President Trump on Sunday promised “across the board pay raises” for US service members while celebrating the Navy’s 250th birthday – as he blasted Democrats over the federal government shutdown.
Trump made the announcement before thousands of sailors and their families at Norfolk Naval Base, assuring service members not to worry while taking a jab at “a little gnat on our shoulder called the Democrats.”
“The US Navy always stands for America, and as your commander in chief I will always stand for you, I promise you that,” the president vowed.
“And I want you to know that despite the Democrat-induced shutdown, we will get our service members every last penny, don’t worry about that. It’s all coming, and even more because I’m supporting the across the board pay raises for every sailor and service member in the United States armed forces.”
The pay boost drew roaring cheers from the crowd, coming just days after Trump told top generals in Virginia that all military personnel would receive a 3.8% raise.
Trump went on to tout his $1 trillion investment in military resources, including building a fleet of ships on American soil and revitalizing shipyards.
“We’re going to be building lots of ships and doing lots of things that you haven’t seen happen for 35 years,” he said.
“We’ll soon revitalize our shipyards with hundreds of millions of dollars in new investments and new people coming from all around the world and they’re going to build ships in America. We want them built in America.”
But he said it will happen only after Democrats stop giving “all of our money to illegal aliens,” referencing the federal shutdown that began Oct. 1 over congress’s failure to pass 2026 appropriations.
The standoff between Democrats and Republicans has left countless government workers, including service members, without pay.
Trump concluded his speech by praising the Navy for achieving its best recruitment year ever in 2025.“America’s sailors have proven time and again that our Navy does just the best job there is,” the commander in chief boasted.
“We own the skies, we stalk the depths, and we rule the seas. We don’t know anything about defeat. In every era and every part of this globe, our sailors have fought with courage in their hearts, patriotism in their souls and salt water in their veins.
“And standing before all of you today, I know that whenever our nation is threatened and whenever they need help, whenever duty calls, American sailors will hoist our flag high and they will rally….with your help we will fight, fight, fight and we will win, win win, because of you our navy and our country will always be proud and righteous and mighty and free.”
First Lady Melania Trump and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth were among a group of speakers who gave brief remarks, praising the Navy’s dedication and the president for supplying the resources needed to safeguard freedom and deter all enemies.
Hegseth echoed Trump, promising additional sailors, submarines, ships, and munitions.
“President Trump has made our mission clear, America first and peace through common sense at every turn,” he said, adding that the Navy and the Marine Corps embody the “resilience in our country.”
“Nobody in the world does it better than the United States Navy. Your diversity is not your strength, your strength is your unity of purpose, your shared mission, your love of country.”
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