“Military members are receiving their mid-month pay now,” a Pentagon official told the Dayton Daily News on Wednesday. But civilian employees were not being paid.
The majority of the roughly 38,000 people who work at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base are civilians.
The Defense Finance and Accounting Service said in a message on its Facebook page Tuesday that mid-month leave and earnings statements were available in myPay, an online finance account management app. Some members on the service’s Facebook page said they were paid, but not the full amounts they expected.
Little progress has been made to end the shutdown, with Republicans and Democrats digging in and convinced their messaging is resonating with voters. The fate of the federal workers is among several pressure points that could eventually push the sides to agree to resolve the stalemate.
What’s happening in Southwest Ohio
• Fairborn FISH: As federal workers approached their first week without a paycheck, the executive director of the Fairborn food pantry says she is seeing more questions and more traffic, often from military families. Fairborn FISH, at 480 W. Funderburg Road, has scheduled from 1-4 p.m. on Nov. 15 a food distribution exclusively for military families.
• Free coffee: Some local companies and individuals are stepping up to help federal workers during the shutdown. Blue Sky Coffee in Fairborn is giving away free drip coffee to those affected.
• Nuclear option: Ohio’s U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno is among Republicans openly mulling changing Senate rules to allow Republicans to end the shutdown and push through a budget without Democrat support. “Maybe it’s time to think about the filibuster,” Moreno said in an interview on Fox News. But GOP leadership doesn’t seem warm to the idea.
Other federal updates
• Federal firings: Vice President JD Vance said there will be deeper cuts to the federal workforce the longer the government shutdown goes on, adding to the uncertainty facing hundreds of thousands who are already furloughed without pay amid the shutdown. And hundreds of federal employees working on mental health services, disease outbreaks and disaster preparedness were among those hit by the Trump administration’s mass firings.
• Gaza: Israel and Hamas moved ahead on a key first step of the ceasefire agreement by freeing hostages and prisoners, raising hopes that the deal might lead to a permanent end to the two-year war that ravaged Gaza. Trump called for a new era of harmony in the Middle East during a global summit on Gaza’s future, trying to advance broader peace in the region after visiting Israel to celebrate the U.S.-brokered ceasefire with Hamas. But questions surrounding Palestinian statehood still remain unresolved.
• Charlie Kirk: Trump posthumously awarded America’s highest civilian honor to Charlie Kirk, the assassinated activist and podcaster who played an influential role in rallying young Republican voters. Receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Kirk’s behalf — on what would have been his 32nd birthday — was his widow, Erika. Kirk founded Turning Point USA in 2012 and Trump praised him as one of the key reasons he was reelected last year.
• World Cup: Trump threatened to relocate World Cup matches set to be played next year in Massachusetts, after suggesting that parts of the city had been “taken over” by unrest. Foxborough, about 30 miles from Boston, is set to stage matches as the U.S. cohosts the 2026 World Cup with Mexico and Canada. Trump was asked about Boston’s mayor, Michelle Wu, a Democrat whom he called “intelligent” but “radical left.” “We could take them away,” Trump said of the World Cup games. “I love the people of Boston and I know the games are sold out. But your mayor is not good.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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