Some members of the U.S. Senate are choosing to either go without pay or donate their salary for the duration of the government shutdown.
The government ran out of funding early Saturday morning, and while operations will remain fairly normal over the weekend, many federal employees will be furloughed come Monday if Congress fails to reach a funding deal.
Congress failed to strike a deal that would fund the government due to Democrats’ insistence that the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which protects illegal immigrants brought to the U.S. as children, be extended.
WATCH: Democrats Dodge Blame For Government Shutdown
It’s unclear how long the current shutdown will last. By law, members of Congress and the president continue to be paid during government shutdowns — though President Donald Trump already donates his salary to charity. Most members of Congress receive $174,000 annually, but minority and majority leaders in both chambers, and the President of the Senate get $193,400 each, and the speaker of the House gets $223,500.
During the 16-day shut down in 2013, around 250 members of the House and Senate either donated their salary to charity, refused it, or asked that their pay be withheld, according to The Washington Post.
The Daily Caller News Foundation asked each member of the Senate whether they will forgo their salary for however long the shutdown lasts. Here are all the Senators who have promised to go without pay so far (this post will be updated):
Sen. Sherrod Brown, Democrat from Ohio: He will donate his salary during the shutdown to an Ohio diaper bank that supports families. In a statement, he said “It is time for Republican leaders to stop holding [Childhood Health Insurance Program] children and families hostage to their failed budget process. These are not bargaining chips – they are kids – more than 209,000 in Ohio and nine million nationwide. And they are depending on us to do our jobs. Senators should not be paid if they can’t do their jobs. While I continue to work with Republicans and Democrats to reopen our government, I will donate my take-home pay to an Ohio charity that works every day to help struggling families.”
(The temporary spending bill that passed the House Thursday and which the Senate rejected Friday included funding for CHIP, which has now run out of funds.)
Sen. Bob Corker, Republican from Tennessee: Sen. Corker began donating his salary to charity when he first entered the Senate in 2007, and will continue to do so until he retires at the end of his current term.
Sen. Deb Fischer, Republican from Nebraska: She “will return her pay during the shutdown to the US Treasury,” a spokeswoman told TheDCNF. It does not appear that Fischer donated or refused her pay during the 2013 shutdown, during her first year as senator.
Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, Democrat from North Dakota: She will donate her shutdown salary to the United Way in Bismarck, N.D. “If members of Congress can’t fulfill their basic duty to keep the government open and provide the essential services Americans depend on, then they don’t deserve their paychecks. Period,” Heitkamp said in a statement.
Sen. John Hoeven, Republican from North Dakota: He “will donate his salary for the duration of the shutdown to charity” as he did in 2013, a spokeswoman told TheDCNF.
Sen. Rob Portman, Republican from Ohio: He will donate his salary for the duration of the shutdown, as he did in 2013.
Sen. Debbie Stabenow, Democrat from Michigan: “She will donate her salary for every day a shutdown occurs and she is cosponsoring the No Government No Pay Act of 2018 to withhold the pay of Members of Congress during a shutdown,” a spokesman told TheDCNF.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Democrat from Massachusetts: She will donate her salary to charity, according to her office.
Sen. Todd Young, Republican from Indiana: He will donate his salary to charity, as he did during the 2013 shutdown as a Representative.
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