President Trump on Saturday directed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to use all of the department's "available funds" to go toward paying military servicemembers during the government shutdown.
Throwing blame toward congressional Democrats and naming Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Trump said that troops will not receive their upcoming paychecks. Servicemembers are scheduled to receive their next checks on Oct. 15.
"That is why I am using my authority, as Commander in Chief, to direct our Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, to use all available funds to get our Troops PAID on October 15th," Trump wrote in a post on his social media site Truth Social.
"We have identified funds to do this, and Secretary Hegseth will use them to PAY OUR TROOPS," Trump said.
The Hill has reached out to the Department of Defense (DOD) for comment. An Office of Management and Budget spokesperson told The Hill that the funding identified comes from "portions of Research and development money" at the DOD that is available for two years.
This comes after House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) cast blame on Democrats for the potential pay lapse.
“HR 5371 (the Continuing Resolution) is the bill to pay our troops,” Johnson wrote in a post on the social media platform X. “No one in the military or any military family should have their pay blocked on October 15! Since the bill ALREADY PASSED THE HOUSE, a simple yes vote by five more Democrats on Tuesday would allow the military to be paid on Wednesday.”
Democrats and Republicans have pressured Johnson to bring lawmakers back to Washington to vote on a bill that would ensure military workers are paid next week despite the shutdown.
Reps. Gabe Vasquez (D-N.M.) and Derek Tran (D-Calif.) on Wednesday wrote a letter to Johnson urging him to bring House members back before Wednesday to pass the bill.
“If Congress does not act by October 15th, nearly three million military families will miss their next paycheck,” they write in the letter, first reported by Punchbowl News. “That’s unacceptable — our military families and troops deserve better.”
“We can have policy and political fights in Congress, but we simply can’t ask service members to put themselves in harm’s way without paying them,” Rep. Ken Calvert (R-Calif.), chair of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee said in a statement to The Hill on Thursday. “It should be a red line for anyone who cares about our national security and our troops.”
Trump also supported the bill and said it was something "that probably will happen."
But on Friday, Johnson said that any votes in the House will only happen once a funding bill is passed.
Updated at 3:51 p.m.
Source: The Hill - News
