President Donald Trump announced Saturday that he has directed the Pentagon to ensure military personnel receive their scheduled payments next week, despite the ongoing government shutdown that has left numerous federal employees working without compensation.
Trump stated he instructed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to utilize all available resources to ensure service members are paid by October 15. The president placed responsibility for the funding impasse on congressional Democrats, now stretching into its second week.
Writing on Truth Social, Trump declared he would not permit Democrats to use the military and national security as leverage in what he characterized as a dangerous government shutdown.
The shutdown began after the September 30 funding deadline passed without resolution. Senate Democrats have consistently blocked Republican attempts to pass a spending measure that would reopen federal agencies.
The central dispute centers on Republican opposition to including provisions that would extend health insurance subsidies set to expire, which currently benefit approximately 24 million Americans.
As a result of the shutdown, hundreds of thousands of government employees have either been placed on unpaid leave or designated as essential workers required to report without compensation.
Roughly 1.3 million active-duty military members faced missing their next paycheck scheduled for Wednesday. This would mark an unprecedented occurrence, as military personnel have historically received payment during previous government shutdowns.
On Friday, the White House announced it had initiated widespread layoffs of federal workers as Trump intensified efforts to pressure Democratic lawmakers into ending the shutdown, which has significantly disrupted public services.
According to court documents filed in response to legal challenges, the administration plans to terminate approximately 4,000 employees across multiple government departments.
