White House Teleprompter Operator Accused of $100K Trump Speech Bet Scam

A White House teleprompter operator, Gabriel "Gabe" Perez, who served for over a decade, has been placed on unpaid administrative leave following allegations that he won more than $100,000 by betting on the content of President Donald Trump's speeches. This alleged insider betting scandal has drawn the attention of federal regulators, with Perez reportedly in talks to settle the claims.

Sources familiar with the investigation, first reported by ABC News, indicate that Perez used his intimate knowledge of upcoming speech content to place wagers on Kalshi's "Mentions" market. This platform allows users to bet on the appearance of specific words, phrases, or topics in public addresses. Kalshi themselves reportedly alerted the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), an independent agency overseeing futures, swaps, and bets, to suspicious activity detected in Perez's betting patterns.

Over a three-month period, Perez allegedly placed bets on more than a dozen of Trump's speeches, including significant events such as the State of the Union address, a January speech at the World Economic Forum, and remarks during a Medal of Honor ceremony in March. The allegations further suggest that Perez would sometimes withdraw from bets mid-speech if President Trump unexpectedly omitted a portion of his prepared remarks, leveraging his real-time access to the teleprompter.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed on Thursday that Perez is indeed on unpaid administrative leave and is cooperating with the CFTC. Leavitt conveyed President Trump's strong disapproval of the situation, stating that the President found it 'deeply unfortunate and frankly a disgrace.' For President Trump's upcoming speech on election integrity, a different teleprompter operator will be in place, ensuring no further conflicts of interest.

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