LOS ANGELES () — Drivers are paying more at the pump amid the war in Iran. In Los Angeles County, gas has hit $6 a gallon on average, according to AAA.
AAA also says the average price of gas in California is up nearly a dollar from last year.
In San Pedro, nursing student Samantha Hernandez is paying more than $6 a gallon.
“I’m trying to stay positive about it, but it does hurt my pocket,” she said.
Hernandez is cutting corners. She’s stopped filling up her tank, she carpools and eliminated road trips.
“I have groceries. I have nephews and nieces who I’m going to get stuff for Easter, and Easter is just like Christmas,” she said.
Auto shops are strained, too. Jorge Chavez runs Llama Auto Repair where he said a quart of motor oil has gone up $6 – prices he’s had to pass down to his customers.
“I have low-income customers, retired people, they are people who are not working anymore,” Chavez said. “I believe the (Trump administration) needs to do something.”
The rising costs come just as President Donald Trump marks the anniversary of his sweeping tariffs across the global market. His administration called it Liberation Day.
On Friday, Southern California Reps. Nanette Barragan and Norma Torres held a press conference outside a gas station in San Pedro where they criticized the administration.
“I have heard no proposals to put more money in the pockets of Americans,” Barragan said.
Torres said Trump hasn’t “done anything to alleviate the hurt for workers or for our community.”
The White House released a statement saying the U.S. economy is more resilient and competitive than a year ago.
“The results since Liberation Day have been astonishing: over 20 new trade deals, trillions in manufacturing investments, lower drug prices, and lower goods trade deficits,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said in the statement.
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