Despite insisting that President Donald Trump's methods for paying military service members and funding a major federal nutrition program during the government shutdown are illegal, Democrats reportedly are not expected to put up a major fight.
The Trump administration plans to divert $8 billion in previously approved military research and development funds to ensure U.S. troops receive their pay on Oct. 15, even as the shutdown drags into its third week, according to Reuters and Politico.
The White House also is redirecting tariff revenue to temporarily fund the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), which serves more than 6 million low-income mothers and children.
While Democrats have called Trump's redistribution actions "clearly illegal," many are reluctant to challenge them, Axios reported Wednesday.
"Only Congress has the authority to appropriate money to a federal expenditure," Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., told Axios.
"It's not like a big, fungible fund of money that Donald Trump can take from here and put over there."
Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., said it's "almost certainly illegal to move money around," but acknowledged that a court challenge is "politically tricky."
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., disagreed with the Democrats.
"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 during a Wednesday press conference.
"They'll get their check thankfully, because President Trump has shown strong leadership and under his direction, the Department of War has now redirected unspent funds to ensure that our troops are taken care of. And this is while Democrats are playing political games."
Some Democrats admitted they support the underlying goals, even if they oppose Trump's methods.
"We would've voted for it if it came up [in Congress]," Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Wis., said of paying military members.
Rep. Greg Landsman, D-Ohio, added, "Yes, it's chaotic and yes, it's illegal, but you don't want to see anyone get hurt."
Trump's directive removes one of the key pressure points that could have forced Congress to end the shutdown and act.
The administration has not detailed the funding source, though the Congressional Budget Office noted that Pentagon funds or mandatory appropriations could be used to pay active-duty personnel during a shutdown.
On Tuesday, Johnson praised Trump's move and dared Democrats to challenge it.
"If the Democrats want to go to court and challenge troops being paid, bring it," Johnson said during a press conference, adding that the administration has "every right" to reallocate funds.
Johnson has also blasted Senate Democrats for "holding troops' paychecks hostage," noting that six of the 10 states with the largest active-duty populations are represented by two Democrat senators.
"Democrat obstruction means troops will miss a full paycheck at the end of the month," Johnson warned.
A White House official last week told Axios the WIC decision was a "creative solution" to prevent "impoverished mothers and their babies" from losing benefits.
"The Trump White House will not allow impoverished mothers and their babies to go hungry because of the Democrats' political games," press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a post on X.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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