"The notion that people whose identity we don't know are paying for our troops is humiliating for the country and is potentially dangerous," David Super said.

Senate Democrats block a measure to pay essential federal workers as the government shutdown grinds into its fourth week.

President Donald Trump said a friend of his, who he did not name, gave a $130 million gift to the Pentagon during the government shutdown.

While the Constitution makes it clear how President Donald Trump and Congress get paid during a government shutdown, without a Senate vote to reopen the government until at least Tuesday, Oct. 13, the military was set to go without pay on Oct. 15.

Military retirees and disabled veterans will receive 2.8% increases to their monthly paychecks for 2026, thanks to the annual Cost of Living Adjustment, or COLA, tied to inflation. The 2.8% raise for 2026 is up from 2.5 % in 2025 after a string of raises as high as 8.7% in 2023.