Rahm Emanuel proposes banning all federal employees from betting on prediction markets

WASHINGTON (AP) — Rahm Emanuel, a potential 2028 Democratic presidential candidate, is proposing a far-reaching ban on betting in prediction markets by federal employees and their families as part of an effort to call attention to what he says is a culture of corruption gripping the nation’s politics.

The proposal, which Emanuel shared with The Associated Press, would apply to leaders and employees across the executive, legislative and judicial branches of the federal government. Emanuel said if elected he would establish a division within the Justice Department to investigate such betting.

As legalized gambling has taken off in the U.S., there have been widespread concerns about its impact on everything from sports to addiction. But Emanuel said he was spurred to focus on the issue after concerns emerged that some in Washington with inside information about national security plans may have profited off of bets made ahead of recent military action in Venezuela and Iran.

“Somebody clearly with inside information inside the government was making bets, made money,” he said in an interview. “You have fellow Americans, what I call the true 1%, the people that volunteer to serve the interests of this country and its national security, they’re putting their lives on the line and you’ve got somebody else sitting in his or her basement placing bets on it.”

He cast his measure as part of a broader push to shake a capital that he argues has become desensitized to corruption in the Trump era.

“All of Washington has become so accustomed to this amorality and immorality and nobody says anything,” Emanuel said. “Washington needs a good power washing.”

Few are as familiar with Washington as the 66-year-old Emanuel, a onetime congressman from Illinois who helped power Democrats to overwhelming victories in the 2006 midterms, an election year some in the party are looking to for inspiration as they try to retake control of Congress this year. He became White House chief of staff to President Barack Obama before being elected to two terms as Chicago mayor. He was the U.S. ambassador to Japan under President Joe Biden.

Now Emanuel is considering a White House bid of his own in 2028. In the early stages of that contest, several Democratic governors, including Gavin Newsom of California and Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, have received the most attention. Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear made an aggressive move of his own over the weekend by traveling to Vice President JD Vance’s home county in Ohio to deliver a searing critique of the man who could become a leading candidate for the next Republican presidential nomination.

Against that backdrop, Emanuel has distinguished himself by issuing a series of proposals that often address issues at the center of the Democratic debate. After Biden’s presidency raised questions about the ability of aging leaders to remain in public office, Emanuel proposed a mandatory retirement age of 75, an idea that would prevent him from seeking a second term if he was elected. He’s also proposed banning children under 16 from most social media and options to address literacy.

Often on the road in communities from Michigan to Mississippi, he is pitching these ideas in places that don’t always receive attention from potential presidential hopefuls.

He said he would hope to work with Congress to enact the predictive betting ban but would consider executive action if that weren’t possible. In the interview, he insisted he wasn’t issuing such proposals to simply shape the direction of the Democratic debate as another campaign season nears.

He said measures like the ban on predictive betting are intended to shock Washington into returning to the norms that long governed politics.

“I put this out there because everybody else is walking around sleepwalking,” he said.