Khaberni - The American government is headed towards its first federal shutdown in 6 years this Tuesday unless a breakthrough concerning funding is achieved by midnight in the stalled negotiations between Democrats and Republicans.
The last-minute quarter-hour meeting at the White House on Monday did not yield any progress, and Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer confirmed the existence of "significant differences" in the positions of both sides.
The Democratic Party, which does not hold a majority in either chamber of Congress, is trying to pressure the federal government; since the approval of budget legislation requires the consent of 60 out of the 100 Senate members.
In the absence of any indication of a settlement, the Senate is expected to vote in the afternoon on extending the effects of short-term funding previously approved by the House of Representatives, although the prospects of this step succeeding are slim.
Unless Congress approves legislation to ensure funding for federal agencies before midnight on Tuesday, the government will face a shutdown that could plunge Washington into a new political crisis.
The shutdown will halt non-essential operations and temporarily leave hundreds of thousands of civilian employees without pay, and disrupt the payment of many social safety net benefits.
U.S. President Donald Trump declared that the American government is likely to experience a financial shutdown, blaming the Democrats for the stalling negotiations with Republicans concerning funding.
Trump told reporters in the Oval Office hours before the deadline for ratifying legislation that ensures the functionality of agencies by midnight: "We will likely face a government shutdown. Nothing is certain, but I think it is likely".
He escalated by saying that his administration might go beyond the usual practice of granting temporary leaves to proceed with "a significant number" of federal employees being laid off, blaming the Democrats for the looming crisis.
He added, "They are not changing. They lost the elections by a wide margin, and they are not changing."
Republicans and Democrats alike usually strive to avoid these shutdowns, with each party blaming the other.
The Republicans proposed extending the current funding until late November, awaiting negotiations over a longer-term spending plan.
But the Democrats are seeking to restore funding of hundreds of billions of dollars for the healthcare sector, especially in the "Obamacare" program for low-income families, which Trump's administration plans to cancel as per the budget that was ratified in July.
The Republican Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, accused the Democrats of using healthcare funding as a tool "to shut down the government and protect themselves from the party's radical base".
