Rep. Luna calls for Trump pardon of soldier who bet on his own mission
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Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., is calling for a pardon for a U.S. Special Forces soldier facing decades in prison after being accused of betting on his own duty, saying it’s a double standard for a decorated soldier to face prison time while lawmakers get a “slap on the wrist” for similar conduct.
Luna called for clemency on “The Ingraham Angle” on Friday, claiming the potential sentence is not “real justice” and that insider trading among members of Congress occurs regularly.
“This man is facing decades in prison,” Luna said. “Meanwhile, every day on Capitol Hill, there are scores of members of Congress on both sides who engage in insider trading.”
Master Sgt. Gannon Ken Van Dyke helped plan the capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Federal authorities later said that before his inauguration, Van Dyke bet on a prediction market platform that Maduro would be removed from office, winning more than $400,000 as a result.
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Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., has vowed to oust Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., if he does not resign. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
President Donald Trump weighed in on the case Friday, comparing it to baseball legend Pete Rose, who was banned from Major League Baseball.
“This is a little bit like Pete Rose,” Trump said when asked about the case. “Pete Rose, they kept him out of the Hall of Fame because he bet on his own team. Now, if he bets against his own team, it won’t work, but he bets on his own team. I’ll look into that.”
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The Florida congressman says an effort by lawmakers to pass bipartisan legislation to ban insider trading has been blocked by leadership.
He said it would not be right for a soldier to be sentenced to years in prison for doing something that deputies escaped from.
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“Is it fair for Nancy Pelosi to face decades of imprisonment while she walks free? It’s not,” Luna said.
Pelosi denied insider trading allegations. In an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper last year, he said: “I’m very supportive of stopping the trafficking of members of Congress. I don’t think anyone did anything wrong. If they did, they would be prosecuted and go to jail.”
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., speaks with members of the media outside the House Republican Conference meeting at the U.S. Capitol on September 3, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
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Van Dyke was charged with wire fraud, illegal monetary transactions and violations of the Commodity Exchange Act. The bets were placed between December 2025 and January 2026, with the last one placed just hours before the start of the operation.
Luna said he does not support Van Dyke’s actions but believes he is held to higher standards than lawmakers.
“I don’t agree with what he did. But I don’t think it’s true justice,” Luna added.
