Dems Move To ‘Stonewall’ Payments To Troops Amidst Government Shutdown, Johnson Says
Published 14 minutes ago
on October 15, 2025
By Cullen McCue
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) warned during a press conference Wednesday that the Trump Administration’s move to provide paychecks and services to military members and their families during the ongoing, Democrat-led government shutdown is only a temporary bandaid that is under increasing threat of being discontinued.
While the shutdown is showing no signs of ending anytime soon despite reports of potential Democrat defections from Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s blockade, the Trump Administration has granted active duty troops temporary relief by rerouting existing Pentagon funds to ensure they receive a paycheck.
“The problem we have right now is that, in spite of President Trump’s heroic efforts to make sure they get paid, that is a temporary fix,” Johnson told reporters.
“The executive branch, his help, is not permanent. It can’t be,” he added. “And if the Democrats continue to vote to keep the government closed as they have done so many times, then we know U.S. troops are going to risk missing a full paycheck at the end of this month.”
The House passed a temporary funding measure, known as a continuing resolution (CR), on September 19. The measure would keep the government funded through November 21 in order to continue discussions on a comprehensive deal on fiscal year 2026 spending.
In order to pass in the Senate, the measure would require 60 votes. As of this report, just three Democrats have voted with Republicans to end the shutdown. The rest of the caucus has remained with Schumer in hopes of attaining a number of legislative wishlist items, including an extension of Obama-era Affordable Care Act (ACA) credits that are set to expire in 2026.
The shutdown has led to thousands of government employees being either laid off or furloughed. Both furloughed government employees and those deemed “essential,” including active-duty troops, typically do not receive paychecks while shutdowns are in effect.
Johnson stated that congressional Republicans are committed to protecting federal law enforcement and troop pay, noting that “if there is a mechanism to do that, they will find it.”
“The reason that the way they were able to get the troops paid for this paycheck — and as I said, this is not an enduring solution, because we will run out of the funds — but there was some unspent funds in, effectively, R&D accounts in defense,” Johnson said.
“They moved that over to prioritize payment of those who are putting their lives on the line today and who have families in serious situations,” he added.
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