Record U.S. gasoline prices keep dominating headlines as the Iran war pushes fuel costs higher. And whenever prices spike, someone in Washington wants to find a villain. This time, one fuel-market expert is rejecting a congressman's claim of price gouging, and he's not being subtle about it.

Congressman Claims Price Gouging

Consumers feeling the pinch at the pump may be looking for someone to blame. One congressman, however, is pointing the finger in a different direction.

"#Gouging," Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) posted on X, while sharing a post from conservative account Gunther Eagleman, who is also known as David J. Freeman.

"Back in 2008 oil damn near hit $148 a barrel and gas was around 4 bucks. Now oil is way lower and somehow we're still paying more at the pump. You can throw out all the excuses you want, but regular people know when something smells fishy. Something ain't right," Eagleman tweeted.

The tweet shared an image that showed the price of gas at $4.11 with oil at $147 in 2008 and the price of gas at $4.47 now with oil at $95.

Patrick De Haan, known as @GasBuddyGuy on X, didn't love Burchett's post.

"Funny how in 2022 it wasn't gouging, but now suddenly it is. It wasn't then and it isn't now. The data didn't change, you did. That's not integrity, it's convenience," De Haan tweeted.

The gas expert shared later that he was "dialing" down his attack on Burchett after not approving of his own tone.

"The tone was overly frustrated with the work needed to undo these types of lies. It's not gouging, it's economics, and it's frustrating that people in office openly misrepresent reality to Americans."

'Not Some Magic 1:1 Relationship'

Gas and diesel prices have hit record highs across America, mainly because the war in Iran has led to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and a tightening of global oil supplies.

Higher refining costs and refinery outages have also pushed up gasoline and diesel prices, with disruptions in the Great Lakes region hitting some Midwestern states especially hard.

A social media user argued that fuel prices were being manipulated for political reasons:

"During the Biden Regime when oil was at this price per barrel gas was $3.88 a gallon. Diesel was around $4.59 a gallon. Today, gas is $4.47 a gallon. Diesel is $6.52. Today the prices are artificially high. They are being kept high to influence the 2026 midterms to hobble Trump in the final two years of his term."

After the user challenged others to prove the claim wrong, De Haan was quick to respond.

"Tell me you don't understand how a hose can get kinked. Cheap oil doesn't magically turn into gasoline," De Haan tweeted.

De Haan argued that the comparison overlooks a key factor: refining conditions differed significantly between the Biden and Trump administrations. He said the social media post makes no mention of the refining situation during either period.

"There's not some magic 1:1 relationship folks. It varies as the refining situation changes."

The gas expert said that higher gas prices are not a "scam" and that "cheap oil doesn't magically flow into your gas tank."

Image via Shutterstock