Vance says gas prices are too high, blames Iran and Biden-era refineries

Gas prices: The first question came from Keshon Wheatley, a Detroit barber who said he voted for Donald Trump in 2020 and 2024 because of low gas prices in Trump's first term, now pays $4.33 a gallon, and plans to vote for El-Sayed. "I recognize that gas prices are too high right now," Vance said. He blamed Iran's attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and said, "When this conflict is over, we are going to see gas prices come down." He also said, "That's actually the biggest reason why gas prices are so high, because when Joe Biden was president, we had about 20% of American refining capacity that went offline," and pointed to the administration's use of the Defense Production Act to add refining capacity. Fox News reported he said prices would be "three times as high" without the U.S. Navy protecting shipping. Dokoupil pushed back that Trump and Vance have been in office for nearly two years.

What the evidence shows: Federal data do not support the 20% figure. Operable U.S. refining capacity was 18.13 million barrels per calendar day at the start of 2021, when Biden took office, and 18.42 million at the start of 2025, as he left, a small increase, according to the Energy Information Administration. The larger drop came earlier: capacity peaked at 18.98 million in 2019, before pandemic-era closures, Reuters reported. On Jan. 1, 2026, it stood at 18.16 million, about 4% below that peak.

Iran: Asked why the U.S. has not won the war decisively, Vance said "in some ways we have won decisively" but "the enemy gets a vote here." He told Dokoupil the U.S. has destroyed Iran's nuclear program and is seeking a "final firm commitment" that Iran won't rebuild it, according to CBS and Fox. Joey Amor, whose wife, Army Reserve Master Sgt. Nicole Amor, was killed in an Iranian strike in Kuwait in the war's first hours, asked how leaders would be held accountable for "fundamental failures." Vance said he would take "every single failure extremely seriously" and that troop placements identified as "a huge mistake" have changed. CBS reports 21 U.S. service members have been killed since the war began in late February.

Immigration and H-1B visas: A naturalized citizen who voted for Vance challenged his description of some H-1B visa workers as "foreign indentured servants," a phrase India's foreign ministry had called "deeply offensive." "To the extent that my rhetoric has been imperfect here, that's on me," Vance said, adding that his criticism targets companies that "literally lay off an American worker" and hold a visa holder's status over them. He said his goal is "not to dehumanize any immigrant" but that fast immigration can strain a country's "social cohesion." To a Catholic nun who asked about ICE tactics, he said most agents are "patriots" but some "really screw up" and are investigated.

Corruption, data centers and 2028: Asked about allegations that Kimberly Guilfoyle, ousted as ambassador to Greece, sought $100,000 from a person seeking help from the administration, and about the president's crypto earnings, Vance said, "D.C. is a corrupt town," but he has not seen "a single shred of evidence" that Trump takes part, that selling access would be "disgusting and despicable," and that he would comply with subpoenas from a Democratic Congress. Guilfoyle has denied wrongdoing. He said data centers should be "good community citizens" and should not raise residential power bills. Asked about 2028, he said there is "of course" a chance he won't run.

How outlets framed it: CBS News led with Vance arguing the administration's economic and Iran strategies "will pay dividends in the future." Fox News headlined his claim that the U.S. destroyed Iran's nuclear program and led its takeaways with his blame on the Biden administration for gas prices. India's PTI, via The Tribune, led with his admission that his H-1B rhetoric was "imperfect."

What's still unknown: When the conflict with Iran will end, and how quickly pump prices would fall after it does. How much refining capacity the Defense Production Act effort will add, and when. Whether Vance will run in 2028.

The town hall, "Things That Matter: A Town Hall With Vice President JD Vance," was pre-recorded in Flat Rock, Michigan, and aired Oct. 17 on CBS, hosted by "CBS Evening News" anchor Tony Dokoupil. Quotes come from the CBS News and Fox News write-ups. Refining figures are operable atmospheric crude distillation capacity in barrels per calendar day, as of Jan. 1 each year, from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Vance did not say how he arrived at his 20% figure.