks gas prices will drop back below $3 a gallon, however, Wright was less optimistic.
"I don't know, that could happen later this year, that might not happen until next year," Wright said. "Prices have likely peaked, and they'll start going down, certainly with the resolution of this conflict."
In a phone interview with the Hill on Monday, however, Trump pushed back against Wright's assessment and tried to assure people that prices would come down soon.
"No, I think he's wrong on that. Totally wrong," Trump said.
Trump has repeatedly tried to downplay the impact of his decision to launch a major war of aggression against Iran, which has no clear goal and has killed thousands of civilians.
The conflict has sent oil prices skyrocketing, largely due to the blockage of the Strait of Hormuz, through which about one-fifth of the world's crude oil transits.
In addition, experts warn that the strait's blockage has the potential to cause a worldwide famine as key fertilizers and resources used to manufacture fertilizers are not reaching their destinations in time.
"The blockade is very powerful, very strong," Trump claimed. "They lose $500 million a day… We control it. They don't control it."