Jan 19, 2018

How a shutdown would affect the military

Haley Britzky

A senior administration official said Friday night that 1.3 million military personnel in the U.S. and overseas wouldn‘t be paid until after a shutdown ends, in the event that the Senate does not pass a spending bill by midnight tonight.

Why it matters: The estimate is a way for the Trump administration to play up the most painful effects of a shutdown, which they would blame on the Democrats. President Trump tweeted on Thursday that a government shutdown "will be devastating to our military," and on Tuesday said "the biggest loser" in a shutdown "will be our rapidly rebuilding Military."

Senior administration officials also said that the president’s activities in an official capacity would not be restricted by a shutdown, as they are "based on his exercise of his constitutional responsibility."

Officials also said that work on Trump's budget would not be continued during a shut down.
IT and IT security services would continue operating by doing "what is necessary to protect either the IT systems or the information they house."
Generally, mandatory spending programs like Medicare and Social Security will continue uninterrupted.

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How a shutdown would affect the military

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