I Think Donald Trump Is Giving Actual Communism A Try With Government Run 'Freedom Fuel' Gas Stations

There really is nothing President Donald Trump loves more than a gimmick or duping his supporters, which is why his backing of a network of gas stations with "lower" prices makes all the sense in the world. The Freedom Fuel Network, as the White House calls it, has invaded the greater Philadelphia area, and it has four things going for it: the backing of President Trump, slightly lower prices, patriotic signage and — most importantly — communistic principles.

In a post on X, the everything app, the White House wrote that Trump is "leading the charge to lower gas prices this summer – putting more money in your pocket." Of course, to do that, Freedom Fuel stations have slightly lower prices than the national average. There, a gallon of regular runs $3.47 (get it, because he's the 47th President?). Credit is the same price. Mid-grade and premium pricing, at least according to the White House video, don't share in the same Trump-brand theming. A quick shot of a pump shows 89-octane listed at $4.42, 91-octane at $4.65 and 93-octane at $4.66. No real discount there. In any case, this comes out to be about 33 cents less than the national average, according to AAA, so there are some savings to be had.

The thing is, those savings are only possible because of our friend communism. At least, I think that's the case. It's not as if whoever is supplying gas to the 25 Freedom Fuel stations in the greater Philadelphia area (no idea why they're all in and around Philly) somehow found cheaper oil prices.

A White House spokesperson told The Philadelphia Inquirer that the Freedom Fuel Network is actually a private company and not a government program. They noted that the company wasn't purchasing gas at a discount and the administration wasn't actually providing funding. The spokesperson said the business is simply making gas more affordable. I, uh, don't believe them, because the numbers just aren't there, as the Inquirer explains:

Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, crunched the numbers and said there was no profitable way for Freedom Fuel stations to sell gas so cheaply.

"Stations selling at this price, it's not sustainable," De Haan said. "Generally, when losses happen, somebody's got to pay for it."

In a Truth Social post, Trump said a "very smart retailer" was "stepping up" to offer discounts at the pump, but surely they wouldn't offer discounts to the point they'd go out of business, right? And wouldn't this "very smart retailer" just make gas cheaper at their own branded gas station? What's the point of being the anonymous gas hero? Well, my gut is probably correct, because a report from FOX56 WOLF in Scranton, Pennsylvania, says Freedom Fuel isn't a single chain of company-owned gas stations. Rather, it's "a network of independently owned stations that have adopted the Freedom Fuel name while continuing to operate under local ownership."

Not much information can be gleaned from the Freedom Fuel website, either, and the only things on it seem to be a list of locations — 20 in Pennsylvania and five in New Jersey — and a "Contact Us" form. There are also a few AI-generated images, but that's sort of par for the course.

Call it a hunch, but I've got a sneaking suspicion the Trump administration has cut some sort of subsidy deal with whoever is behind Freedom Fuel. They've set them up with the materials they need to rebrand with AI-made eagle logos and whatever other crap is necessary, and they're then subsidizing the cost of fuel to get it down to $3.47. If anything, it's Socialist-style price control, but I think it goes even deeper. 

If I may really put my tinfoil hat on for a moment, there is a world — a very unlikely one —where the government has wholly taken ownership of these 25 stations and is now just running them, which would be straight-up communism and incredibly based.

No matter how you slice it, gas prices — even at Freedom Fuel — are a far cry from where they once were. As we've reported many times before, the day the U.S. and Israel's war with Iran broke out, the average price of a gallon of gas was $2.98. Since then, it ballooned to $4.56. While it has dropped quite a bit from those levels, uncertainty in the region spurred by a disintegrating peace deal between the U.S. and Iran could send fuel prices skyward once again.

Perhaps the Freedom Fuel network will expand to the New York City area and I'll be able to sample some of the most delicious, most patriotic fuel in the nation. Otherwise, I might have to take a drive down the New Jersey Turnpike to check it out for myself.