U.S. President Donald Trump is set to visit Texas ahead of the midterm congressional elections, as the Republican Party faces mounting political pressure over the war with Iran and rising oil and gasoline prices.
The Associated Press reports that Trump will travel to Texas on Tuesday to campaign for Ken Paxton, the Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate. Paxton is locked in a close race against James Talarico, the Democratic Party’s candidate.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is also expected to accompany Trump on the trip. According to the report, they will visit a shipment of Venezuelan crude oil that has recently arrived in Texas. The oil is expected to be refined at refineries across the state.
According to the Associated Press, the war with Iran has become a major political challenge for the Trump administration. Trump had previously pledged not to involve the United States in foreign wars. However, the continued fighting and rising oil and gasoline prices have placed an increasing economic burden on American households. Trump has at times described the war as a “short-term diversion.”
Meanwhile, several Republican strategists have privately acknowledged that the consequences of the war have complicated the party’s efforts to retain its majorities in both chambers of Congress.
The report notes that nearly eight months have passed since the war began, despite Trump’s initial assurances that the conflict would last only a few weeks.
Writer:Roya Stanikzai
