First in The Vault: House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) took aim at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chair Rostin Behnam on Wednesday, suggesting the agency overstepped its statutory authority with its 2023 crackdown on political betting.
In a letter addressed to Behnam, Jordan criticized the CFTC’s decision to block Kalshi, a predictions market company, from allowing U.S. customers to bet on American election results.
“The CFTC’s order against Kalshi raises concerns that the CFTC is acting outside of its statutory and regulatory authority,” Jordan wrote. “The CFTC’s actions also indicate the agency may be engaging in regulation by enforcement.”
Jordan told the CFTC his committee would be investigating the agency’s actions and requested a staff-level briefing. Read the full letter here.
The letter comes at a tense moment for the CFTC and Kalshi. Just last week, a federal judge threw out the market regulator’s 2023 decision to prevent Kalshi from allowing users to bet on who would take control of Congress in the upcoming election.
The CFTC subsequently filed an emergency motion asking for a two-week stay pending an appeal, which Judge Jia Cobb will weigh at a hearing later today. A CFTC spokesperson declined to comment on the letter.
— Brendan Pedersen
