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Mike Johnson: “Democrats want to use [U.S. troops] as hostages to extort…”

Featuring: Mike Johnson, Republican | Speaker of the United States House of Representatives | National

Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown

Published October 15, 2025 | Video Starts at 04:09

And here are the indisputable facts of this shutdown. Republicans want to pay the troops and we have shown that with our actions and our votes now nine times. And the Democrats want to use [U.S. troops] as hostages to extort $1.5 trillion in new unserious partisan spending. that we just won't go along with. We won't Sell out the long term security and future of the United States so that Chuck Schumer can prevent a primary challenge from his left wing. (04:09–07:55)

CLAIM

Asserts that Democrats are using troops as leverage for $1.5 trillion in spending.

This is an excerpt from a raw transcript. The assertions have not been audited or verified. Tap the video to view the source footage and understand the context.

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Mike Johnson

“1.3 million active duty service members would be missing a paycheck [without President Trump's intervention].”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 00:28-00:40
“Of the 10 states with the largest military populations, six are represented each by two Democrats in the Senate who are withholding the…”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 03:27-03:36
“Over one third of all men and women who serve in uniform right now, over one third of them live paycheck to paycheck.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 04:32-04:35
“Almost zero illegal crossings in the last four months.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 42:13-42:17
“Chuck Schumer wants to defund our troops.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 01:49-01:58
“Democrats in Congress have voted nine times to block the pay of troops and Capitol Police.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 01:49-01:58
“Democrats that were for and continue to be for defunding our police now want to defund our military troops by not paying them.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 01:49-01:58
“Democrats have voted, counting the House and the Senate Democrats, they have voted to not pay the troops.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 01:51-01:58
“Chuck Schumer is voting to deny them pay.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 01:57-02:01
“Democrats continue to vote to keep the government closed.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 02:18-02:21
“California is home to 157,000 active duty personnel, the most in the country.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 03:36-03:41
“Virginia is home to 119,000 active duty personnel, it is the second most in the country.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 04:36-04:40
“Georgia is home to 65,000 active duty personnel, it's the sixth most in the country.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 05:00-05:04
“The state of Washington is home to 57,000 active duty personnel, it is the seventh most in the country.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 05:36-05:40
“Hawaii is home to 43,000 active duty personnel, it is the eighth most in the country.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 06:00-06:03
“Colorado is home to 35,000 active duty personnel, the 10th most in the country.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 06:22-06:28
“New York is home to 17,000 active duty personnel, the 17th most in the country.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 06:45-06:54
“US Troops are going to risk missing a full paycheck at the end of this month [if the shutdown continues].”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 06:53-06:58
“Democrats say that even missed paychecks for U.S. troops won't be enough to end this shutdown.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 07:15-07:23
“Republicans want to pay the troops and we have shown that with our actions and our votes now nine times.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 07:36-07:44
“One and a half trillion dollars in new unrelated spending Chuck Schumer demanded.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 07:43-07:55
“Chuck Schumer guts the $50 billion rural hospital fund to give taxpayer funded health benefits to illegals in his hostage demands.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 07:43-07:55
“Chuck Schumer filed weeks ago. His demands that he said have to be met before he'll even open up the government again.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 07:54-39:25
“Chuck Schumer is more afraid of the radical leftists in his own party than he is concerned about making sure that those families don't have…”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 07:54-08:02
“We have a House Ethics committee. If it warrants that, I'm sure they'll look into [the ethical violation].”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 35:12-35:17
“Corey Mills was accused of beating a girlfriend in his D.C. apartment.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 35:20-35:24
“He was accused of stolen valor by the people that he claimed to have [saved].”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 35:23-35:27
“The record said that he did not save them.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 35:28-35:30
“We've always stood with Capitol Police and law enforcement and we've shown that in word and deed.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 36:16-36:21
“No one on the Republican side is taking any pleasure in this [government shutdown] scenario.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 36:34-36:39
“We don't shut the government down, turn off the funding streams and then require all these cuts like this.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 36:44-36:52
“They have to figure out in triage what are the most essential services, personnel policies and what are not.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 37:03-37:10
“We prioritize troops and law enforcement.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 37:26-37:29
“There were some unspent funds in effectively R and D accounts in defense.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 37:41-37:46
“Our appropriators have been hard at work even during the shutdown.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 38:30-38:34
“In the House we passed all 12 separate appropriations bills through Committee 3 off the floor.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 38:35-38:41
“Democrats continued, led by Chuck Schumer to shut down the government and deny troop pay.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 39:20-39:25
“The clean CR that we passed over to the Senate does not resolve those differences.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 39:47-40:00
“The appropriators determined together that [the CR] should be clean.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 39:59-40:07
“We sent a bill over to the Senate that doesn't resolve all of our differences.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 40:06-40:13
“Leader Thune is trying to advance the defense prose bill today.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 40:48-40:52
“We're on a 48 hour return notice for House Republicans.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 41:02-41:07
“Democrats decided upon the end date, the seven weeks to go to November 21.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 41:18-41:24
“Republicans who are ending fraud, waste and abuse in government and making government work more efficiently and effectively for the people.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 42:26-42:32
“President Trump and the White House and his administration ending conflicts that are killing millions of people around the world.”
Speaker Johnson and House GOP Leadership Give Remarks on Day 15 of Government Shutdown | Uploaded October 15, 2025 | 42:31-42:38