The New SSS Blog

Who Benefits from the War?

Posted Saturday May 16, 2026

Edited Sunday, May 17, 2026

This graphic appeared in today's New York Times, as part of an article about who benefits from the Strait of Hormuz closure and who doesn't.

That big line next to "United States" – around 50 billion dollars – represents money going to oil companies as a result of higher oil prices. The same oil companies that threw money at Trump during his two election runs. Since the 50 billion dollars is revenue from exports of oil now sold at a higher price, it is not directly paid by U.S. consumers. But the additional cost to U.S. consumers due to the rise in fuel prices caused by the Iran war is huge. By the end of May 2026, the cost is estimated to be between 50 billion dollars and 75 billion dollars, depending on fluctuations in the market price of oil.

Add to this the approximately 50 billion dollars spent by the U.S. Government on the war, paid by all taxpayers, and we're talking real money: Over 400 dollars for each American, assuming the Strait of Hormuz opens by May 31 and the market price of oil decreases to pre-war levels. A financial disaster for folks already struggling to stay ahead.

But we're told by the MAGA talking heads that taking military action against Iran was absolutely necessary, that Iran can't have a nuclear weapon, that Trump's doing what past Presidents failed to do.

There are two problems with this. First, if keeping Iran from getting a nuclear weapon was so incredibly critical, why didn't Trump ever mention it during his 2024 campaign for President? Not one single time. To the contrary, he and his surrogates falsely told voters that if Kamala Harris was elected, she would start a war with Iran, something too horrible to think about. Here's Trump on November 5, 2024:

We are building the biggest and broadest coalition in American political history. This includes record-breaking numbers of Arab and Muslim Voters in Michigan who want PEACE,” Trump writes on X.

They know Kamala and her warmonger Cabinet will invade the Middle East, get millions of Muslims killed and start World War III,” he adds, pledging to “BRING BACK PEACE!

He didn't say "Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. I will go to war with Iran to stop them from getting one." Because if he had, he would have lost the election. The vast majority of Americans didn't – and don't – support it.

The second problem is more subtile. Trump has hammered our European allies for not paying more for their own military defense. Yet when Israel was already prepared to take out Iran's nuclear facilities (using weapons obtained by U.S. military aid payments), Trump decided to pile on and send in U.S. forces too. Why? Israel's air superiority over Iran was never in doubt. There was nothing the U.S. could do that Israel couldn't. But Trump wanted to be a big swinging dick, and now the U.S. has spent well over twenty-five billion dollars of your tax dollars and caused gas prices to rise. For a result that would have been achieved by Israeli military action without any U.S. involvement.

The other country to benefit? Russia, which has made an additional 15 billion dollars in oil revenue as a result of the Iran war.

So you and I pay more – as gas-buyers and taxpayers – and U.S. and Russian oil companies rake in billions in excess revenues.

Your guy sure is smart, MAGA.