All posts tagged "anna paulina luna"

'Alarm bells' ring in White House as lawyers try to track prediction market bets: report

The Trump White House is scrambling to ensure hundreds of aides aren't using inside information to get rich on prediction market bets, the Wall Street Journal reported Saturday.

White House lawyers have been frantically grilling insiders ever since five anonymous Polymarket accounts made big bets that President Donald Trump and Iran would reach an initial ceasefire by the end of April, the Journal reported.

"Alarm bells went off inside the White House Counsel’s Office earlier this year," the Journal stated. "Senior officials privately raised concerns that the users may have leveraged inside information to secure an easy payday on the prediction market."

Three anonymous Polymarket accounts made over $600,000 correctly betting on the April ceasefire announcement, according to blockchain research firm Bubblemaps.

In response, White House lawyers asked staff who could be making the bets but ran into an immediate problem, the Journal reported.

"It would be nearly impossible to determine whether administration officials were behind the bets because Polymarket allows users to open accounts anonymously," the lawyers realized, according to the report.

"The Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the agency charged with regulating the prediction markets, has requested information from both Kalshi and Polymarket regarding wagers related to political and military events."

The CFTC is also looking into allegations that Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) and right-wing influencer Rogan O'Handley traded insider information on Trump's pick for vice president during the 2024 presidential election, sources told the Wall Street Journal.

O'Handley denied the allegations or knowledge of an investigation and Luna responded in a statement, "I am honored the WSJ thinks I am telepathic but unfortunately I am not."

GOP infighting erupts as MAGA Republicans scream at each other behind closed doors

Two MAGA lawmakers got into a heated exchange on Thursday during a closed-door meeting with House Speaker Mike Johnson in the fallout over a bipartisan veterans bill, according to reports.

Rep. Zach Nunn (R-IA) reportedly screamed at Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) and told her not to interrupt him inside the Speaker’s ceremonial office off the House floor just after Luna and Reps. Max Miller (R-OH), Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ) and Victoria Spartz (R-IN) voted with Democrats to recommit the bill to committee, Punchbowl News reported.

The move "would’ve let the minority win a major procedural vote," and "GOP leaders were able to flip Spartz — they’re always able to do that — to win the procedural vote, but then they yanked the bill," according to Punchbowl News.

Sources told the outlet that several Republicans were frustrated by the revolt from the GOP lawmakers as they tried to flip holdouts and asked Luna to come to the office to meet with Johnson and other Republicans.

Nunn, who is a veteran and supporter of the bill, yelled at Luna over her decision. He apparently did not think she was serious about the bill.

"Luna said she didn’t want to cut veterans’ benefits and didn’t take kindly to the conversation. She left the room and later the House floor," Punchbowl News reported.

"Luna had concerns that others shared — that the legislation would cut veterans’ benefits. The House GOP leadership suspected the bill would fail going into today, yet they rolled the dice. This was a bill that House Majority Whip Tom Emmer’s team whipped," according to Punchbowl News.

Van Drew told Republican leaders that "If you’re going to punish me, punish me," in response to the vote.

NEW -- ANNA PAULINA LUNA and ZACH NUNN had a very heated interaction in the Speaker's ceremonial office over the veterans bill.

NUNN screamed at Luna and told her to not interrupt him.

MORE in the Midday edition out shortly.
— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) July 16, 2026

James Comer slams House GOP hardliners on CNN: 'Don't know when to declare victory'

Rep. James Comer (R-KY) slammed his own GOP colleagues for shutting down a compromise from the House Speaker.

CNN anchor Jake Tapper opened a segment on "The Lead" about GOP hardliners voting down Speaker Mike Johnson's (R-LA) effort to attach Trump's favored proof-of-citizenship voting bill, the Save America Act, to a must-pass defense bill as an amendment. He noted that they blocked it by tanking the procedural vote.

"I've had to deal with a few of these Republicans that continue to tank the procedural votes," Comer said. "We can't even vote on the bill, much less debate a bill."

Comer admitted that it's "very frustrating to be in Congress right now," and called out Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) for leading the rejection of Johnson's amendment.

"I felt like Speaker Johnson gave them what they initially asked for, even though we've already passed the Save America Act," which is in the Senate. However, Comer noted that Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said, "They don't have the votes to pass it."

