Timothy Mellon Identified Donor to Pay US Troops During Shutdown (Report)

The anonymous donor who gave $130 million to the Pentagon to pay troops during the government shutdown has been identified as Timothy Mellon, a reclusive billionaire and one of President Donald Trump’s top financial backers, according to a report.

Trump announced the donation Thursday, but refused to reveal the donor’s identity, describing him only as a “patriot” and friend. The president again declined to name the person Friday as he spoke to reporters aboard Air Force One shortly after departing Washington for Asia, calling the donor a “great American citizen” and an “important man.”

“He doesn’t want publicity,” Trump said Friday. “He prefers his name not be mentioned, which is quite unusual in the world I come from, and in the political world you want your name mentioned.”

But the two people familiar with the matter told The New York Times that it was Mellon, a wealthy banking heir and railroad tycoon.

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The anonymous donor who gave $130 million to the Pentagon to pay troops during the government shutdown has been identified as Timothy Mellon. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

It is unclear how long this donation will cover troop salaries. The Trump administration’s 2025 budget included about $600 billion in total military compensation, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

The $130 million donation would equate to about $100 per service member, according to The New York Times.

Mellon, grandson of former Treasury Secretary Andrew W. Mellon, is a Trump supporter who has given tens of millions of dollars to groups supporting the 2024 presidential campaign. Last year, he gave $50 million to a super PAC supporting Trump, making it one of the largest contributions ever disclosed, the newspaper notes.

President Donald Trump refused to reveal the identity of the donor. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

The billionaire was not a high-profile Republican donor until Trump’s election, but he has given hundreds of millions of dollars in recent years to support the president and the Republican Party.

He is also a significant supporter of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who also ran for president in 2024, first as a Democrat and then as an independent before dropping out to support Trump. Mellon donated millions of dollars to Kennedy’s presidential campaign and also gave money to the secretary’s anti-vaccine nonprofit, Children’s Health Defense, according to the New York Times.

Despite his political contributions, Mellon sought to keep a low profile.

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The Pentagon said it accepted the donation under “general gift acceptance authority.” (Reuters)

In an autobiography published in 2015, Mellon described himself as a former liberal who moved from Connecticut to Wyoming to lower taxes and fewer people.

The Pentagon said it accepted the donation under “general gift acceptance authority.”

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“The donation was made on the condition that it be used to offset the cost of military salaries and benefits,” Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement to the New York Times.

But the donation could constitute a potential violation of the Antideficiency Act, which prohibits federal agencies from spending money beyond congressional appropriations or accepting volunteer services.