Election Betting on Prediction Markets, Special Education, Breastmilk Storage

What It Covers

NPR's Up First covers three topics: election prediction markets enabling insider trading by campaign staffers, the Trump administration's restructuring of special education oversight, and contested CDC guidance on discarding leftover breast milk after two hours.

Key Questions Answered

• •Prediction Market Surveillance: Kalshi uses FEC disclosure data to block campaign staffers from betting on their own races, successfully stopping dozens of insider trades. However, the system misses volunteers, pollsters, lawyers, and subcontractors — leaving significant gaps that former FEC commissioners confirm undermine the program's effectiveness.
• •Regulatory Vacuum: The CFTC under Trump has largely stepped back from overseeing prediction markets, leaving self-policing to companies like Kalshi and Polymarket. Despite 21 pieces of legislation introduced in the current year alone, none have gained momentum, creating legal uncertainty that makes insider trading easier to pursue without consequence.
• •Special Education Workaround: The Department of Education is moving special education staff to HHS while keeping oversight leader Kelly Rogers at the department — a structure advocates call a legal workaround. Families and disability advocates report increased confusion about accountability, contact points, and equitable service delivery under the divided arrangement.
• •Breast Milk Storage Evidence: CDC guidelines recommend discarding leftover bottle breast milk after two hours due to bacterial growth risk. A small unpublished German study of 17 infants found no significant bacterial growth up to eight hours post-feeding, but researchers caution the finding is preliminary and insufficient to override conservative safety guidelines.