By Sam Barron | Wednesday, 08 October 2025 07:44 PM EDT
President Donald Trump told reporters Wednesday that a standalone bill to ensure military service members receive pay during a government shutdown “probably will happen,” despite House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., stating he would not call for such a vote. “Yeah, that probably will happen,” Trump said. “We don’t have to worry about it yet. That’s a long time. You know what one week is for me? An eternity. One week for me is a long time. We’ll take care of it. Our military is always going to be taken care of.”
Approximately 1.3 million active-duty military personnel face missed paychecks if Congress fails to pass a bill or end the shutdown by Oct. 15. Johnson previously told reporters he would not seek a separate vote, arguing the House had already addressed the issue in a continuing resolution and urging Senate Democrats to act. “Of course, we want to pay our troops and our air traffic controllers and our border patrol agents and TSA [Transportation Security Administration], and everybody else,” Johnson said. “We did have that vote in the House.”
Johnson has criticized Democrats for blocking a clean stopgap funding measure to keep the government operating while spending negotiations continue. “Democrats claim they want to negotiate, but that is already happening in a bipartisan, bicameral fashion,” he stated. He suggested Senate Democrats could approve the House-passed stopgap to reopen government and extend time for a full spending plan.
In a letter, 10 House Democrats urged Johnson to reconvene the House before next Wednesday, while Rep. Jen Kiggans, R-Va., called on Republican leadership to pass legislation ensuring troops are paid during the shutdown. “Military pay should not be held hostage due to Washington’s dysfunction,” Kiggans said in a statement. Sam Barron has nearly two decades of experience covering politics, crime, and business.
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