Published on: Mon, 11 May 2026 16:45:10 GMT
Original Story: Trump Says He’ll Suspend Federal Gas Tax: Why That Will Offer Little Relief – Forbes

Trump’s Gas Tax Gambit: A Tank of Empty?

So, here we are again. Another day, another pronouncement from the former guy that’s about as well thought out as my last attempt to assemble IKEA furniture after three glasses of wine. This time, it’s about suspending the federal gas tax. Apparently, *that’s* going to magically fix everything from inflation to my crippling student loan debt (spoiler alert: it won’t). Forbes, bless their fact-checking hearts, already pointed out how utterly useless this gesture is, and honestly, I could’ve told you that after a quick glance at my dwindling bank account.

Déjà Vu All Over Again (and Again, and Again…)

Remember 2016? The “America First” promises? The wall that Mexico was totally going to pay for? Good times, good times. Well, buckle up, buttercups, because we’re in for another round of economic “master plans” that seem to be scribbled on the back of a napkin during a Fox News commercial break. The promise to suspend the gas tax, while superficially appealing to the average Joe (and Jane) struggling to fill up their SUVs, is about as effective as using a band-aid to stop a dam from bursting. We’ve seen this movie before, and let me tell you, it doesn’t have a happy ending.

The Gas Tax: A Drop in the Bucket

Let’s get real. The federal gas tax is currently 18.4 cents per gallon. Eighteen. Point. Four. Cents. You know what else costs around 18 cents? A single gumball from a machine. Slashing that isn’t going to make a dent when gas prices are fluctuating more wildly than my mood on a Monday morning. It’s performative politics at its finest, designed to grab headlines and rile up the base without actually addressing the underlying issues.

Contradiction Alert! (It’s Trump, So Duh)

Now, here’s where my inner eye-roller really kicks in. Let’s rewind to, oh, I don’t know, 2011, when Trump was busy tweeting about how Obama should *lower* gas prices. The logic then, as now, was that high gas prices were crippling the economy. But here’s the kicker: in 2012, during his birtherism phase (remember that gem?), he accused Obama of *manipulating* gas prices to help him get re-elected! So, which is it, Don? Are high gas prices a sign of economic mismanagement, or a cunning political ploy? Because you can’t have it both ways, unless, of course, you’re Donald J. Trump, in which case, cognitive dissonance is just another Tuesday.

The Bigger Picture: Supply, Demand, and Global Chaos

The real reasons for high gas prices are far more complex than a simple tax suspension can fix. We’re talking about global supply chain disruptions, increased demand as the world (sort of) recovers from the pandemic, and, oh yeah, a little thing called the war in Ukraine. Slashing the gas tax is like trying to put out a forest fire with a water pistol. It might make you feel like you’re doing something, but it’s ultimately futile. And who benefits? Big Oil, probably. They *always* benefit.

The Tariff Tango: A Dance of Economic Incoherence

And let’s not forget Trump’s favorite economic weapon: tariffs. Remember those? The ones that were supposed to bring manufacturing jobs back to America and make China pay for everything? Yeah, those tariffs. Turns out, they mostly just raised prices for American consumers and businesses, which, last time I checked, is the exact opposite of what you want to do when you’re trying to combat inflation. So, on the one hand, you’re suspending the gas tax to lower prices, and on the other hand, you’re slapping tariffs on everything, which raises prices. Makes perfect sense. (Not.)

Who Actually Pays? (Spoiler: It’s Always Us)

The dirty little secret of any tax cut is that someone has to pay for it. Suspending the gas tax means less money for infrastructure projects, like, you know, fixing those potholes that are currently trying to swallow my car whole. So, congratulations, you saved a few bucks at the pump, but now you’re paying for it in the form of blown tires and alignment issues. Thanks, Don.

Snarky Takeaway

So, where does this leave us? Probably right back where we started: with high gas prices, a healthy dose of economic anxiety, and the lingering feeling that we’re all being played for fools. The gas tax suspension is a shiny object designed to distract us from the real problems, a political stunt that will likely do little to alleviate the pain at the pump. But hey, at least it gives us something to complain about, right? And complaining is, after all, America’s favorite pastime. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go fill up my tank… and cry a little.