Trump just called out two of America's biggest oil companies for making "too much money" — and he wants your gas bill to prove it.
Here's the full picture.
Chevron's profits jumped nearly 400% to $12 billion.
Exxon's more than doubled to $14.5 billion.
Same quarter, one year apart.
And the reason isn't some genius business strategy.
It's a war.
After the U.S. and Israel struck Iran, Tehran hit back the only way that really hurts the world economy — it went after oil.
Tankers. Exports. The Strait of Hormuz.
The result: the largest supply disruption in history.
U.S. crude jumped about 20% since the conflict began.
Oil futures averaged around $92 a barrel from April to June — 27% higher than the quarter before.
Meanwhile, the companies selling that gas were posting record numbers.
Not a great look.
Standing in the White House on Monday, Trump didn't dress it up.
"They're making too much money based on a shortage. I don't like it."
Then, naming names.
"Chevron, too much money. ExxonMobil, too much money. They're going to give some of that back to the public — and they better cut the retail price, the consumer price."
No policy proposal. No windfall tax announced.
Just a president publicly pressuring two energy giants to lower prices — on the spot.
Oil companies don't set prices in a vacuum.
When crude gets more expensive because of a war-driven shortage, refiners and producers can pass on higher costs — and profit margins can swell even more if retail prices lag behind wholesale spikes.
That's the tension Trump is poking at: is this normal market behavior in a crisis, or profiteering off a supply shock nobody at the pump asked for.
It's a debate that's flared up before — during the 2022 energy price spike after Russia invaded Ukraine, oil majors faced the same "windfall profits" accusation, and mostly weathered it without major U.S. legislation forcing their hand.
Right after Trump's comments, both stocks slipped.
Chevron down more than 2%.
Exxon down about 1%.
But context matters here — crude prices had already fallen roughly 5% that same day on hopes that U.S.-Iran talks could de-escalate things.
So it's hard to say how much of the drop was Trump, and how much was traders simply betting the crisis might be cooling.
Two oil giants just posted some of their best quarters in years.
Millions of drivers just paid some of the highest prices in years.
And the president just said the quiet part out loud — that this math doesn't sit right with him.
Whether Exxon and Chevron actually cut prices, or whether this stays a war of words, is the part still playing out.
That's all for now!
