6 days into US government shutdown, Trump now ready to negotiate with Democrats

Washington (The Uttam Hindu): It's been six days since the US government shutdown. President Donald Trump has indicated he's open to negotiations with Democrats. In another post on Truth Social, Trump said the Democrats shut down the US government. This happened when the country's economy was very strong and the stock market was at record levels. Because of this shutdown, many government programs, services, and other aspects of society that Americans depend on have been affected. This shouldn't have happened.

He further wrote that he is willing to negotiate with the Democrats on their failed healthcare policies or any other issue, but first the government must be allowed to restart. Speaking to the media earlier in the day, Trump said that talks are underway with the Democrats regarding healthcare plans. He said, "We are talking to the Democrats, and hopefully we will have some good results on the healthcare system."

Republicans accuse Democrats of seeking to fund healthcare plans for illegal immigrants, while Democrats say they are seeking to reverse healthcare cuts for American citizens in the "Big Beautiful Bill" passed earlier this year.

A vote in the Senate failed again on Monday as both parties blamed each other for the crisis. Republicans control both the Senate and the House of Representatives, but they fell eight votes short of the 60 needed to pass the bill in the Senate.

The White House has warned that if this continues, many government employees could lose their jobs. Press Secretary Carolyn Levitt said the budget office is in the process of determining which employees will need to be laid off.

Trump last week called the government shutdown an "unprecedented opportunity." Nearly 750,000 federal employees have been furloughed, while many others have been forced to work without pay.

Since the start of the shutdown, the administration has withheld $26 billion in funding for 16 Democratic-leaning states, including $18 billion for transportation projects in New York.

Essential services like border security, law and order, and air traffic control are currently operating, but food aid programs, government schools, food inspection, and national park operations could soon be affected.

Military and civilian employees are not receiving salaries during the shutdown, as are approximately 13,000 air traffic controllers. The Department of Telecommunications has halted additional activities such as recruiting and training air traffic controllers.

Transport Minister Sean Duffy said that if the closure continued, the government's ongoing support scheme for air services in rural areas would run out of money by the end of the week.

It's worth noting that this is the longest government shutdown in the US in seven years. The last one occurred during Trump's first term, lasting 35 days, making it the longest shutdown in US history.