Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says U.S. won't be able to pay military by Nov. 15 amid government shutdown

Scott Bessent, the Secretary of the Treasury, announced on Sunday that if the government shutdown goes on, service personnel will not get paid by November 15. This is despite the Trump administration’s earlier promises that military members will still get paid during the funding lapse.

“I think we’ll be able to pay them starting in November, but by November 15, our troops and service members who are willing to risk their lives won’t be able to get paid,” Bessent said on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan.”

Earlier this month, President Trump told the Pentagon to use unspent research and development funds to pay the military. About $8 billion from the previous fiscal year was found to cover the mid-month salaries. But authorities have said that this was only a short-term solution and that if the shutdown goes on, military members might not get their next paychecks at the end of the month and beyond.

Bessent said that military members will get their next salary, but he also said that if the shutdown goes on, the U.S. won’t be able to pay them until mid-November.

Bessent stated, “What an embarrassment,” and blamed Democratic leaders in Congress, saying they are “worried about their primaries, not the American people.” Democrats and Republicans have been at a standstill for weeks on how to pay for the government. Democrats want health insurance tax credits to be extended as a condition for reopening the government. Republicans have made it clear that they are open to talking about health care, but only after the government reopens. This is despite Democrats’ repeated calls for talks.

When asked if the president could meet with congressional leaders after Democrats asked for it last week, Bessent answered, “I don’t know what good it does.”

Bessent said, “This is a boycott led by Democrats, and I’m not sure what they’re doing.”

The treasury secretary said that the closure is “starting to affect the economy.” He challenged moderate Democrats to “be heroes” and vote for the House-passed legislation to reopen the government, which has failed to get the 60 votes it needs in the Senate a dozen times. Hakeem Jeffries, the House Minority Leader, also said on “Face the Nation” on Sunday that “there is an urgent need to reopen the government.”

Jeffries, a Democrat from New York, said, “That’s why we keep asking Republicans to sit down at the negotiating table so we can reach a spending agreement that both parties can agree on.” “That’s what we’ve been asking for from the start.”

Jeffries argued that Democrats “need action, not just words” or a “wing and a prayer promise” from Republicans when it comes to health care.

Source: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/treasury-secretary-scott-bessent-military-paychecks-government-shutdown/

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