President Donald Trump delivered his first nationally televised address on the Iran conflict, and instead of offering an off-ramp, he escalated.
He threatened to hit Iranian power plants and water desalination facilities “extremely hard” within two to three weeks, reiterated his April 6 deadline for the Strait of Hormuz to reopen, and went further.
“Iran’s ‘New Regime President’ is asking the United States for a Ceasefire… Until then, we are blasting Iran into oblivion or, as they say, back to the Stone Ages!!!,” Trump wrote on social media Wednesday.
WTI crude – as tracked by the United States Oil Fund (NYSE:USO) – surged 9% to $110 a barrel Thursday morning, and the stocks most exposed to jet fuel, diesel, and consumer spending are leading the selloff.
What Did Trump Actually Say — And Why Did Oil React?
Oil fell earlier this week precisely because traders expected Trump’s prime-time address to be an off-ramp.
The speech contained no plan for reopening the Strait.
Instead, the president outlined a 2–3 week intensification of the air campaign, threatened to destroy Iran’s electricity generating plants and water desalination facilities if no deal emerges.
Dennis DeBusschere, portfolio strategist at 22V Research, said the implications of Trump’s Hormuz handoff were stark. “Just pulling out of the gulf hands over some control of U.S. oil and gasoline prices to other countries, not least Iran,” DeBusschere said.
According to DeBusschere, that move amounts to ceding pricing power to actors with interests that directly diverge from Washington’s — and he described the rationale for such a …
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