White House Teleprompter Operator Allegedly Made $100K Betting on Trump Speeches

A federal employee working as a White House teleprompter operator has come under scrutiny for allegedly profiting significantly from bets placed on a prediction market platform. Gabriel Perez reportedly amassed nearly $100,000 by wagering on outcomes related to President Trump's State of the Union addresses and other speeches.

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Our surveillance team promptly flagged and referred these trades to the CFTC after an exchange investigation.

The platform where these bets were made, Kalshi, detected unusual trading patterns through its surveillance systems. A spokesperson confirmed that the company investigated Perez's activity, froze his account to secure most of his profits, and subsequently referred the case to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the federal agency overseeing prediction markets.

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We have been assisting regulators on this matter and provided evidence we collected, as we do in any referral.

Kalshi has been actively assisting regulators, providing collected evidence as part of the referral process. While the CFTC has declined to confirm or deny an ongoing investigation, sources indicate Perez has been fully cooperative and is currently in discussions with the agency for a possible settlement. The White House confirmed Perez has been placed on unpaid leave, with Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt calling the situation "deeply unfortunate and frankly a disgrace."

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Our surveillance team promptly flagged and referred these trades to the CFTC after an exchange investigation.