Farm state Republicans feel the pressure from rising diesel prices

Farm state Republicans are increasingly pressing the Trump administration and Congress to take action to bring down diesel prices, underscoring how rising costs have become a political liability for the GOP heading into the November midterms.

Rep. Ashley Hinson, the Iowa GOP Senate candidate, on Tuesday demanded action, calling for the House to return to session “immediately” to pause diesel exports, suspend the gas tax and create a diesel relief program for farmers and truckers.

Her call comes just a day after she argued that the military conflict in Iran needs to be brought to a “successful and immediate end” and that Iowans are “being squeezed” by higher costs at the pump and grocery store.

She’s hardly alone in raising the alarm. Other Iowa Republicans, including Reps. Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Zach Nunn, whose seats are rated as toss ups by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report, and Sen. Chuck Grassley have backed a temporary embargo on diesel exports.

Former Rep. Mike Rogers, the GOP Senate candidate in Michigan, has also supported the proposal, arguing that “American energy should provide relief to American families first.”

National average diesel prices hit an all-time high Monday, reaching $6.51 per gallon. By contrast, diesel cost $3.52 a gallon on average before the United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran.

“Diesel is the fuel most closely tied to inflation because of its use in the supply chain,” GOP analyst Rob Stutzman told The Hill. “The higher diesel prices means higher prices for everything on a store shelf or Amazon delivery.”

Farmers in particular have seen the impact firsthand, as they depend on diesel to operate tractors and other equipment used through the planting and harvesting seasons.

“I think Republicans in farm states are victims of disastrous Trump policies related to tariffs and the Iran War. The promises by Trump about tariffs haven’t come true for most farmers. And Trump has never articulated a strong case for the Iran War and has been promising its imminent conclusion for months. When your party’s leader isn’t leading a parade into a dark alley, you head in a different direction,” Stutzman said.

President Trump called for a ban on diesel exports at a Tuesday press conference in New York.

“I’ve said, ‘Let’s not send out the diesel.’ We make a lot of diesel, and it could have a little bit of an effect on regular automobile gasoline because when you do that, you know it’s a sort of a flow. It’s a balance,” Trump said during a bilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.

But the White House on Wednesday denied a report from Politico that it is planning a 90-day ban on diesel exports. The White House referred The Hill to Energy Secretary Chris Wright’s comments to The Wall Street Journal, in which the secretary said that the administration would not halt all diesel exports and would instead take a voluntary approach to bringing prices down.

Farm state Republicans, meanwhile, have been in a tough spot, as they campaign on the message of affordability that is increasingly at odds with the state of the economy at home.

For some, the diesel issue carries added political stakes as they run in competitive seats. A recent Marist poll found Hinson trailing Democratic state Rep. Josh Turek by eight points, underscoring the pressure on Republicans to address voters’ concerns about the cost of living as they head into the final stretch of the campaign.

“I think it behooves Republicans that represent, particularly these districts, right, the farm states, to speak up on that stuff, and to be vocal about it, so I appreciate what’s happening in Iowa because like this idea that we’re willing to sacrifice whatever, you know, for this cause, and again, it’s not just Iran. You know, the president is saying no one wants a nuclear Iran, and we’re willing to pay a little more for that…but it has dragged on. The mission has been convoluted, and it’s been unclear and opaque,” GOP strategist Amy Koch said.

“And this strategy has been botched, in my opinion. And so, seeing that and knowing that, and knowing that six months later it continues with apparently no end in sight, except maybe after the election, that’s hard for voting Iowans or voting Minnesotans to just go, ‘Oh, okay, I’m just supposed to hang in here longer,”’ she added.

A GOP political operative in Georgia, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, told The Hill that there’s a lot of pressure in his state “to remove the state sales tax on gasoline and diesel.”

Even if Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) calls on the House to come back to address the diesel issue, as Hinson has called for, Koch said she thinks very little progress will be made.

“You’d have to have some kind of a big global agreement for the House, the Senate, and the president to actually get something done,” Koch said.

Johnson canceled the last two weeks of the September session, arguing that much of the legislative action has been stalled in the Senate and that members could use the extra time to campaign in their districts. The lower chamber is expected to return to session on Nov. 9, after the midterm elections.