Democratic Senators Seek White House Betting Safeguards
Warren of Massachusetts and Merkley of Oregon sent White House counsel Will Scharf a letter asking whether staff have placed bets using nonpublic government information, whether they receive training on the rules, and whether White House officials discussed the matter with regulators or prosecutors. The senators also requested a copy of any memo warning employees against such bets and want a response by November 23.
Their questions follow the case of Gabriel Perez, a longtime White House teleprompter operator who had access to draft speeches. He allegedly earned more than $100,000 on Kalshi by betting on words President Donald Trump would use. Perez lost his job, surrendered his profits, paid a $173,000 penalty and was barred from trading for three years. He was not criminally prosecuted.
A White House spokesman did not say whether staff trading was under review. He said existing federal ethics rules prohibit employees from using nonpublic information gained through government work for bets or other personal financial gain. Kalshi said its surveillance system flagged Perez’s trades and that it sent the matter to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
The senators’ letter comes amid other scrutiny of prediction-market trading. In April, the Senate barred its members and staff from using the platforms. Federal prosecutors charged a soldier who allegedly used classified information about the operation to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro to make more than $400,000 in Polymarket wagers connected with the operation. The senators’ inquiry asks what, if any, additional safeguards the White House has adopted.
Senators Demand Answers on White House Insider Betting
A White House employee with access to presidential speech drafts allegedly made more than $100,000 betting on the words Donald Trump would use. The case has led Democratic senators Elizabeth Warren and Jeff Merkley to demand that the administration explain whether it has taken meaningful steps to prevent similar abuses.
In correspondence addressed to White House counsel Will Scharf, the senators asked whether employees have made prediction-market bets, whether staff are trained on restrictions involving nonpublic information, and whether officials contacted federal regulators or prosecutors about Gabriel Perez’s case. They also requested a copy of any warning memo and answers by November 23.
Perez, Trump’s longtime teleprompter operator, lost his job, surrendered his profits, paid a $173,000 penalty and received a three-year trading ban. He was not criminally prosecuted. Kalshi said its monitoring system flagged the trades and that it referred the matter to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
The White House pointed to existing ethics rules barring staff from using government information for personal financial gain, but did not say whether it was reviewing employee activity or had added safeguards. The senators’ demand puts that distinction at the center of the issue: rules on paper do not answer what the administration has done to enforce them. Their concerns also arise as the Trump family has ties to the prediction-market business: Donald Trump Jr. advises Kalshi and Polymarket, and his venture firm has invested in Polymarket.
White House Cites Ethics Rules as Democrats Demand Betting Review
Federal ethics rules already bar White House employees from using nonpublic information gained through government work to make bets or advance anyone’s financial interests, a spokesman said. That safeguard is central to the administration’s response as Democratic senators Elizabeth Warren and Jeff Merkley seek details about staff training and oversight.
The senators sent White House counsel Will Scharf a letter asking whether employees have traded on prediction markets, whether officials contacted regulators or prosecutors about Gabriel Perez, and whether staff received guidance. They requested a copy of any warning memo and answers by November 23. The inquiry does not itself establish that other White House employees placed similar bets.
Perez, Trump’s former teleprompter operator, allegedly made more than $100,000 on Kalshi by betting on words the president would use in speeches. He lost his job, surrendered profits, paid a $173,000 penalty and was barred from trading for three years. Kalshi said its own surveillance system detected unusual activity and that the company sent the matter to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
The case has drawn comparisons with a soldier charged after allegedly using classified information to earn over $400,000 through Polymarket wagers connected with the operation to capture Nicolás Maduro. Congress has also acted: the Senate barred members and staff from prediction markets in April. The White House spokesman did not say whether a review of staff activity was underway.
