Thursday, May 07, 2026

​Bessent confronted by airline exec over damage Trump is inflicting on industry: WSJ

Tom Boggioni
May 7, 2026 
RAW STORY


U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks during a press briefing in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 15, 2026. REUTERS/Evan Vucci/File Photo

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who has been making the rounds reassuring the public that the economic hardships from Donald Trump's Iran war will eventually subside, received a sobering reality check from the airline industry — one of the sectors being hit hardest by skyrocketing fuel costs.

According to reporting from the Wall Street Journal, former New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, now president of Airlines for America, delivered a stark warning to the Trump administration that jet-fuel costs have become unsustainable.

According to the Journal's Brian Schwartz and Alison Sider, Sununu "delivered a warning to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent during a recent visit to Washington."

Sununu has spent weeks sounding the alarm to Trump administration officials about the economic fallout from elevated fuel prices, arguing that the war must end soon or conditions will deteriorate further. His message appears to be landing.

Privately, Trump's advisers are said to be growing concerned that Republicans will pay a significant political price for the rising fuel costs ahead of November's midterm elections. Many administration officials are now eager to end the conflict in hopes that prices will moderate before voters head to the polls, the Journal is reporting.

"They get it…and I think that's why they're trying to get through the war as fast as they can," Sununu told the Journal.

Since Trump's initial U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran in late February, Sununu has met in Washington with National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett, representatives from the Transportation Department, and senior White House officials. A White House official confirmed that Hassett and Sununu have discussed the impact of increased fuel prices on the airline industry and how the sector can blunt the cost for consumers.

However, Sununu cautioned that recovery will be slow. Even after the Strait of Hormuz is fully reopened, ticket prices won't drop immediately. "You're looking at elevated ticket prices through the summer and fall because it takes a while for the prices to go down," Sununu warned.

Internet stumped over Trump official's bizarre boast

Nicole Charky-Chami
May 6, 2026 
RAW STORY


Kevin Hassett, director of the National Economic Council, participates in the Semafor World Economy conference in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 2026. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz

The internet was stunned by White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett's comments on Wednesday as he bragged about how credit card spending on higher-priced gasoline was "through the roof."

Hassett made the remarks in an interview with Fox Business on Wednesday morning where he discussed the ongoing Iran war, the continued closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the American economy.

Media experts and political voices were shocked by the comments.

"Is this supposed to be a brag?" Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI) wrote on X.

"We must consider the possibility that Kevin Hassett is secretly working for the Democrats," Jon Favreau, co-founder of Crooked Media and co-host of Pod Save America, wrote on X.


"Trump’s chief economic advisor is bragging that people are surviving on credit cards right now," MeidasTouch editor-in-chief Ron Filipkowski wrote on X.


"?" New York Times White House correspondent Katie Rogers wrote on X.

"Make this guy the spokesperson for the entire Republican party," House Majority PAC, a Democratic Super PAC, wrote on X.

"Do they understand that this is not a good thing?" Nobel Prize nominee Andrew Gebo wrote on X.




'You just said a bunch of nothing!' Kevin O'Leary sparks uproar on CNN over war costs

O'LEARY IS A FAUX CANUCK
HE LIVES HERE JUST FOR THE UNIVERSAL HEALTHCARE 

Robert Davis
May 6, 2026 
RAW STORY




CNN screenshot


Canadian businessman and star of CNBC's "Shark Tank," Kevin O'Leary, sparked an uproar on CNN on Wednesday after he defended the costs of President Donald Trump's war in Iran.


O'Leary argued during a segment on CNN's "NewsNight" with host Abby Phillip that waging the war in Iran is worth the associated costs because it will allow American businesses to sell products in an emerging region, and that the Strait of Hormuz will be policed by another nation in the region. O'Leary added that the short-term rise in oil and fertilizer prices is just part of the deal for Americans.

"I guarantee you two things before this has worked out: the Strait will be open and probably policed by people around that region because it's in their best interest, and secondly, there are no friends in the world left for Iran," O'Leary said.

Bakari Sellers, a political analyst, sharply rebuked the "Shark Tank" star's comments.

"You just said a bunch of nothing!" Sellers said. "Explain to me, right now, somebody who lives in South Carolina, Nebraska, or Ohio, what is good right now for the American public going into a war where you do not understand that they're going to close the Strait of Hormuz. Explain to somebody watching right now where they're from."

"It's been 78 days ..." O'Leary began.

"So you don't have an answer?" Sellers shot back.


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