LAS VEGAS – US President Donald Trump on April 16 dismissed high fuel costs amid his war with Iran, claiming that the economic damage inflicted by the war was much less severe than expected.
Speaking in a hotel ballroom off the Las Vegas Strip at an event aimed at promoting a tax credit for tipped workers, Mr Trump said that “we’re having some fake inflation because of the fuel, the energy prices, which everybody said was going to US$250 (S$318).” He appeared to refer to the swings in the price of a barrel of oil, which has increased substantially in the war and dipped below US$95 on April 16.
Mr Trump’s appearance to extol the tax credit followed a broader messaging strategy as the war nears the two-month mark: project confidence about the economy – and a rebounding stock market – while brushing aside the financial consequences of the conflict.
The president otherwise made little mention of gas prices, which were above US$5 a gallon at many Las Vegas gas stations, or the increasing cost of airline tickets, which has been driven by rising fuel costs.
Turning to the tax credits in his signature policy bill that he signed into law in 2025, Mr Trump asserted that “thousands of Nevada waiters, waitresses, casino dealers, bartenders, bellmen, barbers, caddies” had “received the biggest tax refunds of their entire lives”.
“I just want to say: You’re welcome.”
Mr Trump appeared at the event alongside Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and a group of workers who said they had benefited from his policies.
“For the remainder of 2026, you’re going to see a big surge,” Mr Trump said. “The numbers are really tremendous, and that’s why I’m out here. If they were bad, I wouldn’t be here today. I’d be sitting home watching television.”
Mr Trump’s remarks came amid a tourism downturn in Las Vegas, which recorded an 11 per cent decline in visitors in 2025. The US leader’s immigration raids have rattled service workers, and his tariffs and foreign policy threats have angered international tourists – in particular, Canadians, the largest group of international visitors to the city.
The casino industry has continued to raise prices for guests, and restaurants on and off the Strip have charged more for food and drinks.
“The Trump slump is real,” said Mr Ted Pappageorge, the treasurer secretary of Culinary Workers Union Local 226, which represents 60,000 workers in Las Vegas and Reno. He added that union members were “quite nervous and concerned about if there’s a continued reduction in visitation”.
The culinary union, which endorsed Ms Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election, and other labour groups have called on the Trump administration and lawmakers to expand the policies exempting taxes of tips. They have asked for service charges to qualify for the tax credit, and to raise the cap for married couples filing taxes jointly.
Governor Joe Lombardo of Nevada, a Republican, is in a competitive re-election race in 2026 against Democratic challengers, who have made pocketbook issues central to their campaigns. Lieutenant Governor Stavros Anthony spoke at Mr Trump’s economic event on April 16, but Mr Lombardo did not.
Other incumbent officials in the state may face similar challenges in their re-election campaigns.
“It’s true that people are frustrated about affordability,” Dr Aury Nagy, a Republican running against Representative Susie Lee, a Democrat, for a seat that includes southern Las Vegas, said in an interview before the event. He added that “prices are higher, electric, gas prices particularly” but pointed to Mr Trump’s tapping of the strategic oil reserve, and the ceasefire in the Middle East, as signs that relief was coming.
The changing makeup of Las Vegas tourism in recent years has affected the service workers who rely on their generosity to make ends meet. Affluent gamblers continue to fly in to the city in private jets, while middle and lower class customers stay home.
Mr Pappageorge, the culinary union leader, said that if the city primarily serves the wealthy, it could lead to large layoffs in the service industry.
“We’ve catered to the luxury and the middle and then the working class,” he said. “That’s the beauty of Vegas.” NYTIMES