According to Comer, it wasn't the only time he felt like the GOP hurt itself. He continued his criticism of GOP colleagues in the House by telling Tapper, "Sometimes, I feel like some of the Republicans don't know when to declare victory in many of the crusades that they lead."

Sighing in exasperation, Comer added, "I believe in the cause, but punishing the House for inaction in the Senate is not a good strategy for Republicans."

MAGA lawmaker claims GOP leadership may have set her up to make her look crazy

A MAGA congresswoman told a New York Times writer that she believes she was given the reins of a task force because it would make her look "a little crazy."

In an interview with Times columnist Ross Douthat, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) agreed with a suggestion about why congressional leadership assigned her to chair the Task Force on the Declassification of Federal Secrets.

Luna explained that Trump had been talking "about releasing the M.L.K., R.F.K. and J.F.K. files. We had this stuff outstanding with U.A.P. activity," referring to classified information about historical figures, UFOs, and assassinations.

Rep. James Comer (R-KY) set up a task force to follow through on Trump's promises, but "people were a little spooked about taking the position because of everything that it involved."

Luna said she knew "there was a stigma" with the task force before being assigned to chair it. "If you do this, people are going to think you're crazy," she said.

Douthat asked her, "Do you think that this was something that you were given in part because it was like, let's keep her busy, and also it might make her look a little crazy?"

Luna admitted, "I think so. I think maybe they anticipated that, but I also knew."

'People all over America are devastated': MAGA rep mocked for floating herself for top job

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) was mocked on Saturday for suggesting that 'so many people' had floated her name for Speaker of the House — and replace House Speaker Mike Johnson.

The MAGA lawmaker posted on X that she was "honored" to be considered, though the internet quickly questioned why she made the comment.

"Truly, it is wonderful and I am flattered to have that type of support and trust," Luna wrote. "However, I do not know where the rumor started that I was considering a run, as I have never spoken to any member about it or considered even running for Speaker. For now, I feel that I am right where I need to be. At any rate, I love and appreciate all of you and will continue to fight for all of you in DC. @SpeakerJohnson, hopefully your cortisol levels didn’t spike too high."

Media experts and political commentators were quick to sound off on her remarks.

"People all over America are devastated," Ron Filipkowski, editor-in-chief of MeidasTouch with one million followers, wrote on X.

"The people of America are laughing their a---- off," journalist Stephen Rhymer wrote on X.

"She really wanted you to read this and think she’s more important than she really is. This had nothing to do w/ dispelling rumors and everything to do w/ letting people know she has an interest in leadership," user Mason, an Iraq veteran and political commentator, wrote on X.

MAGA lawmaker claims Trump assassination attempt was deep state 'inside job'

Following the attempt on President Donald Trump's life at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) argued that a 2024 assassination attempt in Pennsylvania was an "inside job" by the deep state.

Speaking to Luna on the Pod Force One podcast this week, New York Post columnist and host Miranda Devine revealed that the FBI had been "hostile" to her after she disputed reports that Pennsylvania shooter Thomas Crooks was not a Trump supporter.

"Thomas Crooks is dead," Devine noted. "There's no reason not to release all the information about the Butler assassination, but they are adamant that they've released everything and that while they haven't closed the investigation, there's nothing more to find. He acted alone. Do you buy that?"

Luna was skeptical.

"I think that there was a lot there, specifically what was interesting about the Butler assassination," Luna replied. "And I've said this before. I think that was intentional negligence."

"We actually had whistleblowers from within the Secret Service that came out that stated that, you know, they were basically not present or told to stand down," Luna continued. "The area that was left open was literally the perfect location to take a shot and basically assassinate someone. And then you have this aspect of the Biden administration that, you know, basically gave limited staffing to a former president with Secret Service."

"That to me that has all the marks of intelligence and I believe an inside job. That's literally what I think is the ultimate revelation of that," Luna added.

While Joe Biden was president at the time of the incident, Luna also placed blame on Trump for refusing to declassify details about the shooting.

"I think that, you know, the Butler assassination record and information is actually under the purview of release by President Trump himself," she observed. "And ultimately, we've also asked to see if we could obtain that information from the president. And so it'll ultimately be up to him."

"I think that, you know, these individuals that were radicalized were going after the people that are most influential in this country," the lawmaker added. "And I think aside from President Trump, Charlie Kirk was one of those people. And I do think that he was also on the trajectory to run for president."

