Trump redirects Pentagon funds to pay troops as Iowa Guard civilians wait for paychecks

President Donald Trump’s move to fund military paychecks during the federal government shutdown means Iowa National Guard service members — including those deployed overseas — will continue to be paid this month, Guard officials confirmed late Tuesday.

Jackie Schmillen, director of public affairs for the Iowa National Guard, said that under direction from the president: “Service Members will continue to receive pay during this pay period.” That includes those currently deployed, the state’s Active Guard and Reserve force, and 19 Iowa National Guard soldiers serving under Title 32 Section 502(f) orders, providing clerical, logistics and administrative support to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations in Iowa. Under Title 32, Guard members remain under state control but receive federal funding.

The administration identified Pentagon research and development funds to be redirected to pay military troops before a Wednesday deadline when service members were set to start missing paychecks, the White House Office of Management and Budget told CNN. Nationally, about 1.3 million active-duty troops and hundreds of thousands of Guard members were at risk of missing their next paycheck.

However, roughly 700 Iowa National Guard federal technicians — including about 600 dual-status uniformed technicians and 100 civilian employees — will not be paid during the shutdown, Schmillen said. Those workers, who maintain and support military operations at armories and facilities statewide, will receive back pay once Congress passes a funding bill.

“We understand that this situation may create financial strain for some individuals and families,” Schmillen said, noting that Soldier and Family Readiness Specialists are available to help connect affected personnel to state or federal assistance programs. The Guard’s State Emergency Assistance Fund also remains open to provide emergency financial support.

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The Gazette previously reported that about two-thirds of the Iowa Guard’s 1,000 federal civilian employees had been furloughed when the shutdown began earlier this month. Operations and training have continued across Iowa installations, including at the Cedar Rapids Armory, where units still were scheduled to drill later this week.

A bipartisan “Pay Our Troops Act” to ensure service members’ pay during shutdowns remains stalled in Congress.

Those needing assistance can contact the Iowa National Guard’s Soldier and Family Readiness office at (515) 252-4781.

The federal government partially shut down Oct. 1 after lawmakers failed to resolve a budget deadlock, halting some federal operations and putting about 750,000 employees on unpaid leave.

Now entering its third week, the shutdown shows no signs of ending as Republicans and Democrats remain entrenched in a political standoff over federal spending priorities.

Republicans argue that Democrats should back the short-term funding bill the GOP-controlled House passed last month to reopen the government, saying policy disputes should be handled separately. They accuse Democrats of “holding the government hostage” to unrelated demands.

Democrats, meanwhile, are insisting that any funding package include renewed subsidies under the Affordable Care Act, arguing that millions of Americans face steep premium hikes if the aid expires. The popular health care provision has divided Republicans but united Democrats, who see it as a winning issue that highlights GOP opposition to affordable coverage.

President Donald Trump has used the shutdown to carry out mass layoffs of furloughed federal workers, describing it as an “unprecedented opportunity” to shrink the federal bureaucracy — a long-standing conservative goal. The White House has said the administration is reviewing agencies to identify “nonessential” positions that could be permanently eliminated.

Among those federal workers fired over the weekend are hundreds of U.S. Department of Health and Human Services employees working on mental health services, disease outbreaks and disaster preparedness, the Associated Press reported.

Iowa Republican U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, a 24-year Army veteran, has been outspoken about the shutdown, accusing Democrats of voting to “deny paychecks to our troops and those who keep us safe.”

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Miller-Meeks, along with Iowa’s other GOP House members, has requested to forgo her congressional pay during the funding lapse. Speaking at a Johnson County Republican Women event Monday, she said her decision was shaped by her own family’s experience living paycheck to paycheck during her father’s military service.

“It is your moral and ethical duty to fund the government. It is your moral and ethical duty to make sure some family of some service member deployed isn't waiting to know, can they pay the rent? Can they pay the mortgage? Can they pay the car payment? Can they pay for their kids’ school lunch?” Miller-Meeks said. “ … So don't give me your politics. Give me your action. Get off your high horses. Get off your lofty pedestal. Open up the government. You have the power to do it, and you should be putting people over politics.”

Democrats, meanwhile, accuse Iowa’s all-Republican House delegation of refusing to negotiate or return to Washington to help end the shutdown. In a statement, Iowa Democratic Party chair Rita Hart said GOP lawmakers “are treating this shutdown like a vacation” while attending political fundraisers instead of working toward a deal.

“Randy Feenstra, Ashley Hinson, Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Zach Nunn should be working with their Republican colleagues to find a deal to open the government and prevent a spike in Iowans’ health care premiums,” Hart said.

The Senate on Tuesday voted for the eighth time to reject the GOP’s stopgap measure, falling short of the 60 votes needed to advance. Another vote was scheduled for Wednesday, but there has been no sign of movement toward a compromise.

Both parties appear to believe they have more to gain politically by holding firm. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., warned this week that the nation may be “barreling toward one of the longest shutdowns in American history.”

Comments: (319) 398-8499; tom.barton@thegazette.com