The President cannot cut their pay, he has no Constitutional authority to do so.

Military pay is a budget item, which is firmly in Congress's court. Besides, the whole budget issue was a tempest in a teacup, been there once the last time the children couldn't decide.

The idiocy about the budget is the fault of both parties, as Congress should have had a FY 2011 budget done before the last elections, but didn't want to accomplish their most basic function.