Washington — As inflation rose to its highest rate in years and CBS News polling shows high prices at the pump are causing financial strain for many Americans, President Trump told reporters Tuesday, “I don’t think about Americans’ financial situation” as a motivation for negotiations with Iran, and said he is only concerned with preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

When asked by a reporter how much Americans’ finances are “motivating you to make a deal,” Mr. Trump responded: “Not even a little bit.”

“The only thing that matters when I’m talking about Iran, they can’t have a nuclear weapon,” Mr. Trump said before leaving on a trip to Beijing for a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. “I don’t think about Americans’ financial situation, I don’t think about anybody. I think about one thing — we cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon, that’s all.”

“The most important thing by far, including whether our stock market, which by the way is at an all-time high, but including whether our stock market goes up or down a little bit, the most important thing by far is Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon,” the president responded when another reporter followed up to clarify his remarks.

“Every American understands,” he added.

As the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed and with no clear resolution in the Middle East in sight, the president’s support on the economy has slumped. Last month, 51% of Americans in a CBS News/YouGov poll said higher gas prices pose a financial hardship or difficulty. Inflation for the month of April rose to an annual rate of 3.8%, the highest inflation 2023. 

The president has said since the beginning of the war that the outcomes for Americans would be worse if Iran had a nuclear weapon. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has also argued that if Iran attained nuclear weapons, it could manipulate markets and drive oil prices up. 

“Everybody needs to think about it this way,” Rubio said in a briefing at the White House earlier this month. “If Iran had a nuclear weapon and they decided to close the straits and make our gas prices like $9 a gallon or $8 a gallon, we wouldn’t be able to do anything about it, because they have a nuclear weapon. A nuclear-armed Iran could do whatever the hell they want with the straits and there’s nothing anyone would be able to do about it.” 

The national average price for gas on Tuesday was $4.50, according to AAA. 

Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis for Gas Buddy, wrote on X Tuesday, “If the Strait doesn’t re-open soon, I believe we could see the national average price of gasoline reaching $5/gal as early as sometime in June.”