The U.S. government shutdown countdown begins, tonight's White House meeting expects both parties to build "political walls" against each other

According to the Zhitong Finance APP, at the White House meeting scheduled for Monday Eastern Time, U.S. President Donald Trump and congressional leaders will intensify the deadlock due to strong political considerations, despite pushing the U.S. towards its first government shutdown in nearly seven years. The Democrats are eager to use the shutdown dispute to build election topics around rising living costs (especially healthcare costs); the Republicans are equally eager to blame the Democrats, portraying them as "inept at managing the government and the U.S. economy" ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. Progressive Democrats are putting immense pressure on party leaders to demonstrate their determination to confront the Trump administration. Democratic leaders are confident that they can unify the party around healthcare issues to prevent the necessary eight Democratic votes from defecting on a Republican bill that would keep government funding running until November 21. Republican leaders have stated that negotiations can begin after the short-term bill passes, but the Democrats claim they do not trust Trump or Republican leaders to honor that commitment. The Democrats have put forward three core demands: first, to invest $350 billion to permanently extend tax credits for middle-class families under the Affordable Care Act, to avoid a spike in premiums on January 1; second, to repeal cuts to the Medicaid program included in Trump's massive tax bill, including new work requirements and measures to combat accounting practices used by states to increase Medicaid reimbursement rates; third, to restore funding cuts to medical research and prevent the White House from rescinding previously approved appropriations. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries stated last Sunday, "Our position is very clear: eliminate cuts, reduce costs, and preserve healthcare coverage, so we can address the real concerns of the American people amid rising living costs." Trump has linked the Democrats' demands to the hot-button issue of immigration, accusing them of attempting to divert $1 trillion of taxpayer money for illegal immigrants. This claim is clearly exaggerated but not entirely unfounded—there is indeed a provision in the Democrats' proposal that would substantially increase the federal Medicaid reimbursement rate for states providing emergency services to illegal immigrants. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that current policies restricting illegal immigrants' access to Medicaid could save $28 billion over ten years; another provision that Democrats hope to repeal (which explicitly states that parolees and asylum seekers cannot receive Affordable Care Act subsidies) could save $119 billion over ten years. Last Sunday, Trump did not indicate any signs that the meeting would easily resolve the deadlock. In an interview, Trump stated, "I really don't know how we are going to solve this problem." He also continued to criticize the Democrats' negotiating stance, claiming, "They don't care at all about fraud, waste, and abuse in the budget"—while Republicans assert that their budget cuts target only those areas. The Trump administration has also threatened that if the government shuts down, it will lay off a large number of federal employees, a move that would further advance the layoffs plan led by White House Budget Office Director Russ Vought Unlike previous shutdowns that only put non-essential employees on "unpaid leave," the current government is preparing to permanently cut jobs in multiple sectors, including environmental, agricultural, and labor regulation departments. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer dismissed this threat last Sunday, stating that it is part of Trump's plan. He pointed out that the layoffs in October have been in preparation, and the government shutdown merely allows the White House to blame the economic impact of the layoffs on the Democrats while appeasing the conservative base voters within the party who support a "small government." Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar stated last week that the Democrats did not demand "full adoption of their proposals," which is why they voted to support the Republican bill to keep the government running until November 21. The talks held on Monday itself indicated that the strategy of "pressuring the White House to at least meet with the Democrats" has been effective. As the third-ranking Democrat in the Senate, Klobuchar said last Friday, "We never said we wanted to encompass all demands, nor did we set any demand as a 'red line.' We want to negotiate with them to alleviate this healthcare crisis." She and other senators emphasized over the weekend that the Republicans' verbal commitment to "pass the bill first and discuss later" is far from sufficient. But this is precisely the proposal put forward by Senate Majority Leader John Thune. "We can engage in dialogue, but before that, release the 'hostages,' restore freedom to the American people—keep the government running, and then discuss the issue of premium tax credits," Thune stated. He also mentioned that any potential agreement regarding ObamaCare subsidies "is not yet mature." The Republicans have internal divisions on the ObamaCare issue: 12 House Republicans from swing districts have signed a bill supporting the extension of healthcare subsidies for one year; Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski is leading the push to extend the subsidies for two years; and some moderate Republicans have proposed gradually introducing income limits to prevent high-income earners from claiming subsidies and strengthening anti-fraud oversight. Conservatives, however, take a hardline stance, believing that the healthcare subsidies introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic were merely temporary measures. Some conservatives even suggested that any agreement regarding premium subsidies must come with new restrictions—prohibiting ObamaCare plans from covering abortion and transgender-related medical services. House Speaker Mike Johnson stated last Sunday that Monday's meeting would be an opportunity for Trump to "ask the Democrats to drop their demands." "Think about it, soldiers are not getting paid just because Chuck Schumer needs political cover. It's really that simple, and I think everyone will see it clearly," Johnson said. "The president will communicate with him about this and tell him 'don't do that.'" Schumer expressed that he looks forward to a "substantive meeting." He said, "We will wait and see on Monday—whether they are truly sincere in negotiating with us."