The Trump administration will use a $130 million donation from a mystery ally to pay troops during the government shutdown, the Department of War has confirmed.
‘On October 23, 2025, the Department of War accepted an anonymous donation of $130 million under its general gift acceptance authority,’ Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement. ‘The donation was made on the condition that it be used to offset the cost of Service members’ salaries and benefits.’
Parnell went on to say that they are grateful for the donor’s help after ‘Democrats opted to withhold pay from troops.’
Trump made the announcement about the donation on Thursday, saying that a ‘friend’ offered the money out of a sense of patriotism.
‘He called us the other day and said, ‘I’d like to contribute any shortfall you have because of the Democrat shutdown. I’d like to contribute personally, because I love the military and I love the country,” Trump said Thursday.
How troops can legally use these funds remains unclear – Congress may need to be involved to get the money into service members’ hands.
‘While the government may accept general donations that go toward general funds available to the government, Congress is the one who must appropriate that money to go toward federal employees’ salaries,’ Romina Boccia, the director of budget and entitlement policy at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank in Washington, told Fox News Digital.
‘The department is welcome to acknowledge this donor’s intent but that does not change the legal restrictions on Congress needing to appropriate funds to pay military salaries,’ Boccia added.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth speaks at the United States Marine Corps 250th birthday celebration at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on October 18
According to Defense Department regulations, donations exceeding $10,000 that support service members or their families must first undergo an ethics review.
This is to confirm that the donor has no significant interests that could be influenced by the gift.
The guidelines also add that there is stricter review for donations that have foreign origins.
‘That’s crazy,’ said Max Stier, president and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service, a nonpartisan organization focused on the federal government.
‘It’s treating the payment of our uniformed services as if someone’s picking up your bar tab.’
He questioned the legality of the donation and called for more transparency around it.
On Thursday, Senate Republicans introduced a proposal to continue pay for active-duty service members, along with other federal employees who are still working regardless of the shutdown.
This effort was blocked by most Democrats, who claimed that the plan failed to provide relief for furloughed workers.
Members of the California National Guard stand guard at the loading dock of the Roybal Federal Building in downtown Los Angeles, on June 12
Several new measures focused on military compensation are expected to come before Congress next week.
White House officials did not specify the process or destination for how this donation would be allocated within the federal treasury.
Congress is at a stalemate over the government shutdown, now on track to become one of the longest federal closures ever, in its 24th day.
Neither Republicans, who have control of the House and Senate, nor Democrats, in the minority, are willing to budge in their broader standoff over health care funding.
Payment for service members is a key concern among lawmakers of both parties as well as a point of political leverage.
The Trump administration shifted $8 billion from military research and development funds to make payroll last week, ensuring that military compensation did not lapse.
But it is unclear if the Trump administration will be willing – or able – to shift money again next week as tensions rise over the protracted shutdown.
