ABNA24 - In response to a 60% surge in US energy prices, members of the US Senate have called on the Department of Energy to take immediate action to reduce household costs this winter.
27 US senators have warned of a 60% surge in energy prices and urged the Department of Energy to take immediate action to ease the burden on households this winter. Senator Elizabeth Warren’s office announced on Tuesday night that the Democratic senator, along with 26 other lawmakers, had sent a letter to the Department of Energy calling for priority to be given to lowering American families’ energy costs during the winter season. The signatories warned that rising prices could force American families to choose between keeping their homes warm and meeting their basic needs.
They also called on the Department of Energy to support ending the war and changing energy policies to mitigate the war’s economic impact on fuel prices and heating costs.
The United States’ economic war against Iran, waged through crippling sanctions and military tensions in vital waterways, has turned into a full-blown crisis that is now hitting the United States itself. The confrontation, designed to exert maximum pressure on Tehran, has become the biggest test of the US domestic economy and global energy stability, with its costs being passed on to American consumers on an unprecedented scale.
Contrary to the initial assumption that these pressures would target Tehran alone, data shows that the US economy is also grappling with the heavy consequences of this confrontation, making the coming winter one of the most difficult seasons for American households in terms of energy costs.
According to official reports, gasoline and diesel prices in the United States have experienced historic surges. Data from the US Energy Information Administration shows that the average retail price of gasoline this year has reached $3.91 per gallon, up nearly 26% from $3.10 last year. The increase has been even steeper during the peak months of the crisis, with prices exceeding $6 per gallon in some states, including California.
However, the real crisis lies in diesel and heating fuel. Diesel prices averaged $6.29 per gallon in September, and households that rely on heating oil are projected to spend 21% more on heating their homes this winter than they did last year. The price surge, rooted in supply chain disruptions caused by tensions in the Strait of Hormuz, has now become an affordability crisis for millions of American families.
The political response to this situation has exposed a deep divide within the US power structure. Twenty-seven senators, led by Elizabeth Warren, have warned in a letter to the Department of Energy that, on the eve of the midterm elections, American families will be forced to choose between heating their homes and meeting their basic needs. This political pressure comes as Donald Trump, rejecting allegations that the Strait of Hormuz has played a role in rising prices, seeks to shift the blame to factors such as Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries or policies pursued by Democratic-led states. This political deflection shows that energy prices have become an electoral weapon against the party in power, putting the White House on the defensive.
Globally, the crisis has taken on dimensions that extend far beyond US borders. Analysts warn that disruptions to crude oil supplies from the Persian Gulf, caused by Iranian attacks on oil tankers and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, have forced oil production cuts worldwide. Brent crude averaged $114 per barrel in September and is projected to reach $105 in the fourth quarter of this year. Some financial institutions even consider a $200-per-barrel scenario plausible if the war continues. This oil shock, which some experts describe as more severe than the crises of the 1970s, has triggered a chain of inflationary effects across the global economy and limited governments’ ability to support households.
A key point is that the US policy of maximum pressure has not only failed to force Iran to back down but has also sharply increased the strategic costs of the United States’ presence in the region. Oil tankers now require costly military escorts and the use of complex ship-to-ship transfer systems to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, pushing daily vessel charter costs for each shipment to more than $1 million. This situation, which Washington has described as “unsustainable,” shows that the United States has become mired in a quagmire from which it cannot extricate itself without incurring heavy economic and political costs.
In fact, the serious implications of this economic war for the United States go far beyond energy price figures. The crisis has challenged the legitimacy of US foreign policy in the eyes of the American public and deepened political divisions. When Americans in a country that is itself the world’s largest oil producer struggle to heat their homes, the question arises: who exactly is bearing the cost of the United States’ failed approach toward Iran? Unless diplomacy replaces military threats, the US economy appears destined to continue paying a heavy price for this confrontation, both through higher energy costs and persistent inflation.
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