❓WHAT HAPPENED: Vice President J.D. Vance announced that U.S. military service members will receive their paychecks this week despite the ongoing government shutdown.
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Vice President J.D. Vance, GOP senators, and Congressional Democrats.
📍WHEN & WHERE: Amid the fourth week of the federal government shutdown, with discussions ongoing in Washington, D.C.
💬KEY QUOTE: “We do think that we can continue paying the troops, at least for now.” – J.D. Vance
🎯IMPACT: Military service members will receive paychecks this Friday, but broader funding issues remain unresolved as Democrats and Republicans remain at odds over a continuing resolution.
Vice President J.D. Vance has announced that U.S. military service members will be paid this week despite the ongoing government shutdown. The Republican-led Senate had attempted to pass legislation last week ensuring that both military members and other federal employees required to work during the shutdown would continue to receive pay. However, the measure was blocked by Democrats.
“We do think that we can continue paying the troops, at least for now,” Vance stated after meeting with Republican senators. He also noted that food stamp benefits (SNAP) are nearing expiration and emphasized the need for cooperation from Democrats to keep essential operations running. “We just need the Democrats to actually help us out,” Vance added.
While troops will receive paychecks this Friday, Vance criticized Democrats for opposing Republican efforts to pass a clean continuing resolution (CR) that would maintain government funding at current levels. “Unfortunately, we’re not going to be able to pay everybody because we’ve been handed a very bad hand by the Democrats,” he explained.
Earlier in October, the Trump administration took similar measures to ensure military pay by reallocating $8 billion from military research and development accounts. However, the source of future funding remains uncertain as the shutdown continues.
The Senate GOP has repeatedly proposed a clean CR, but Democrats have largely rejected it, instead pushing for a resolution that includes provisions to extend expiring Obamacare subsidies and increase federal healthcare funding for illegal immigrants. The federal government is now in its fourth week of the shutdown, with no clear resolution in sight.
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