Republican senators have questions and concerns about how President Trump is managing to pay more than 1 million military service members during the government shutdown and are demanding more information about what funds he is dipping into to achieve his political objectives.
Republican lawmakers are pleased that active-duty members of the military and their families across the country did not lose their first paycheck during the Oct. 15 shutdown, but they are disappointed that Trump once again appears to be trampling Congress’ power of the purse.
Traditionally, the White House needs to send a request to Capitol Hill to reprogram federal funding, and Appropriations Committee members need to approve it before the administration is able to move funds from programs for which they were intended.
Republican appropriators say they were not aware of the White House sending a reprogramming request to Congress before Trump ordered Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to use “all available funds” to make sure troops get their pay this week.
One Republican senator, who requested anonymity to comment on Trump’s aggressive repurposing of federal funding, said the administration has not explained its legal authority.
“This is not just a concern of appropriators, but it seems to be much broader than that,” the senator said.
The GOP lawmaker said Republican aides have asked the administration for more information about which accounts would be most affected by transferring funds to pay troops during the shutdown period and what legal authority the White House is citing to justify its action.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), chairwoman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said she is seeking more information from the White House, both on what funds are being used to cover military pay and which programs would result in their reserves being depleted.
“We’ve been given two different explanations. One, that it’s remaining unspecified. One, that it’s derived from some research and technology programs. But we don’t have specific details. We’ve asked for specific details,” Collins said.
Additionally, Collins, who faces a competitive re-election race next year, said she was “glad the troops are getting paid.”
Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) said she has concerns about Trump’s repurposing of previously appropriated federal funding without congressional input or approval.
“I think they say the military pay for this pay period comes from research and development technology [fund] But where? Is it being taken from projects that we have already identified? Maybe something really important to me. Where is this coming from? We haven’t seen that,” he said.
“Typically what will happen is you will have some type of reprogramming request,” he said, referring to a departure from the administration’s standard practice.
Senate Appropriations Committee Vice Chairwoman Patty Murray (D-Wash.) told The Hill she’s not sure whether Trump’s repurposing of the money to pay for troops is legal.
Asked what legal authority Trump used to transfer the funding, Murray responded: “I don’t know the answer to that question.”
The tug-of-war between Republican appropriators in Congress and Trump’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) over funding authority has been a source of intraparty tension throughout the year.
Some Republican senators were not at all happy when OMB Director Russell Vought introduced a pocket rescission proposal in August to roll back nearly $5 billion in foreign assistance funds previously appropriated by Congress.
A pocket revocation is designed to revoke federal funding without a vote of Congress, and many lawmakers in both parties say the maneuver is illegal. Watt testified before the Senate earlier this year that he believed Trump had the constitutional authority to use it.
Trump announced over the weekend that he would ensure members of the military get paid during the shutdown, which is stretching into its third week.
“I am using my authority as Commander in Chief to direct our Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, to use all available funds to get our troops paid on October 15,” Trump posted on Truth Social.
“We have identified funds to do this,” he said.
The Pentagon identified $8 billion in unspent research, test and evaluation money to keep troops paid during the early weeks of the shutdown.
Some Republican senators are concerned that the Trump administration could take over other federal programs when it decided to use it this week.
Trump signed a memorandum on Wednesday expanding his administration’s authority to repurpose unspent funds to pay service members during the shutdown.
Democrats immediately raised questions about whether Trump’s sweeping authority claims are legitimate.
Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.) said Trump’s reallocation of federal funding was “probably not legal.”
In an interview with CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday, Himes said that “the White House’s understanding of the law of the United States” was “quite tentative to say the least.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-D.) said Trump was pulling money for troops from areas of the budget that would be “made up” at a later date.
“Where they’re trying to figure out where some of the funding is outside of the budget areas, obviously they’ll offset that and pay it back,” he said.
“These are decisions that are forced upon you when the government is shut down, which is why no one wins with a government shutdown,” he said.
“Here we are, the administration is having to make some tough decisions. Obviously, paying the troops is a big priority for them. It should be a priority for all of us,” he said.
“The longer this drags on, the more complex the decision-making process will become. They are clearly going to have to make decisions about where to put money, where not to put money and which departments and agencies will be given priority and which will not,” he said.
Senator Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), a member of the Appropriations Committee who is up for re-election next year and received Trump’s key endorsement ahead of the 2026 GOP primary in his state, defended Trump’s use of executive authority to shift funding to pay military service members.
He said Trump has the authority to reappropriate the funds “because we’re operating under a continuing resolution right now.”
“The continuing resolution does not have the built-in specifics limiting the movement of funds that an appropriations bill would have,” he said, noting that the funding authority set to expire Oct. 1 was provided by a continuing resolution passed in March that extended funding levels enacted under former President Biden.
But other GOP senators are skeptical of that argument.
“I’ve heard it, but I don’t know where it comes from,” said the GOP senator, requesting anonymity, raising questions about the exact legal authority for such a claim.
The Hill contacted the White House for comment.
