Big Oil CEOs Meet at White House While Drivers Still Pay Over $4 a Gallon

Oil executives are expected at the White House for a sit-down with Donald Trump, according to reports out of Washington today. The timing is awkward for anyone who has filled up a tank lately, since the national average for gasoline is still north of $4 a gallon.

The backdrop is hard to miss: major oil companies just posted a combined $85.2 billion in second-quarter profits. A large share of that haul traces back to the spike in crude prices that followed the war in Ukraine, a windfall that arrived while consumers absorbed higher costs at the pump.

For EV drivers, the contrast is the story. The same price swings that pad oil balance sheets are the volatility that electric powertrains sidestep entirely — charging costs are tied to the grid and home electricity rates, not to overseas conflicts or OPEC decisions. That argument tends to get louder whenever gasoline averages linger in the $4 range.

What exactly comes out of the meeting remains to be seen. But the optics of an industry riding record profits while pump prices stay elevated will likely keep the electrification conversation front and center.