The Trump administration is desperate to find a solution to the worldwide oil shortage, partially caused by the Iranians shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz in response to Israeli and U.S. attacks on their country. The president has been desperate to reopen the Strait, through which 20% of the world’s oil supply passes.

And the effects on the U.S. economy are staggering. The price of gas at the pump is up $1 per gallon since the start of the conflict. Also, this past week, the Federal Reserve failed to lower interest rates due to concerns about higher inflation.

And the Dow Jones Industrial Average has dropped 2,819 points since the U.S. and Israel started their assault on Iran. His latest attempt to relieve the shortage failed immediately when he asked European leaders to step in and use their armed forces to open up the passage. The European leaders’ response to Trump’s request was a collective and emphatic “hell no, we didn’t start this conflict.”

Trump Vapid War End Game

As the current administration has stumbled trying to explain what the United States mission is in Iran, its contradictory answers have only left people more confused. The initial message from the Trump White House was that the goal was regime change. Then the stated goal was the destruction of Iran’s nuclear arsenal. Next, the mission changed to halting Iran’s worldwide exportation of terrorism.

However, the Trump administration quickly discarded that rationale and instead explained the mission as an effort to eliminate Iran’s ability to launch weapons of any kind at its neighbors or the US and its allies. Unfortunately, Iran’s attack Friday night on a joint U.K.-U.S. military base on the Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia, 2,500 miles from Iran, has demonstrated how unrealistic that goal is.

Puzzling Solutions to Oil Shortage

But Trump’s latest attempts to ease oil prices have even global experts shaking their heads in disbelief. In an attempt to put the brakes on the crisis, the president has lifted the embargo on Russian oil, allowing it to be exported freely once again. This is the same country that has assisted Iran in targeting attacks throughout the Middle East and continues to rain bombs on Ukraine on a daily basis. And also, the country that exports 50% of its oil to China. More on China in a little bit.

Shortly after this decision, the Trump administration opted to release some of the Iranian oil tankers that had been stalled since the start of hostilities, again with the express purpose of easing global oil flows. That’s despite the fact that 90% of Iranian oil is exported to China. China is the same country that has supplied Russia with advanced weaponry to attack Ukraine. And who also, on a daily basis, threatens one of our strongest Asian allies, Taiwan.

Reaction to the release of the Iranian oil tankers was incredulous disbelief. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), who sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee, called the move “Sickeningly, shamefully stupid” and accused the administration of helping Tehran with “fueling their war machines with windfall cash.”

And the Atlantic Council’s director of its Iraq Initiative, Victoria Taylor, has this to say about the situation. “Across multiple Republican and Democratic administrations, our policy has been to find additional ways to prevent the sale of Iranian oil. “This is unfathomable to me to be simultaneously at war with Iran and waiving sanctions on Iran.”

The President’s Confusing Message

But like always, Trump’s message on the Iranian situation is all over the map. Just yesterday, as the world’s financial markets continued to tumble, he said. “We are getting very close to meeting our objectives as we consider winding down our great Military efforts in the Middle East. The Hormuz Strait will have to be guarded and policed, as necessary, by other Nations who use it — The United States does not!”

All of this, despite the fact that the upheaval caused by the closure of the Hormuz Strait greatly affects the United States. Oil is part of the global market, and when there is a shortage anywhere in the world, it leads to bidding wars for oil sold to companies everywhere, including the U.S.

However, as Mr. Trump was making those comments, his administration announced that it was sending three additional warships to the Middle East, carrying about 2,500 Marines. And just today, President Trump threatened to “obliterate” Iran’s power plants, beginning with its largest one, if the Strait of Hormuz is not back open within 48 hours. And the pretzel logic continues.