Donald Trump rounded on Exxon Mobil and Chevron on Monday, telling reporters the two oil giants had taken too much out of the Iran war after a combined $26.5B (£19.7B) quarter. Drivers are paying above $4 (£3) a US gallon, and polling released last week found 54% of voters hold the president himself responsible 'a lot' for that.
The scolding came during an executive order signing in the Oval Office, from a man who acknowledged being an unlikely messenger, calling himself the biggest free-enterprise advocate there is. The companies, Trump said, 'better cut the retail price, the consumer price.' Fuel would drop through the floor once the war ends, he predicted, in remarks reported as they happened.
