Needs to ‘end quickly’

Mike Rogers says Iran war needs to ‘end quickly’ amid rising prices

The GOP Senate candidate was the second Republican to break with the White House on the issue Monday.

Elleiana Green

Michigan Republican Senate nominee Mike Rogers said Monday that the war with Iran “needs to end” to bring prices down, making him the second Republican to break with the White House on the issue that day.

“The war with Iran needs to end, and end quickly,” Rogers said in a video published Monday to social media.

“Michigan families can’t afford to wait,” he added. “Here’s what we can do now: place a temporary embargo on Diesel exports. American energy should provide relief to American families first.”

The Michigan Democratic Party forcefully dismissed Rogers’ statement on the war, which the former chair of the House Intelligence Committee supported early on.

“Every time a Michigander fills up their gas tank, they’re paying the price for the Rogers-Trump war in Iran,” Joey Hannum, a spokesperson, said. “Price Hike Mike promised he would give Trump the authority to keep his cost-raising war going, and Michiganders won’t forget it.”

Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee who will face Rogers in November, put it more bluntly: “Mike Rogers is lying straight to our faces.”

Rogers did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Earlier Monday, Rep. Ashley Hinson, a Republican Senate candidate in Iowa, expressed frustrations similar to Rogers’ about the war’s impact on Iowans’ pocketbooks. Both Rogers and Hinson called for a suspension of the state and federal gas tax in their statements.

Ahead of the midterms, GOP candidates have expressed concern about the war in the Middle East, saying it has made it difficult for them to run on affordability. The war with Iran, which began in February, has led to marked increases in gas and diesel prices. On Monday, regular gas was just over $4.45 per gallon, according to AAA; diesel prices hit a record of $6.50 per gallon.