Governor Gavin Newsom (D-CA) took a swing at Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on Thursday after Duffy urged Americans to hit the road for a vacation — even as gas prices keep climbing.
In a video posted on X, Duffy said that energy prices had come down below $100 a barrel and that pump prices would follow "immediately." He added that it would take "a week to 10 days" for lower oil costs to show up at the pump. Then came the part that got Newsom's attention: "We wanna encourage all Americans to take road trips," Duffy said, whether "two hours or two days" long, because the country is in a "good place" on fuel.
Newsom's press office responded with a post that read: "REAL WORLD SEAN THINKS AMERICANS PAYING 50% MORE FOR GAS MEANS PEOPLE ARE IN 'A GOOD PLACE.'" The governor's team was clearly not buying the optimism.
And the numbers back up the skepticism. According to the American Automobile Association (AAA), the national average price for a gallon of gas hit $4.583 on Thursday. In California, drivers are paying over $6.165 per gallon. Washington State isn't far behind at $5.763, and Hawaii checks in at $5.662. For context, that's roughly 50% more than what Americans were paying a year ago.
Oil prices are also on the rise again. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude jumped 1.95% to $96.66 per barrel. Brent crude broke back above $100, trading at $101.70 per barrel, up 1.68%. The United States Oil Fund (USO), an ETF that tracks WTI crude, edged up 0.65% to $135.85 in after-hours trading Thursday.
Investor Peter Schiff warned earlier that oil prices are unlikely to fall back to pre-Iran conflict levels as tensions between the U.S. and Iran continue to escalate. He suggested that either Tehran would walk away from any agreement or President Donald Trump would decide they had.
The geopolitical backdrop got a lot more real this week. The U.S. and Iran exchanged fire near the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint for global oil shipments. Trump called the exchange a "love tap," but the U.S. Central Command reported that Iran had deployed missiles, drones, and small boats targeting three U.S. Navy destroyers.
So while the administration is telling Americans to pack the car and enjoy the open road, the reality at the pump — and in the Persian Gulf — suggests the ride might be a bit bumpier than advertised.
