The United States is the world’s biggest crude oil producer—it has been for years, and it has been pumping more than 13.6 million barrels per day of oil for the past few months. Then why, some would ask, are U.S. gasoline prices surging because of a conflict half a world away? First and foremost, the price of crude oil carries the biggest weight in the formation of gasoline prices in America. And the price of crude oil has soared in the past three weeks since the war in the Middle East began. Second, the U.S. – even with the highest…