President Donald Trump ordered Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth to use “all available funds” to pay the military on Oct. 15 as the government shutdown continues.
Many government employees, the military, and others have gone without pay since the shutdown began on Oct. 1.
“Chuck Schumer recently said, ‘Every day gets better’ during their Radical Left Shutdown. I DISAGREE! If nothing is done, because of ‘Leader’ Chuck Schumer and the Democrats, our Brave Troops will miss the paychecks they are rightfully due on October 15th,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post Saturday afternoon, referring to a statement Schumer made earlier this week.
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“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,” he added.
“We have identified funds to do this, and Secretary Hegseth will use them to PAY OUR TROOPS. I will not allow the Democrats to hold our Military, and the entire Security of our Nation, HOSTAGE, with their dangerous Government Shutdown,” he wrote. “The Radical Left Democrats should OPEN THE GOVERNMENT, and then we can work together to address Healthcare, and many other things that they want to destroy.”
Congress had legislation, the Pay Our Troops Act of 2026, in the works to do the same thing. Trump’s order will likely get the job done faster, but potentially prolong the government shutdown.
The lack of troop pay is usually a pressure point for government shutdowns to end. Trump does not specify whether he would pay troops beyond Oct. 15.
The money for the troop’s paychecks likely comes from the Big Beautiful Bill Act’s defense spending. The Congressional Budget Office told the Associated Press such a move was possible.
“The Administration also could decide to use mandatory funding provided in the 2025 reconciliation act or other sources of mandatory funding to continue activities financed by those direct appropriations at various agencies,” CBO said.
Some of the Pentagon’s money “could be used to pay active-duty personnel during a shutdown, thus reducing the number of expected workers who would receive delayed compensation,” CBO wrote in a letter responding to questions from Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA).
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The U.S. has around 1.3 million active-duty service members who were previously set to miss their first paycheck on Oct. 15 before Trump’s order. Food pantries had seen an uptick in visits from military members since the shutdown began, signaling the preparation of military families for economic hardship.
The Senate is not expected to vote on a government funding bill until Tuesday of next week, guaranteeing the government shutdown lasts at least two weeks.
