President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he was thinking about suspending the federal gas tax as high gas and diesel prices pose a risk to his Republican Party heading into the November midterm US elections.
DETAILS AND QUOTES:
* “We’re thinking about that,” Trump said when asked if the federal gas tax should be suspended, without providing more details.
* Trump has also previously expressed support for suspending the US gas tax in recent months.
* Trump’s comments came a day after he signed an executive order to expand access to tax-exempt diesel that he unveiled from a rally stage in Nebraska.
* High gas and diesel prices are a risk to Trump ahead of the midterm elections in which control of Congress is at stake.
* Republicans currently hold a narrow majority in the Senate and House of Representatives.
* Waiving the 18.4-cent federal gasoline tax requires Congress to pass legislation.
* Fuel prices have risen in response to the US-Israeli war on Iran and the Russian invasion of Ukraine, with the conflicts having led to attacks on refineries in the Middle East and Russia.
* Trump’s approval rating has held at a record low 32% in recent days, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll completed on Monday, with Americans most concerned about the high cost of living, spurred by soaring gasoline and diesel prices.
(Reporting by Nandita Bose and Kanishka Singh in Washington; editing by Michelle Nichols)