U.S. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, who represents part of Pinellas County, pushed back against allegations detailed in a Wall Street Journal article that alleged she shared nonpublic information about President Donald Trump’s vice presidential pick ahead of its public announcement, reportedly triggering scrutiny from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
According to the July 18 WSJ report, which cited anonymous sources, Luna allegedly told associates during a lunch at Tampa’s Stovall House in the summer of 2024 that she knew Trump would select J.D. Vance as his running mate before the announcement became public. The Journal reported Luna then shared that information with conservative influencer Rogan O’Handley, known online as “DC Draino,” allowing him to place a winning wager on the prediction market Polymarket. Luna denied the allegations.
In a social media post published today, Luna wrote that a newly released Department of Justice (DOJ) letter proves she was never under criminal investigation.
In a statement posted to social media, the St. Petersburg Republican called the reporting “a political hit job” and accused the Wall Street Journal of relying on “one anonymous source” to create a “fake narrative.”
“I was never under investigation,” Luna wrote. “The @WSJ reported false information based on one ‘anonymous source’ and then cherry picked my quote to spin their own fake narrative. That’s not journalism that’s a political hit job.”
The letter Luna released, dated July 22 and signed by Associate Deputy Attorney General Diego M. Pestana, was addressed to her attorney, Charles R. Spies. “Consistent with our discussion, I can confirm that the Department at no point had an open investigation into allegations that Rep. Luna engaged in criminal conduct, including allegations about insider trading in prediction markets,” the letter states.
The letter also says the Justice Department “never received a referral based on those same allegations from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC),” adding that “the Department never had an open investigation in this matter.”
Axios first reported on the letter Monday, noting a DOJ official also confirmed there is no active investigation into Luna and that the department has not received a CFTC referral.
Luna went further in her social media statement, claiming the person who made the allegations “has now been referred for criminal investigation because making false accusations to a federal agency is a crime.”
The Justice Department letter does not mention any referral involving the individual who made the allegations, but Luna threatened legal action against news organizations that reported the allegations.
“Any and all outlets who reported this fake story will be forced to retract and take down,” she stated. “We have already sent one cease and desist, more incoming if these outlets don’t correct their false reporting.”