Ex-White House staffer penalized for betting on presidential speeches

A former White House teleprompter operator, Gabriel Perez, settled with the CFTC, forfeiting over $100,000 in profits and paying a $65,000 fine. He also received a three-year trading ban for using inside knowledge to bet on what Trump would say. The bets were placed on Kalshi between December 2025 and February 2026.
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The settlement stems from trades Perez executed while employed at the White House, where his teleprompter duties gave him advance access to speech content before public delivery. The CFTC's action covers "mention market" contracts on Kalshi, which function as event-based wagers tied to specific words or phrases appearing in presidential addresses. Perez's betting activity spanned roughly three months, from December 2025 through February 2026, yielding $107,500 in profits before authorities intervened.
Perez's employment status remains somewhat ambiguous.