Five Steps for President Trump to Lower Energy Prices and Lock in American Energy Security
Trump can turn the midterm setback into an opportunity by ending the Iran war, unleashing American energy production, and locking in energy independence for years to come.
By Fred Fleitz
Voters sent an unmistakable message in the midterms: the Iran war and the energy disruptions it caused imposed real costs on American families and small businesses. Gasoline averaged under $3 a gallon before the February strikes, climbed above $4.50, and only this week fell back below $4, still a record for November. Diesel remains above $6. Brent crude has swung sharply with every threat to the Strait of Hormuz. Ending the Iran war is the single fastest way to deliver relief at the pump, reassert America First priorities, and seize the cost-of-living issue from the Democrats who will soon control both chambers of Congress.
1. End the Iran War now and stop further escalation.
The president’s recent statement that further strikes on Iran are unnecessary was the right call. Now he should finish the job. Iran’s nuclear program has been set back years, and the regime is weaker militarily and financially. Negotiate an exit, restore reliable oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz, and remove the war premium that has driven gasoline and diesel higher. As I explained in my November 6 American Greatness article, this means ignoring calls for endless escalation and focusing on an honorable end to the war that prioritizes American interests over open-ended conflict. Markets already responded to de-escalation signals—Brent crude oil futures fell below $90 on recent comments that the war could end soon. But markets also punish mixed signals—Brent jumped back above $94 on Thursday after the president said the U.S. doesn’t need a deal with Iran. Ending the war would quickly lower prices for the U.S. economy, undercut Democratic attacks on energy costs, and let the administration claim credit for the relief voters demanded. Speed also matters: congressional Democrats are weighing whether to use the December 11 government funding deadline to force an end to the war. If the president ends it first, he gets the credit. President Trump should pair this with personnel changes that signal his seriousness about ending, not expanding, this war.
2. Pass an energy abundance package in the lame-duck session and dare the new Democratic Congress to oppose cheaper fuel.
The Senate has already advanced the bipartisan permitting bill, the Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act, 73-25, and the House is moving nuclear licensing bills. The president should press House Democrats to pass both before January 3 rather than hold out for a “better” bill next year. He should also push additional legislation now to expand domestic oil, gas, and coal production, speed permits for pipelines and LNG, and accelerate nuclear builds. Whatever does not pass should be reintroduced in January to force the new Democratic majorities to explain why they block measures that would keep U.S. output at record levels (already near 14 million barrels per day of crude) and lower utility and pump prices. This seizes the initiative on an issue Democrats used against Republicans: put the burden on them to choose between ideology and household budgets. Lock this in with long-term leasing, multi-year production targets, and binding timelines so future administrations cannot easily reverse course through executive orders.
3. Launch a nuclear buildout that will be difficult for any future Congress to unwind.
Support every type of nuclear reactor, from large conventional plants to small modular and advanced reactors, along with restarts and upgrades of existing plants, all under streamlined licensing. The nuclear licensing bills now moving in the House are a good start. Just as important is building a fully functioning American nuclear fuel cycle that includes mining, uranium enrichment (including domestic HALEU production), fuel fabrication, and, above all, recycling spent nuclear fuel using proliferation-resistant technologies. Nuclear fuel recycling can turn a decades-old waste problem into a domestic fuel supply and reduce U.S. dependence on Russia and other foreign suppliers for reactor fuel. Modern recycling techniques can also produce the advanced nuclear fuels needed for next-generation reactors, including fast reactors that can run on recycled material. By advancing multiple nuclear power projects with private capital, federal site support, and bipartisan licensing reforms, the administration can create facts on the ground—reactors and fuel facilities under construction or operating—that Democrats would struggle to cancel without raising electricity prices and blackout risks. This strategy can make energy security durable across election cycles while meeting rising demand from AI and industry.
4. Use every executive tool and bipartisan deal, where possible, to lock in faster energy permitting that will be hard to reverse.
Whatever passes in the lame-duck session, a Democratic Congress in 2027 will block any further large permitting statute. The administration should therefore maximize what it can still accomplish without new legislation. This includes aggressive use of existing authorities to set hard internal deadlines, expand categorical exclusions, limit the scope of environmental reviews, and defend those decisions in court. It also means advancing specific high-value projects (pipelines, LNG terminals, nuclear restarts, and transmission) that can be permitted and under construction before 2027 ends. Once ground is broken or facilities are operating, future Democratic majorities face higher political and legal costs if they try to stop them.
On the narrow issues where Democratic priorities overlap—such as transmission lines needed for reliability or data center power—the White House may still be able to strike some limited bipartisan deals that create statutory or regulatory precedents difficult to unwind. The core strategy is not to wait for a perfect law; it is to build a pipeline of permitted and operating projects so energy abundance becomes the status quo. Democrats opposing such projects will hand the administration a clear “they are raising your energy costs” message heading into 2028.
4. Refill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and expand pipeline and refining capacity as insurance against future energy price shocks.
The Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) fell below 282 million barrels, its lowest level since 1982. It should be refilled as prices fall so purchases do not push them back up. Much of this year’s SPR release was structured as exchanges that require the return of barrels, but a full refill will cost about $20 billion, and Congress has set aside only $171 million. The new Democratic majority should be made to choose whether to fund it. This will cushion against any Middle East and other energy supply disruptions while supporting higher production. The administration should frame this as pragmatic energy security that will benefit consumers long into the future. The administration should also expand LNG exports strategically so American gas strengthens allies and funds further domestic investment while protecting domestic supply.
These steps can turn the post-midterm landscape into an advantage for President Trump and congressional Republicans. Ending the Iran war can deliver immediate price relief and seize the cost-of-living argument from Democrats. Pairing this with production, nuclear, permitting, and infrastructure measures can create an energy abundance framework that will be hard for Democrats, obsessed with radical environmentalist agendas, to reverse.
With steps like these, President Trump can use the next two years to lock in lower energy costs and energy security that prioritizes American households over an endless war and make energy gains durable and hopefully irreversible.
From amgreatness.com