NJ gas is $4.52 — and Trump says your finances aren’t on his mind

NJ gas is $4.52 — and the president just told you he doesn't think about that.

I want to give you the full quote. Not a paraphrase. The actual words.

A reporter asked President Trump on Monday, before he left for China: "To what extent are Americans' financial situations motivating you to make a deal with Iran?"

Trump replied: "Not even a little bit. The only thing that matters when I'm talking about Iran, they can't have a nuclear weapon. I don't think about Americans' financial situation. I don't think about anybody."

Not even a little bit.

I have been around NJ101.5 for a long time. I have heard a lot of things come out of Washington. That one stopped me.

SEE ALSO: It costs $15,000 a year to drive in NJ 

Here Is What $4.52 a Gallon Actually Means in New Jersey

New Jersey is now paying an average of $4.52 per gallon for regular gasoline — up from $2.98 a year ago and $4.03 just a month prior. The reason is the war in Iran. Iran blocked shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20 percent of the world's oil passes. Until that changes, prices stay where they are.

I did the math on what driving in New Jersey actually costs last week. The number came out to $15,000 a year for the average driver — car payment, insurance, tolls, gas, maintenance, registration. All of it. I was genuinely shocked when I added it up. Gas at $4.52 a gallon is not the whole story. But it is the part that hits you every few days when you pull up to a pump and watch the numbers spin.

New Jersey's state gas tax sits at 49.1 cents per gallon. Pennsylvania's is higher. I want to be clear about that because I have said it before and I will say it again — Trenton does not deserve all the blame on this one. The gas tax funds roads and bridges and those roads and bridges need funding. That is a real argument.

The real argument that is not real? "Not even a little bit."

What Relief Is on the Table

Trump has backed a federal gas tax suspension of 18.4 cents per gallon. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Missouri) introduced legislation to suspend both gasoline and diesel federal taxes for 90 days. Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ 2nd District) filed a separate House bill proposing an 18-month suspension.

Suspending just the federal tax would drop New Jersey's average to roughly $4.34 a gallon — a savings of about four percent. A driver doing my commute — 57 miles each way — saves maybe $150 over 90 days. That is real money. It is not a solution. But it is something.

Gov. Mikie Sherrill said she is keeping the state gas tax in place, calling it "how we invest in infrastructure going forward." As I said — that argument has merit. Pennsylvania's gas tax is higher than ours. Infrastructure costs money. I am not going to pretend otherwise.

But I would ask the Governor — and every elected official in Trenton — to watch that clip of the president on the White House lawn. The one where a reporter asks how much your financial situation matters to him and he says not even a little bit without blinking.

Because that is the conversation New Jersey needs to have right now. Not just about the gas tax. About who is actually thinking about you when they make decisions that affect what you pay to fill your tank, heat your home, buy your groceries, and keep the lights on.

SEE ALSO: Gas is $4.54 — I read your 928 comments and here's the truth 

"Not Even a Little Bit"

About two-thirds of Americans disapprove of how Trump is handling the economy. About three-quarters disapprove of how he is handling the cost of living. Those are not Democratic numbers. Those are American numbers.

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro said it plainly after the quote came out: "Gas is over $4.60 a gallon in Pennsylvania today. Donald Trump's chaos continues to jack up costs and make life harder for everyone — and he literally doesn't give a damn."

I am not going to tell you who to be angry at. You are adults and you can decide that for yourselves. What I will tell you is this — when a president is asked directly whether your financial situation motivates him and he says not even a little bit, that is not a gaffe. That is an answer.

The phones on this show light up every time gas moves a penny. They have for years. You have been trying to tell Trenton and Washington what it costs to live here for as long as I have been on the air.

Now you know what at least one of them thinks about that.

Not even a little bit.