Barack Obama Barack Obama has been locked in negotiations with Republicans to avoid a federal government shutdown that would trigger chaos across the US and could set back the fragile economic recovery.
The two sides were nearing a deal but were struggling to close it as the Republicans sought to squeeze out further concessions. With the government running out of money because of the failure of Congress to agree on budget spending, a shutdown was scheduled to begin early Saturday morning. The Republican House Speaker, John Boehner, holding out for more, told reporters: "We will not roll over."
The main sticking point appears to be ideological, with the Republicans wanting to withdraw $75m funding for Planned Parenthood, which provides health advice and testing for women at 800 health centres. The Republicans claim the handout is money for abortion; the Democrats insist the agency provides an essential health service for poor women in remote areas.
Obama had told Boehner on Thursday night at the White House he wanted a deal by Friday morning but the morning passed and no deal was in sight.
The president had planned a visit to Indiana on Friday to talk about jobs and energy but cancelled this because of the crisis. He also postponed a family break to Virginia's Williamsburg, a sort of educational theme park of the colonial era.
Although the Democrats and Republicans have narrowed their differences over the past week, Boehner and the Democratic leader of the Senate, Harry Reid, could not agree in public on Friday over what the obstacles to a deal were. Reid said the men had agreed on the sum to be cut from this year's budget and the only issue was Republican insistence that the cuts include abortion providers. He described a shutdown as devastating.
Boehner said a deal on money had yet to be reached. "There's only one reason that we do not have an agreement as yet, and that issue is spending. We are close to a resolution on the policy issues. But I think the American people deserve to know: when will the White House and when will Senate Democrats get serious about cutting spending?," he said. He later qualified this, saying they had reached agreement on "almost all" policy issues.
