Trump’s war in Iran, gas prices and corruption dominate messaging as special election nears to fill Senate seat

It’s tough to beat the prices at Golden Dawn, an Italian restaurant that first opened its doors in 1932 on the north side of Youngstown, Ohio, and where a hamburger and fries today goes for $7 and a domestic beer just $2 at happy hour.

But the price that’s most discussed these days around its neon-lit, crescent-shaped bar is the $5 a gallon that gas prices are nearing at stations across this north-eastern Ohio city that is one of the state’s most prominent victims of manufacturing disinvestment. Where people differ is about what caused it, and who should take the blame.

“It’s because of that damn war” with Iran, said Tom Goodman, a 47-year-old who works odd jobs around town. An independent, he was never a fan of the president, but now thinks even less of him. “Trump can go ride back into the sunset on whatever white horse he rode in on because he didn’t help the country,” he said.