WASHINGTON D.C. — President Donald Trump said he will look into banning predictive betting markets for government officials following Justice Department charges against a U.S. special forces soldier accused of using insider knowledge to bet on a raid to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. The soldier is alleged to have won nearly $400,000 on Polymarket based on his knowledge of the operation.

"The whole world, unfortunately, has become somewhat of a casino. And you look at what's going on all over the world and Europe, and every place they're doing these betting things. I don't like it conceptually, but it is what it is now," Trump said. He added: "I'm not happy with any of that stuff, but they have all these different sites of predictive markets. It's a crazy world. It's a much different world than it was."

Trump compared the soldier's conduct to the case of former Major League Baseball player Pete Rose. "That's like Pete Rose betting on his own team. It's a little like Pete Rose," he said. "If he bet against his team, that would be no good, but he bet on his own team. I'll look into it." Rose was banned from baseball in 1989 for betting on the Cincinnati Reds while playing for and managing the team.

White House spokesman Davis Ingle said Trump's position on government officials and nonpublic information was longstanding. "President Trump has been crystal clear: while he seeks a strong and profitable stock market for everyone, members of Congress and other government officials should be prohibited from using nonpublic information for financial benefit. The only special interest that will ever guide President Trump is the best interest of the American people," Ingle said.