The Pentagon confirmed to Newsweek on Friday that it has accepted a $130 million donation to help pay U.S. troops during the ongoing government shutdown, a gift President Donald Trump said came from “a friend” who wanted to assist service members.
Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a Friday email to Newsweek, "On October 23, 2025, the Department of War accepted an anonymous donation of $130 million under its general gift acceptance authority. The donation was made on the condition that it be used to offset the cost of Service members' salaries and benefits."
The statement concluded: "We are grateful for this donor's assistance after Democrats opted to withhold pay from troops." The confirmation comes one day after most Democratic senators blocked a pay extension for the U.S. military.
Why It Matters
The Pentagon's confirmation of the donation comes just after the Senate failed to pass a vote on reappropriating funds to pay U.S. military personnel and essential workers, with 54 senators voting in favor and 45 against, failing to pass the necessary threshold. The vote came after Republicans had blocked a bill proposed by Democrats that would have paid all federal workers, members of the military, and federal contractors while also blocking Trump from attempting mass layoffs during the shutdown.
The government has been shutdown since October 1, and Republicans and Democrats have been in a stalemate, trading blame back-and-forth over who caused the shutdown and seeking to garner support for resolutions to re-open the government. The GOP has a majority in the House and Senate but requires Democrat support to reach a deal.
Military pay has been a central issue, with about 1.3 million active-duty service members facing the possibility of missing a paycheck. Military members are supposed to receive accrued pay after the shutdown is over.
What To Know
Trump revealed on Thursday that a donation came from "a friend" of his who wants to stay anonymous. The Pentagon's confirmation of the large sum comes after most Democrats, with the exception of three, voted against the reappropriations bill.
The contribution covers only a fraction of the billions needed for military payroll. The Pentagon spends around $7.5 billion every two weeks in paychecks to soldiers and reservists, according to federal data reviewed by The Washington Post.
The donation, which breaks in tradition for how the military is usually funded, through Congressional appropriations, faces some legal and ethical challenges.
A spokeswoman for Senator Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, and the top Democrat on the Senate’s defense appropriations subcommittee, raised questions about how this donation "complies with the Anti Deficiency Act." The Act prohibits federal agencies from using "obligating or expending federal funds in advance or in excess of an appropriation, and from accepting voluntary services."
“In general, you may not spend money that has been donated because the Constitution and the Anti-Deficiency Act say that you can’t spend money unless you have an appropriation to make it happen,” Bobby Kogan, senior director of federal budget policy at the Center for American Progress, told The Washington Post.
Earlier this month, ahead of the first pay period during the shutdown, Trump wrote on Truth Social that he directed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth "to use all available funds to get our Troops PAID." A Defense Department official told Newsweek earlier in October, that the department “has identified approximately $8 billion of unobligated research development testing and evaluation funds (RDTE) from the prior fiscal year that will be used to issue mid-month paychecks to service members in the event the funding lapse continues past October 15th."
What People Are Saying
James Villarrubia, a former official in the White House, Department of Justice, and Department of Defense, wrote in an X post on Friday: "This is... um... super illegal."
Derrick Evans, former member of the West Virginia House and pardoned January 6, 2021, Capitol riot participant, wrote Thursday in an X post: "An anonymous billionaire just donated $130 MILLION of his PERSONAL money to pay the salaries of our military during the Democrat shutdown. Just because someone is successful does not mean they are evil. God bless whoever made this donation."
DaShanne Stokes, an author and sociologist, wrote in an X post on Friday: "Who on Earth is this anonymous ally of Trump, why is this person giving $130 million to pay the military, how is this legal, and how can this be allowed with the huge conflicts of interest this creates? Our military should not be privatized. End of story."
What Happens Next?
The current shutdown, which is the second-longest in history, is likely to continue until at least next week. If the shutdown continues, millions of Americans risk going without pay or federal assistance.
Update 10/24/25, 5:06 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with the Pentagon's comment.
Update 10/24/25, 5:52 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.
