Andy Biggs Praises Trump for Military Pay During Shutdown

Rep. Andy Biggs praised President Donald Trump's intervention to ensure military paychecks were delivered as the federal government shutdown reaches Day 16.

"The Schumer Shutdown would've cost our troops a paycheck today. But thanks to President Trump, our service men and women got paid," Biggs wrote on X. "While the Democrats are busy playing politics, President Trump put our troops first."

Over the weekend, President Donald Trump instructed the Pentagon to reallocate $6.5 billion from unspent funds to cover active-duty military pay. 

The move ensured approximately 1.3 million service members received their October 15 paychecks on time. However, more than 32,000 full-time uniformed members of the National Guard and Reserve remain furloughed without pay.

Funding

House Speaker Mike Johnson held a press conference this week with House GOP leadership, highlighting the Pentagon funding shift while warning that the military's October 31 pay could still be affected if the government remains closed.

"Republicans want to pay the troops, and we have shown that with our actions and our votes now nine times," Johnson said in a statement. "And the Democrats want to use them as hostages to extort $1.5 trillion in new unserious partisan spending that we just won't go along with."

Johnson pointed out that six of the ten states with the most significant military populations are represented by two Democratic senators, describing it as an "irony" that these lawmakers are "withholding the paychecks."

"Today, if it weren't for the bold leadership of President Trump helping us to protect our military, everyone needs to understand that 1.3 million active-duty service members would be missing a paycheck," Johnson said.

The Senate has voted ten times on a House-passed measure to reopen the government, failing each time to reach the 60 votes needed to advance. 

Senate GOP leaders are pursuing alternative funding strategies, including a full-year Pentagon appropriations bill that will be voted on Thursday afternoon.