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US senators are meeting during the weekend for the first time since the government shutdown began over a month ago, but expectations for a cross-party deal on how to resolve the standoff appeared to recede as Republican senators floated a proposal unacceptable to Democrats: eliminating the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.

Deepening Consequences of Federal Closure

The impact on US citizens from the longest shutdown of the US government in history worsened on Saturday, as federal workers went without pay, airlines were compelled to ground planes and SNAP benefits have been postponed for forty-two million Americans.

Trump's Plan from Florida Resort

As Saturday's meeting got started, Republican senators embraced a suggestion made on online platforms early Saturday by Donald Trump from his golf course in West Palm Beach, for subsidies to be substituted by health savings accounts.

"My recommendation is to Senate Republicans that the Billions of Dollars currently being sent to profit-driven Insurance Companies in order to save the ineffective Healthcare provided by ObamaCare, BE SENT DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY CAN PURCHASE THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, HEALTHCARE," Trump wrote.

GOP Endorsement

Multiple Republican senators praised the plan, which is similar to a replacement for Obamacare proposed in 2017.

"We're going to replace this broken system with something that is actually better for the consumer," one senator stated.

Another senator praised Trump's suggestion on online platforms, and stood next to a large print of Trump's post as he spoke on the Senate floor.

"I am drafting the bill right now," a third senator wrote in reply to Trump's suggestion. "We need to stop taxpayer money from going to carriers and instead give it directly to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the medical coverage they want."

Opposition Reaction

Opposition senators shared concerned reactions to Trump's proposal.

"In other words, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is yet another cynical attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator stated. "This is the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been defeated by voters and Congress."

Another lawmaker reacted to the censure of carriers by posting: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the big, bad insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Really? In that case I welcome your support for universal healthcare."

Continuing Negotiations

The Senate adjourned without reaching a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have indicated an willingness to an developing plan from a handful of moderate Democrats to terminate the closure in exchange for a later vote on the ACA payments.

One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the negotiations among centrists, said that Democrats "require another path forward" after Republicans turned down an offer to restart the government and extend the subsidies for a year.

Another senior Democratic senator persisted in arguing that Republicans should agree to a 12-month continuation of the payments before discussing the future of the subsidies.

"Inaction is derelict because citizens will go bankrupt, people will lose insurance, people will get sicker," the senator stated in a Senate address. "That's what will happen if this Congress fails to act."

Political Situation

Not one of the Republican senators seemed to grapple with the fact that patients would still need to buy coverage from the same insurance companies, or that Republican legislators need the support of eight Democrats to reopen the government, and the concept of repealing and substituting Obamacare with savings accounts is unlikely to earn a single Democratic vote.

Several analysts suggested that the core of such a proposal would eliminate the ACA's mandate that insurance companies cover patients with existing health issues.

After his golf outing, Trump went back to his private club and doubled down on his demand that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to eliminate and overhaul Obamacare with a version of the proposal that was unsuccessful to garner enough support in 2017.