US Independent Senator Bernie Sanders has censured oil companies for profiting off the illegitimate US-Israel war of aggression against Iran while working-class families struggle to fill up their tanks.

He made the remarks in an X post on Saturday after the two largest American oil companies, ExxonMobil and Chevron, along with London-headquartered Shell, banked huge third-quarter profits amid a global energy crisis caused by the unprovoked military assault launched by the administration of US President Donald Trump against Iran.

“While gas prices are up 39% since Trump started his illegal Iran War, Exxon’s profits are up 130%, Chevron’s are up 185% and Shell’s profits nearly doubled,” he said. “Working families struggle while Big Oil rips them off.”

Sanders also denounced as “beyond unacceptable” Trump’s recent admission that he does not care about Americans who criticize him for driving up gas prices while the war is making the United States rich.

ExxonMobil, Chevron, and Shell reported a profit of $17.5, $10.4, and $10.81 billion in the most recent quarter, a jump of 130, 185, and almost 100 percent over the same period last year, respectively.

At a rally in Georgia on October 24, Trump said his aides had urged him not to brag about the billions of dollars the US was earning on oil from the war, since Americans are “paying a little higher” in costs because of it.

“I said, I don’t give a damn,” he added. “We are making a freaking fortune.”

The comments sparked a wave of condemnations ahead of the 2026 US midterm elections, with voters frustrated to see oil companies reaping near-record profits as they strain to pay for a tank of gas.

Sanders lashed out at Trump at that time, saying, “Trump just said the quiet part out loud: He doesn’t ‘give a damn’ about higher gas prices, as long as his billionaire friends are making a fortune.”

Fuel price hikes from war on Iran squeeze US households ahead of midterms

Gasoline prices in the US are up $1 per gallon compared with levels before the aggression was launched in February.

The US and the Israeli regime waged their first criminal war against Iran, which lasted 12 days, in June 2025. Their second aggression began on February 28 and came to a halt in early April after 40 days.

In both wars, Iran’s resistance and successful retaliatory operations forced the aggressors to accept a ceasefire.

Iran has also maintained a tight grip on the Strait of Hormuz since the early days of the second imposed war in response to Washington’s acts of mischief in the region, sending energy prices soaring worldwide.