Eric Lach April 7, 2011, 9:26 AM

Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Thursday that if the government shuts down, American troops’ paychecks could be affected.

The New York Times reports that Gates addressed the issue during his visit to Iraq. While not offering an opinion on the budget battle itself, he did lay out how any shutdown would impact soldiers:

If the government shuts down from Friday for a week, troops would receive half their pay in the checks received on the 15th of the month. If the government were to stay shut down until April 30, Mr. Gates said, troops would miss a whole check. Troops are paid on the 15th and last day of each month.

Troops would receive any back pay owed to them after the government reopens.

“But you all know as well as I do that a lot of these young troops live pretty much paycheck to paycheck,” Gates said. “And when I start to think about the inconveniences it’s going to cost these kids and a lot of their families, even half a paycheck delayed can be a problem for them. So I hope they work this whole thing out.”

Government Shutdown, Iraq, Robert Gates