EXCLUSIVE — The government shutdown and its impacts on payments for United States troops are the focus of House Republicans‘ campaign arm’s new ad, targeting vulnerable Democrats as mudslinging between the parties amps up with no funding solution in sight.
The National Republican Congressional Committee launched a modest paid advertisement targeting the 26 vulnerable House Democratic seats the campaign arm wants to flip in the 2026 midterm elections, in which the GOP is defending a razor-thin majority.
The government shutdown will be a temperature test to see whether the GOP trifecta is losing favor with voters, a trend that presidents and congressional leaders historically face as an administration’s policies and agenda fall into place. It will also determine how long Democrats will appease their base and stand up to President Donald Trump, or if a handful will ultimately fold, as they did in March.
Republicans and Democrats have been eager to blame each other for the stalled negotiations, with the shutdown lasting 15 days as of Wednesday.
The release of the NRCC’s ad, shared first with the Washington Examiner, coincides with the day that nearly 1.3 million active-duty military personnel were set to miss their first paycheck since the start of the shutdown, before the Office of Management and Budget said it would pay troops using already-appropriated research and development funds within defense spending.
“While our troops stand guard, Democrats shut down the government,” the ad states. “They deserve better than being used as pawns in Democrats’ games. But because of Democrats’ shutdown, our troops’ paychecks are at risk. Leaving their families wondering how to afford groceries, rent, or childcare.”
“While our military shows up to the front lines to do their jobs, Democrats refuse to do theirs,” the ad continues. “It’s a betrayal, dereliction of duty. Tell Democrats: Stand with our troops. Stop the shutdown.”
Of the 26 vulnerable Democrats being hit by the ad, 10 are considered toss-up races by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report. Republicans have eight toss-up seats heading into 2026, and Democrats only need a net gain of three seats to win the majority.
Prior to OMB directing funds to pay the troops, Democrats and several Republicans were calling on Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) to bring a stand-alone bill, the Pay Our Troops Act, to the floor for a vote. But the speaker repeatedly rejected this idea, stating it would be a “show vote” and that he already gave Democrats a chance to pay the troops: the GOP continuing resolution that is stalling in the Senate.
Democrats attempted to pass Rep. Emilia Sykes’s (D-OH) “Pay Our Military Act” during a pro forma session last week, but the presiding Republican, Rep. Mike Bost (R-IL), blocked this motion by refusing to recognize Rep. Sarah Elfreth (D-MD).
“The NRCC should ask Speaker Johnson why he won’t allow the House to come to work and vote on a bipartisan bill to pay the troops — which Democrats have attempted multiple times to get a vote on, only to be rebuffed by the Speaker,” Viet Shelton, spokesperson for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said in a statement to the Washington Examiner. “It’s pretty distasteful that Republicans are playing political games with our service members’ livelihoods. They should come back to D.C. and get to work.”
Johnson dared Democrats on Tuesday to challenge the Trump administration’s decision to pay the military through repurposed funds.
“My understanding of this is they have every right to move the funds around, dually appropriated dollars from Congress to the Department of Defense,” Johnson said at a press conference on Tuesday.
“If the Democrats want to go to court and challenge troops being paid, bring it,” Johnson added.
When asked whether Congress needs to greenlight the White House’s decision to use previously appropriated funds to pay the troops, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) told reporters, “Ultimately, all of those funds need to be replenished. That will happen when the government gets reopened.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) dodged on Wednesday whether the administration’s loophole to pay the troops specifically was exacerbating the president’s ability to go around Congress, but noted that in previous shutdowns, funding has been allocated to ensure programs like Women, Infants, and Children have the resources they need to keep operating.
“I agree with making sure that our men and women in uniform, our active duty troops, are paid,” Jeffries responded when asked if he agreed with OMB’s strategy.
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With the pressure point of military personnel funding removed, Democrats are now opening themselves up to attacks from Republicans that they voted to shut down the government and threatened the paychecks of the troops, while Republicans point to their administration leading the direction to funnel money to offset those consequences.
“Out of touch House Democrats pulled a partisan stunt to appease their radical base while throwing our brave men and women in uniform under the bus,” NRCC spokesman Mike Marinella said in a statement. “Voters won’t forgive this betrayal.”
