1. United States
2. Va.
3. Letter

About 20 percent of world oil and gas production passes through the Strait of Hormuz, which is now essentially closed to shipping. This means higher prices at the pump. As of this morning, oil prices were approximately $15 to $16 a barrel higher than they were in mid-February, which will add roughly 40 cents to the price of a gallon of gasoline. If the war continues for a month or more, oil (and gas) prices could go much higher. Now, you may be thinking, or you may have heard, that America is energy independent. It is true that the United States does not import large volumes of crude oil from the Persian Gulf. But oil is not a local commodity. Oil is a global commodity priced on a global market by traders who do not care whether a particular barrel originated in West Texas or Saudi Arabia. When tankers start burning in the Gulf of Oman, the benchmark price of oil rises *everywhere.* Including Danville. Including Lynchburg. Including every American city where politicians once promised that shale production would insulate consumers from exactly this kind of disruption. Energy independence means the United States produces enough oil to meet its domestic needs. It does *not* mean the United States is insulated from global price shocks. The war is also causing food prices — which were also high before the war — to rise even faster. You already have constituents who can’t afford their grocery bills, and more now than when you took office because you voted to cut SNAP funding. The war will raise food prices because roughly a quarter to a third of the global trade in ammonia and nitrogen — the critical raw materials for making fertilizer — must also pass through the strait. Without fertilizer, crop yields fall. Fertilizer prices are already rising, as they did in early 2022 after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Likewise, anticipated lower crop yields are already raising the prices of household staples such as bread, pasta and potatoes to rise, and making animal feed more costly. This is an affordability crisis. Support the war powers act. But more than that, support policies that improve affordability. Things like funding snap, funding healthcare, funding childcare and school lunches, and reducing student debt.