(NewsNation) — President Trump on Thursday said a friend of his cut a check to the federal government for $130 million to help pay any budgetary shortfall the U.S. military faces amid the ongoing shutdown.
“That’s what I call a patriot,” Trump said during a roundtable at the White House. The president said the individual did not wish to be named.
The announcement came as a reporter asked Trump about federal workers’ paychecks during a congressional impasse that has shut down portions of the government and delayed payments to employees. Trump then brought up the multimillion-dollar donation.
According to the president, the unnamed individual told him, “I’d like to contribute, personally contribute, any shortfall you have with the military, because I love the military and I love the country. And any shortfall, if there’s a shortfall, I’ll contribute it.”
“And today, he sent us a check for $130 million,” Trump added.
A Department of War spokesperson later said the donation would go toward offsetting the cost of salaries and benefits for servicemembers, as the donor specified.
Annual payroll for the Pentagon totals about $236 billion, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
Earlier this month, Trump directed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to use all of the Pentagon’s “available funds” to go toward paying military service members during the government shutdown. A department spokesperson told The Hill then that about $8 billion, including research funds, had been identified to use for mid-month paychecks.