Johnson dares Democrats to challenge Trump’s move to pay military
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) dared Democrats on Tuesday to challenge President Trump’s administration move to repurpose previously appropriated funds to pay service members during the government shutdown.
“If the Democrats want to go to court and challenge troops being paid, bring it. OK,” Johnson said during a press conference at the Capitol.
The Speaker said his understanding was that the administration had “every right” to move funds that had been appropriated by Congress to the Department of Defense, including research and development accounts that had not been spent and that could be used for military pay.
Trump over the weekend directed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to utilize previously appropriated funding to ensure troops are paid as the government shutdown drags on. The move also helped Johnson, who had faced pressure to call the House back to vote on a stand-alone legislation that would secure paychecks for service members.
Some Democrats and policy analysts argued that the administration’s maneuver is likely illegal.
Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.) said Sunday while on CBS’s “Face the Nation” that the administration’s plan was “probably not” legal.
“I think to pay the military during a shutdown would require legislation. The Speaker of the House has taken that off the table,” Himes said. “So, I mean, is Donald Trump going to say a bunch of stuff? Yes, he’s going to say a bunch of stuff. But I don’t see anything moving.”
A Defense Department official said Saturday the department identified about “$8 billion of unobligated research development testing and evaluation funds (RDTE) from the prior fiscal year that will be used to issue mid-month paychecks to service members” if the government does not reopen by Oct. 15.
Romina Boccia, the director of budget and entitlement policy at the Cato Institute, told The Hill on Monday that “technically speaking, Congress can rescind unobligated balances and repurpose them,” but “for the administration to repurpose funds unilaterally is likely illegal.”
“An unobligated balance does not give the administration the right to use the money as it wishes. If Congress wants to ensure that America’s troops will be paid during the ongoing government shutdown, Congress should pass a bill that authorizes funding to pay the troops,” Boccia added.
Johnson praised Trump’s decision to ensure troops are paid and hammered Senate Democrats for voting against the GOP-led continuing resolution.
“I’m grateful for a commander in chief who understands the priorities of the country, the necessity of national defense and the urgency that we all feel and have voted for eight times,” Johnson said on Tuesday.
“Republicans have voted in Congress eight times now, between House and Senate, to fund the troops and pay federal workers in all these essential jobs and agencies, because we understand the necessity of that,” the Speaker added. “Meanwhile, the Democrats voted eight times to block their paychecks. I’m grateful we have a president who is willing to step up and do the right thing.”