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Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., claimed on Sunday that President Donald Trump exercised “king-like powers” by accepting Timothy Mellon’s donation to pay U.S. military troops during the government shutdown.
“One of the reasons that President Trump is refusing to negotiate is because he likes the fact that the government is closed,” Murphy told CNN host Jake Tapper. “He thinks he can exercise king-like powers.”
“He can open up the parts of the government that he wants. He can pay the employees who are loyal to him. This is a leader who is trying to transition our government from a democracy to something much closer to a totalitarian state,” he continued.
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Sen. Chris Murphy speaks at the rally to Say NO to Tax Breaks for Billionaires & Corporations at the U.S. Capitol on April 10, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Jemal Countess/Getty Images)
Mellon, a reclusive billionaire, was dubbed a “patriot” and “great American citizen” by Trump following the huge gift. Mellon donated $130 million to ensure service members can be paid during the government shutdown.
However, the legal implications of the gift currently remain a gray area.
While 10 U.S. Code § 2601 authorizes the Secretary of Defense to use the funds, the U.S. Constitution’s appropriations clause in Article I, § 9, cl. 7 states the money has to be deposited into the U.S. Treasury first, and can’t be used on servicemember salaries until Congress creates a law appropriating the funds.
President Donald Trump speaks to reporters aboard Air Force One while traveling from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to Tokyo, Japan, Monday, Oct. 27, 2025. (Mark Schiefelbein/AP)
Mellon’s contribution could also risk an Antideficiency Act violation, which stops federal agencies from using money that exceeds congressional appropriations.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell told The New York Times, “The donation was made on the condition that it be used to offset the cost of service members’ salaries and benefits.”
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Speaker of the House Mike Johnson is joined by Majority Leader Steve Scalise, Whip Tom Emmer, and Brian Steil for a press conference on the tenth day of a government shutdown on Oct. 10, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Anna Rose Layden/Getty Images)
While the donation’s distribution still remains up in the air, The Times did find that the contribution would come to about $100 per service member.
Mellon, a self-proclaimed former liberal who moved from the state of Connecticut that Murphy represents, has yet to make public comments about his donation.
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