MAGA rep already wants Trump to pardon soldier who bet big on Maduro's capture

A GOP congresswoman wants to pardon the U.S. special forces soldier who was arrested after winning $400,000 by betting on the capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

"Maybe not a popular take but I am calling for this guy to be pardoned," Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) posted Thursday on X.

Earlier in the day, a Manhattan federal court unsealed an indictment of Gannon Ken van Dyke, an active-duty member of the U.S. Army who bet $30,000 on the online prediction market Polymarket that Maduro would be out of power by the end of January. The U.S. military launched a raid and extradited him in early January.

Luna argued that the Department of Justice should be going after "all the crooks in Congress currently insider trading" and "unless the DOJ plans on doing Congress next, this is not justice" in her post.

"This is simply skewed justice," Luna wrote. "There is no 'justice' when guys like these get the book thrown at him yet members are illegally profiting every day."

She added that "I don't agree with what he did," but rather than end up behind bars, "he should be required to disgorge all the profits."

These MAGA women call out an alleged GOP sexual predator. It’s not who you hope it is

Amid the Tony Gonzales scandal, three of the Texas Republican’s female colleagues are demanding his resignation. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC), Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO), and Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) all voted to release the Epstein Files too. But in a not-very-odd disconnect, none of them are speaking out against the person who appears in those files nearly as often as Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.

All three Republican women have picked up the fully false narrative that Donald Trump has been “exonerated” in relation to Epstein — his language, which they repeat. Trump hasn’t been exonerated at all, because he has yet to see the inside of a courtroom in connection with the Epstein Files.

As part of my endless pursuit of the truth, I continue to try to annoy Mace enough that she’ll finally give me a real answer as to why she won’t say that Trump is in the Epstein Files. I emailed her comms director twice this week. Since they don’t like my questions, I got the same answer twice:

It irritates me that these people think I’m as stupid as they are.

This is Russian Propaganda 101: Keep repeating the lie until everyone believes it. But consider the Epstein bombshells that have detonated just this week, prominently including an allegation, apparently deemed credible enough to have been investigated, that Trump committed a crime against a child, as part of the Epstein-Maxwell sex trafficking ring.

So if these Republican women are capable of seeing that Rep. Gonzales is alleged to have done terrible things involving a grown woman who then killed herself — allegations he denies — why can’t the same women hold Trump to the same sort of standards, especially since the terrible things he is alleged to have done involved a child?

Along those lines, why didn’t any Republicans travel with Democrats for the billionaire Les Wexner’s Epstein deposition, but then all managed to clear their schedules to be in the room where Hillary Clinton and Bill Clinton gave their sworn testimonies?

I know, we KNOW why. I just want them to admit it.

When it comes to Head Case Mace, I’m guessing she’s holding back because she doesn’t want to lose Trump’s endorsement for her flailing gubernatorial campaign in South Carolina. There’s a reason she hasn’t resigned her House seat. She has to keep playing the favorite now that Marjorie Taylor Greene has been banished from MAGAville forever.

I sent the same emails to the comms directors for Anna Paulina Luna-tic and Grandmother of the Year Lauren Boebert, but neither responded. It’s a frustrating endeavor to try to get anyone to say anything truthful about Trump, because they’re scared of retribution. But again, he blocked me on Twitter more than a decade ago and I’m fine, so I really don’t understand why anyone is afraid of such a thin-skinned, lying Friend of Jeffrey.

What makes it more difficult to comprehend is watching Republican men hold Trump accountable, instead of GOP women. Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) has been in full lockstep with a Democratic colleague, Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA), when it comes to Epstein. If Massie can do it, why can’t the rest of the party? I’m not a big fan of Massie in general, particularly regarding January 6th, but he’s on the correct side of history when it comes to the Epstein Files.

I also reached out to Massie’s office. The guy who answers his DC office phone and I shared a little chuckle over the “exonerated” line being parroted by those women and the rest of the MAGA cult. There was no reply from Massie’s comms guy by press time, but that’s okay. I got a corker of a quote from someone else who knows a thing or two about the Epstein Files, because he’s been investigating the financials for years: my home-state senator, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR).

