"Gas prices are soaring because Donald Trump effed around"

In this episode of Deadline: White House, host Nicole Wallace delivers a scathing critique of Donald Trump's foreign policy, focusing on the escalating war with Iran and its devastating economic consequences. Gas prices have surged to $4.30 a gallon nationwide, with the highest increases in key swing states like Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin, directly impacting voters and fueling a historic decline in Trump’s approval rating to 34%. The episode traces how Trump’s decision to launch a military conflict with Iran—despite lacking clear objectives—has triggered a global energy crisis, depleted U.S. military stockpiles, and strained alliances. Experts including former DHS chief Miles Taylor and CNBC’s Steve Leisman argue that the war is not only a strategic failure but a self-inflicted economic catastrophe, with the Federal Reserve now constrained from cutting interest rates due to inflation driven by oil prices. The episode also exposes the Trump administration’s dysfunction through the testimony of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, whose evasive, combative responses to Congress reveal a leadership vacuum and a culture of fear and compliance. Senators like Richard Blumenthal and Alyssa Slotkin confront Hegseth on war crimes, military overreach, and the threat of using the armed forces in domestic elections—issues that underscore a deeper democratic crisis. The episode concludes with Trump’s continued political recklessness, including the abandonment of multiple nominees and a new, controversial pick for Surgeon General, Nicole Sapphire, who has a history of spreading health misinformation. The overarching narrative is one of a president whose ego and desire for legacy have led the nation into a quagmire with no exit strategy.