Trump Casts High Gas Price as ‘Short-Term Pain’ at Texas Rally

(Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump returned to Texas on Tuesday in a final attempt to boost Senate candidate Ken Paxton, whose close race in a normally reliable conservative-leaning state has Republicans worried about losing control of the chamber.

Trump sought to cast Democratic challenger James Talarico as too far left for voters and at the same time pleaded for patience over high energy prices, fueled in part by the war in Iran.

High prices that have strained household budgets have become the dominant issue in the election, weighing down Republican candidates in red states such as Texas.

Trump on Tuesday defended his decision to attack Iran, saying it was "one of the greatest things I ever did," and claiming that prices at the pump would fall once the war is over, even with no clear off-ramp to a conflict now in its eighth month.

"Short-term pain, right, for long-term gain. You're going to see very soon," Trump said at a rally in Corpus Christi.

The average price for a gallon of regular was $4.27, according to auto club AAA, up from $2.98 before the war.

The president also hailed an oil tanker arriving at the Corpus Christi port from Venezuela, an effort to showcase energy supplies from the Latin American country. He earlier told reporters he would visit the ship.

The Trump administration has touted its control over Venezuela's natural resources after capturing former leader Nicolás Maduro.

Earlier: Trump, Rubio Plan to Visit Tanker With Venezuelan Crude in Texas

"It'll be refined right here in Texas, including right here in Corpus Christi," Trump said at the rally. "And you'll see, it'll happen very quickly. It'll be like a blink. Gasoline and diesel prices will soon come down."

In an effort to mobilize conservative voters in Texas, the president also repeated his attacks on Talarico, including accusations that he is a vegan, opposes gun rights, and supports transgender individuals.

"The only man standing between Texas and this raging lunatic is a man named President Donald J. Trump," Trump said. "And I need the help of Ken Paxton."

With Democrats needing to net only four seats to take control of the Senate, the race in Texas has taken on outsized importance and given them hope of achieving a long-sought goal of turning the state blue.