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US senators are meeting during the weekend for the initial time since the government shutdown began more than a month ago, but expectations for a cross-party deal on how to resolve the standoff appeared to recede as Republican senators proposed a plan toxic to Democrats: eliminating the ACA, called Obamacare.

Deepening Impact of Government Shutdown

The effect on US citizens from the lengthiest shutdown of the US government in history worsened on Saturday, as federal workers went without pay, carriers were forced to cancel flights and SNAP benefits have been postponed for 42 million Americans.

President's Proposal from Golf Course

As weekend session got under way, Republican senators embraced a proposal made on social media 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 Hundreds of Billions of Dollars currently being sent to money sucking 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.

Republican Support

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

"We're going to replace this failing program with something that is truly better for the patient," one senator stated.

Another senator commended Trump's proposal on online platforms, and displayed a giant blow-up of Trump's post as he addressed on the Senate floor.

"I'm writing the bill right now," a third senator posted 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 health care they want."

Opposition Reaction

Opposition senators expressed alarmed reactions to Trump's proposal.

"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is another cynical attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "It's the same failed Republican plan that's been defeated by the public and Congress."

Another senator reacted to the censure of insurance companies by writing: "Well, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the large insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Seriously? Then I applaud your support for universal healthcare."

Continuing Talks

The Senate went into recess without reaching a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have indicated an openness to an emerging proposal from a small group of centrist lawmakers to terminate the closure in exchange for a later vote on the ACA subsidies.

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

Another leading Democratic lawmaker continued in maintaining that Republicans should accept a one-year extension of the payments before negotiating the future of the subsidies.

"Inaction is derelict because people will go into debt, people will lose insurance, people will get sicker," the senator stated in a Senate address. "That's what will happen if this Congress does nothing."

Partisan Dynamics

None of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that consumers would still need to buy plans from the same insurance companies, or that Republican lawmakers need the support of several Democrats to reopen the government, and the concept of repealing and replacing Obamacare with HSAs is improbable to earn a solitary Democratic vote.

Some observers suggested that the core of such a proposal would remove the ACA's requirement that carriers cover patients with existing health issues.

After his resort visit, Trump returned to his private club and doubled down on his demand that Republicans stop seeking compromise and try instead to eliminate and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the plan that failed to secure enough support in 2017.