President Donald Trump said Saturday that he would order Defense Department officials to pay members of the military next week, despite the ongoing federal government shutdown.
“I am using my authority, as Commander in Chief, to direct our Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, to use all available funds to PAY our troops on October 15. We have identified funds to do this, and Secretary Hegseth will use them to PAY OUR TROOPS,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.
This comes as Trump administration officials and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have expressed concern that members of the military will not receive a paycheck on October 15 due to the shutdown, which has lasted 10 days so far.
Department of Defense representatives did not immediately respond to NBC News’ requests for comment on Saturday.
The Office of Management and Budget sent a notification to Congress about its intention to use research and development funds to pay members of the military, two sources with direct knowledge told NBC News.
An OMB spokesperson confirmed to NBC News that it plans to use the research and development funds and that two years of funding is available at the Department of Defense.
In the Truth Social post, Trump blamed Democrats for the current shutdown, writing, “If nothing is done, because of ‘leader’ Chuck Schumer and the Democrats, our brave troops will lose their paychecks on October 15.”
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In several votes over the past week, Senate lawmakers have failed to reach a 60-vote threshold for a temporary stopgap funding measure that would reopen the government.
In September, the House (with all Republicans voting in favor and all but one Democrat voting against) passed a temporary funding bill that would keep the government open and operating at previous funding levels through November 21.
Not enough Senate Democrats have joined Republicans in voting for that bill. Instead, Senate Democratic leadership has proposed a temporary funding measure that would keep the government open through the end of October and restore cuts to Medicaid that the GOP approved in a historic domestic policy package earlier this year.
The Democratic-backed package would also expand federal subsidies for Affordable Care Act recipients that are set to expire at the end of this year. Republicans have not joined Democrats in approving that measure.
On Friday, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters that he hoped the White House would find a way to pay the troops in time for the Oct. 15 paycheck.
“I think, admittedly, the White House has stopped doing anything for 10 days in the hope that enough Senate Democrats will come to their senses and do the right thing and fund the government. But now that we’re getting people to start losing their paychecks, this is becoming real,” he said.
“This becomes real for families, many military families living paycheck to paycheck, many American families living paycheck to paycheck, who are federal employees. And so I think the White House, my expectation is, yes, they’re going to start making some decisions about how to move the money,” the majority leader added.
Later on Friday, the Trump administration began laying off thousands of federal workers across multiple federal agencies.
On Thursday, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, was confronted over the phone by a military spouse while taking calls from viewers on C-SPAN. He alleged that his family would not be able to pay for his children’s medications without an October 15 paycheck.
“If we see a drop in pay on the 15th, my kids won’t get the medications they need to live their lives, because we live paycheck to paycheck,” the caller told Johnson.
Johnson told the caller he was “angry about situations like yours.” He added that “Democrats are the ones who are preventing you from receiving a check.”
Meanwhile, Democrats in the House and Senate pushed last week for a vote on a standalone bill that would ensure troops were paid during the federal government shutdown.
On Friday, Johnson told House lawmakers that no votes were expected next week, extending the time House lawmakers have been out of Washington.
“Republicans have completely abdicated their responsibility to govern by canceling House votes for the third week in a row. Instead of voting on legislation to reopen the government, pay our troops, and address the Republican health crisis, they remain on vacation,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries wrote in a letter to colleagues on Saturday.
