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Today β€” 23 May 2025Main stream

Will gas prices give Trump and Republicans a political boost?

As Americans hit the road for the Memorial Day holiday weekend, they're getting good news at the gas pumps.

While gas prices have risen roughly 20 cents per gallon since President Donald Trump returned to the White House in January, according to GasBuddy, a fuel savings platform, "all 50 states are lower than last Memorial Day."

And GasBuddy notes that gas prices are at their "lowest seasonal (Memorial Day) level since 2021."

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reports that when adjusted for inflation, the average U.S. retail gasoline prices going into Memorial Day weekend are 14% lower than last year, in large part because of falling crude oil prices.

FOX BUSINESS: GAS PRICES HIT 4-YEAR LOW AHEAD OF MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND

As of Friday, AAA reported that the national average for regular gasoline stood at $3.20 per gallon.

And while gas prices traditionally increase heading into spring and summer, normally due to increased demand for summer travel and refineries switching to summer gasoline blends – which are less likely to evaporate but are more expensive to produce – GasBuddy expects prices to ease slightly during the next few months heading into Labor Day.

OIL PRICES ARE DOWN OVER LAST SIX MONTHS: WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR GAS PRICES?

The falling prices at the pump could be good political news for Trump and Republicans aiming to defend their Senate and House majorities in next year's midterm elections.

"Gas prices fell for the third month in a row," the White House spotlighted last week, as it argued, "Workers See Relief in President Trump’s Economy."

Four months into his second tour of duty in the White House, Trump's poll numbers are slightly underwater, with most, but not all, of the latest national surveys placing the president's approval rating in negative territory.

That wasn't the case when Trump was inaugurated in January, when most polls indicated his approval ratings were above water.

Contributing to the slide over the past couple of months in Trump's overall approval ratings was his performance on the economy and, in particular, inflation, which were pressing issues that kept former President Joe Biden’s approval ratings well below water for most of his presidency.

Trump's blockbuster tariff announcement in early April sparked a trade war with some of the nation's top trading partners and triggered a massive sell-off in the financial markets and increased concerns about a recession.

WHERE TRUMP STANDS IN THE POLLS FOUR MONTHS INTO HIS SECOND ADMINISTRATION

But the markets have rebounded, thanks in part to a truce between the U.S. and China in their tariff standoff as Trump tapped the brakes on his controversial tariff implementation.

Republican strategist Jesse Hunt told Fox News Digital that the current prices at the pump are "a positive development" and that "seeing gas prices where they are is a testament to the energy policy the administration wants to pursue, and it's going to result in more money being kept in people's pockets."

But Daron Shaw, a politics professor and chair at the University of Texas who is the Republican partner on the Fox News poll, noted that "with the exception of gas prices, there hasn’t been much of a reduction in prices."

"Prices haven’t come down, and it’s not clear that people will say the absence of inflation is an economic victory. They still feel that an appreciable portion of their money is going to pay for basic things," Shaw added. "What Trump is realizing is that prices have to come down for him to be able to declare success."

Hunt, a veteran of numerous GOP presidential and statewide campaigns, said that Republicans "still have to figure out a way to ease some of the strain on family budgets through everyday goods like groceries. They were able to get eggs under control, which was an issue that threatened them early on in the second administration."

But pointing to Trump's sweeping tax and spending cuts package, which narrowly passed the House on Thursday, Hunt said "there is a lot of hope and optimism" that the measure, if passed into law, "will help spur additional investment" and "will provide the sort of growth that you need across the economy."

Fox Business' Daniella Genovese contributed to this report.Β 

Boeing reaches deal to avoid criminal charges over deadly 737 Max crashes

Family members of victims of the Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 crash hold a sign as President and CEO of Boeing Kelly Ortberg prepares to testify before the Senate
Boeing will not go to trial over two fatal crashes of its 737 Max planes in 2018 and 2019.

Win McNamee/Getty Images

  • The Justice Department is dropping its criminal case against Boeing.
  • It's a major win for the embattled planemaker.
  • The case stems from two Boeing 737 Max crashes that killed 346 people in 2018 and 2019.

The Justice Department on Friday said it had reached a deal with Boeing that would allow the planemaker to avoid criminal charges stemming from two 737 Max crashes that killed 346 people and upended the planemaker's business for years.

Boeing will instead invest more than $1 billion in strengthening its compliance, safety, and quality programs in exchange for the Justice Department dropping the case. The deal is not yet finalized and will be submitted to the court soon, the department said in a court filing.

Crucially, the lack of being labeled as a felon could help it continue winning lucrative defense contracts without a waiver from the Pentagon.

Boeing did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Boeing originally agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to defraud the Federal Aviation Administration and pay a $243.6 million fine, but that deal was thrown out by the judge in December. A jury trial was scheduled to begin in June.

The families of some victims have long opposed any outcome that did not result in a trial.

"This isn't justice. It's a backroom deal dressed up as a legal proceeding, and it sends a dangerous message: in America, the rich and powerful can buy their way out of accountability," the victims said via a lawyer when reports first surfaced earlier in May that a deal was in the works.

It's yet another piece of good news for the beleaguered planemaker following the 737 Max crashes, a midair door-plug blowout, and other quality control headaches that have plagued its production line in recent years. In 2025, the company won a lucrative defense contract for theΒ F-47 fighter planeΒ and has seen an influx of orders for its 787 Dreamliner and yet-to-be-certified 777X.

Shares are up more than 17% year-to-date, outpacing the broader market.

Read the original article on Business Insider

Samsung and β€˜anybody’ making smartphones outside of US subject to same tariff as iPhone, Trump says

23 May 2025 at 12:24

President Trump has confirmed that the 25% tariff mentioned for iPhone earlier today will also apply to Samsung and β€œanybody” making smartphones outside of the United States.

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