War Shapes Gas Price Perceptions

Voters' judgments about inflationary items like gasoline are sometimes driven more by their stance on current conflicts than by local price changes: the poll finds Americans' assessments of gas prices correlate with views on the Iran war rather than measured state price swings. That suggests national security framing can distort pocketbook perceptions. — If consumer price perceptions are politically endogenous to foreign‑policy framing, that changes how politicians and journalists should read and respond to inflation complaints during conflicts.