As the ranking Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, Sen. Wyden (or, as I like to call him, “Senator Chutzpah,” a reference to his latest book) has been looking into the Russian and American banks that financed the international sex trafficking ring run by Epstein and Maxwell. He always stresses that the key to nailing Trump is to follow the money, which is why I keep this screenshot on my phone. It’s of a Twitter thread Sen. Wyden wrote in July last year as a handy way to clap back at the MAGA trolls who still try to false equivalence their way out of every Trump-Epstein accusation.

Feel free to save it to your device. There’s always room for the truth next to those cute cat pics and whatever you ate last night.

Anyway, the Senate Finance Committee is hitting the same wall as House Oversight: Treasury Secretary Scott “What Epstein Files?” Bessent won’t allow them full access to his department’s own Epstein Files, which too many people don’t know exist. I don’t know why — or indeed why Bessent doesn’t care that Trump thinks Bessent’s marriage to a man isn’t real — because Bessent won’t respond to me, just like he won’t respond to my senator. It’s good company to be in, at least.

I got to spend a few moments on Friday with Senator Chutzpah, after his press conference at Portland Coffee Roasters to highlight the impact of Trump’s tariffs on small businesses. I asked what he would say to the MAGA cult about the lies they’re being fed about Trump being “exonerated.”

“Some of these people have as much interest in justice as Bonnie and Clyde,” he said, tipping me a wink.

Great line — but unfortunately, it might just make Nancy Mace show up to work on Monday cosplaying as a gun moll, instead of Hester Prynne.

Tara Dublin is a political writer/commentator based in Portland, OR, who has been blocked by Donald Trump on Twitter since August 2015 and can occasionally be heard as a fill-in host on SiriusXM Progress. She is also the author of The Sound of Settling, a rock ‘n’ roll love story available at taradublinrocks.com

MAGA lawmaker labeled 'spokesperson for Putin' for pushing 'Russia-written surrender' plan

A MAGA lawmaker is in hot water as her latest comments are causing some to accuse her of being a Russian asset.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna turned some heads when she embraced a controversial plan many have said was written by Russians and disseminated to Ukrainian officials by the State Department. Luna said of the deal, "A strong deal is on the table for Ukrainians — and we need to get it done. This war must end. Russia has signaled it’s ready to come to the table, and the U.S. supports a path to peace."

To that, former marine sergeant Harrison Lansing replied with, "It's a Russia-written surrender document not a deal."

Luna added an additional statement on the topic, saying, "The U.S. is leading the charge on peace negotiations and building the framework for a real deal."

"Don’t listen to the fake news or the pro-war psychos claiming otherwise. [Marco Rubio] and [Trump] have it under control. Thank you for your attention to this matter," she added.

That also sparked responses.

Popular legal analyst emptywheel chimed in, "Luna is right: You should listen to someone fronting for Dmitriev."

Jonathan Eyal, associate director of Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies, said, "Tell us a bit more about your dealings with Russia's favourite oligarch. Thank you for your attention to this matter."

Ron Filipkowski, a former federal prosecutor, said, "She doesn’t even try to hide that she’s a spokesperson for Putin serving in the US Congress."

"Post after post, day after day, echoing Russian propaganda," he added. "Truly sad that people in Pinellas County have chosen this as their representation."

She doesn’t even try to hide that she’s a spokesperson for Putin serving in the US Congress. Post after post, day after day, echoing Russian propaganda. Truly sad that people in Pinellas County have chosen this as their representation. pic.twitter.com/Kp3wwr0dQD
— Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) November 23, 2025

Fed chief Jerome Powell accused of criminally lying under oath: report

MAGA Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) has referred Fed Chairman Jerome Powell to the Department of Justice on two criminal counts of lying under oath, according to Fox News Digital.

The outlet first reported Luna's accusations after obtaining her letter to the DOJ. It reads, in part,

"On June 25, 2025, Chairman Powell provided testimony under oath before the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs regarding the renovation of the Federal Reserve’s Eccles Building. In his statements, he made several materially false claims," Luna's letter said.

Luna went on to accuse Powell of "lying about lavish amenities at the Federal Reserve's Eccles Building and misrepresenting its state of maintenance," according to the report.

President Donald Trump has floated the idea of firing Powell over fraud allegations regarding the building project. Trump has been upset with Powell, his own appointee, for failing to lower interest rates according to his instruction.

According to Fox News Digital, "Trade outlet Mortgage Professional reported that Powell denied all accusations of perjury and has directed a formal watchdog probe into renovation project costs of the Eccles Building."

Read the Fox News Digital Report here.