According to media reports, White House Chief Economic Advisor Kevin Hassett predicted on Monday that the government shutdown &#34;could end sometime this week.&#34;
Hassett stated on CNBC that if this does not happen, the Trump administration may take &#34;stronger measures&#34; to force cooperation from the Democrats.
These remarks were made during the third week of the government shutdown, which continues due to a partisan dispute in the Senate over federal funding priorities, with no clear signs of an end in sight.
The Republicans hope to restore funding to current levels through a short-term resolution. The Democrats, on the other hand, demand that any temporary bill include additional healthcare spending guarantees, including an extension of the tax credits under the Affordable Care Act that are set to expire at the end of the year.
Hassett mentioned on CNBC that he learned from the Senate that the Democrats believe it would be &#34;bad&#34; to vote to reopen the government before nationwide protests against Trump this weekend. He stated:
<blockquote>
&#34;It looks like things might get resolved quickly this week, with moderate Democrats stepping forward to help us establish an open government, at which point we can negotiate any policies they want to discuss in an orderly manner.&#34;
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At the same time, he also said:
<blockquote>
&#34;I think the Schumer shutdown could end sometime this week.&#34;
</blockquote>
He was referring to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), whom Republicans blame for the funding shortfall.
But if not,
<blockquote>
&#34;I think the White House will have to carefully consider, along with White House Budget Director Russell Vought, taking stronger measures to get them to sit down and negotiate.&#34;
</blockquote>
Hassett's comments suggest that the Democrats are looking for a political opportunity to abandon this government shutdown fight. However, due to numerous polls showing that more voters blame the deadlock on Trump and the Republicans, and strongly support extending the ACA's health insurance subsidies, the Democrats have largely not made concessions.
Earlier this month, Schumer told Punchbowl News:
<blockquote>
&#34;Our situation is improving every day because we anticipated this long ago, and we knew healthcare would be the focus on September 30, and we are prepared for it.&#34;
</blockquote>
Senate Majority Leader and Republican John Thune stated last week that he had proposed to Democratic leaders a vote to extend the ObamaCare tax credits in exchange for keeping the government running.
However, senior Democrats seem to have rejected Thune's request. Some Democrats have instead called for Trump to personally engage in negotiations.
Hassett stated on Monday that Trump &#34;has been very active throughout the process, but his position is that this is a problem the Senate needs to solve.&#34;
More updates are ongoing

White House Chief Economic Advisor Kevin Hassett predicted on Monday that the government shutdown "could end sometime this week."

White House economic advisor Hassett: Government shutdown "could end sometime this week"