U.S. Rep. Gary Palmer (R-Hoover) understands the current struggle of high energy prices caused by the war in Iran, but believes things would have been far worse if Kamala Harris won the presidency in 2024.

Gas prices have soared over 50% since the start of the Iran war on Feb. 28.

The congressman, who won the Republican primary election this week for Alabama’s 6th district, credited Trump for making America less dependent on foreign oil.

Palmer discussed the issue Wednesday on WVNN’s “The Yaffee Program.”

“First of all, the price increases we’re experiencing right now are short term, once this conflict ends and the Strait of Hormuz opens up and oil starts getting produced again, those prices are going to come down,” Palmer argued, “but had Kamala Harris won the election, I just want to remind people that under Biden, at the national average, gasoline got got up to between $5.30 and $5.60 a gallon, and there was no war to protect the world from a nuclear catastrophe.”

Palmer has been working with his colleagues on the House Energy and Commerce Committee to cut red tape in America’s energy sector, which he argues was the opposite approach of former President Joe Biden.

“It was a war against fossil fuel, trying to force everybody into electric vehicles,” he said. “I’ll point out one other thing. The first week he was in office, Biden killed the Keystone XL pipeline. That would have been finished by now, Michael. It would have been bringing 835,000 barrels of Canadian oil into the country every day, and that was the first week he was in office. He killed that project, so it would have been a disaster in terms of affordability and energy prices had Kamala Harris gotten elected.”

Yaffee is a contributing writer to Yellowhammer News and hosts “The Yaffee Program” weekdays 9-11 a.m. on WVNN. You can follow him on X @Yaffee