White House teleprompter operator accused of $100k Trump speech bets

A White House teleprompter operator is being investigated over allegedly using inside information to place bets and make nearly $100,000 on President Donald Trump's speeches. Gabriel Perez, who had worked at the White House since 2016, is accused of betting on words the president would use during major public addresses, including the State of the Union speech. The trades were placed on Kalshi, a prediction markets platform where users can wager on real-world events. Kalshi froze Perez's account before any profits could be withdrawn, after its analysts noticed unusual betting on "mention markets" — contracts where users predict whether a speaker will use common terms such as specific countries, economic words, or campaign slogans — in March. "The words of political leaders like Presidents and Fed chairs cause billions of dollars of movement in FX markets, oil futures, [and] the stock market," Kalshi said. Using account data, the company identified the user as a federal employee operating White House teleprompters, and froze more than $90,000 before it could be withdrawn. Robert DeNault, Kalshi's head of enforcement, said the firm flagged the trades and handed evidence to regulators. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said President Trump was aware of the teleprompter operator and that the staffer was now on unpaid leave, adding that Perez would no longer work at the White House. Sources said Perez has been "fully cooperative" with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which regulates Kalshi. However, ABC reported that federal prosecutors in Manhattan declined to open a criminal case. When contacted by the BBC to confirm it was investigating, the CFTC said it could not "confirm or deny" any probe. The story, first reported by ABC News, has been confirmed by the BBC's US partner CBS News.