I’ll ‘Beat You In Court’

President Donald Trump speaks with reporters aboard Air Force One, Monday, Feb. 16, 2026, en route to Washington from West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

President Donald Trump’s Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Brian Selig elicited a stern reply from Utah Governor Spencer Cox (R) this week when he promised to stop state governments from regulating prediction markets.

“Over the past year, American prediction markets have been hit with an onslaught of state-led litigation. In response, the CFTC has today filed a Friend of the Court brief to defend its exclusive jurisdiction over these derivative markets,” Selig said in a clip he released to social media on Tuesday. He added:

Prediction markets aren’t new. The CFTC has regulated these markets for over two decades. They provide useful functions for society by allowing everyday Americans to hedge commercial risks like increases in temperature and energy price spikes. They also serve as an important check on our news media and our information streams. Today, the CFTC is taking an important step to ensure that these markets have a place here in America and have the integrity, resilience, and vibrancy that our derivatives markets deserve. To those who seek to challenge our authority in this space, let me be clear: we will see you in court.

Cox hit back, writing, “Mike, I appreciate you attempting this with a straight face, but I don’t remember the CFTC having authority over the “derivative market” of LeBron James rebounds. These prediction markets you are breathlessly defending are gambling—pure and simple. They are destroying the lives of families and countless Americans, especially young men. They have no place in Utah.”

“Let me be clear, I will use every resource within my disposal as governor of the sovereign state of Utah, and under the Constitution of the United States to beat you in court,” added the Republican.

Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (R) also responded to Selig. Christie wrote, “Not telling the truth with a straight face is another trait of federal bureaucrats who just want to grow the size of the federal government & their own power while trying to crush states rights and take advantage of our citizens. Sports betting is not a derivative, it’s gambling.”

PBS News reported on Selig’s announcement and noted a close connection between prediction markets and the Trump family. “Any friendly decision the CFTC makes on this industry could end up financially benefiting the president’s family as well. President Trump’s son, Donald Trump Jr., has invested in Polymarket through his venture capital firm and is a strategic advisor for Kalshi,” reported PBS.

The post Republican Gov Hits Back At Trump Official Trying to Limit States’ Rights: I’ll ‘Beat You In Court’ first appeared on Mediaite.