Trump’s Senate Pick Cornered on Plea for Gas Money

A MAGA Senate candidate is in damage control mode after she asked supporters for gas money during a campaign event.

Rep. Ashley Hinson, a former broadcast journalist and Trump’s handpicked candidate for the Iowa Senate race, made the desperate request during a stop on her “Fighting for Iowa” bus tour ahead of the Nov. 3 election.

“If they’re going to lie about me they’re going to lie about you,” Hinson told supporters last week. “I want you to channel into action in getting your friends out to vote, help give us a little gas money for our bus, make sure we’re showing up at the polls.”

Hinson, who has repeatedly voted against a war powers resolution aimed at ending the war in Iran, was questioned about her plea by an NBC News reporter who asked her if things have truly gotten so bad that she has to solicit donations for gas.

“No,” she said, sidestepping the issue of asking for gas money. “I’m out there campaigning through the state on my bus, meeting people where they are. What I’m hearing from Iowans is they want a leader, a common sense mom.”

Soaring gas prices have taken center stage in the Iowa Senate race.

According to an analysis from the Des Moines Register, Iowa in particular has been devastated by rising gas prices, as compared to other parts of the country. When the Iran war started, gas prices in Iowa were at $2.64, but now sit comfortably above $4 per gallon.

For diesel, which many buses run on, the price has surged to $6.17 per gallon.

Hinson’s Democratic opponent, Josh Turek, seized on her recent comments to accuse her of contributing to the cause of the high fuel prices by voting against a resolution to rein in the war.

“Now she’s begging for gas money while Iowans are struggling to fill up their tanks and Iowa farmers are struggling to afford the diesel to harvest their fields,”Turek wrote on social media.

According to Federal Election Commission data, since the beginning of 2025, Hinson has raised over $13 million in campaign contributions. Turek, on the other hand, has been able to garner $20 million.

Polls have shown the race in a dead heat: An October Marist Poll showed Hinson with 45 percent among likely voters and Turek with 48 percent.

Hinson will be joined by Trump on Thursday for a rally in Sioux City. The 80-year-old president is planning two high profile visits before election day to scrape for last-minute support in a state Republican senators haven’t lost since 2014.

Hinson, however, has attempted to put some distance between herself and Trump in recent interviews.

“I’ll be President Trump’s ally when it is important for Iowa, but I will push back on him,” Hinson told a reporter from PBS. “He knows this.”