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American senators are meeting during the weekend for the first time since the government shutdown began over a month ago, but hopes for a cross-party deal on how to resolve the standoff appeared to diminish as Republican senators proposed a proposal unacceptable to Democrats: scrapping the Affordable Care Act, called Obamacare.

Deepening Impact of Federal Closure

The impact on Americans from the lengthiest closure of the US government in history deepened on Saturday, as government employees went unpaid, airlines were forced to cancel flights and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been postponed for 42 million Americans.

President's Proposal from Florida Resort

As Saturday's meeting got under way, Republican senators welcomed a proposal made on online platforms 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 posted.

GOP Endorsement

Multiple Republican senators welcomed the proposal, which is similar to a replacement for Obamacare put forward in 2017.

"We will replace this broken system with something that is truly better for the patient," one senator stated.

Another senator praised Trump's proposal on social media, and displayed a large print of Trump's post as he addressed on the Senate floor.

"I'm writing the bill right now," a third senator wrote in reply to Trump's suggestion. "We need to stop taxpayer money from going to carriers and instead give it straight to Americans in HSA-style accounts and let them buy the medical coverage they want."

Democratic Reaction

Democratic lawmakers shared alarmed responses to Trump's plan.

"In other words, Donald Trump's 'concept of a plan' for health care is another calculated attempt to eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "This is the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been rejected by voters and Congress."

Another lawmaker reacted to the criticism of insurance companies by posting: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the large insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Seriously? Then I welcome your support for universal healthcare."

Ongoing Negotiations

The Senate adjourned without finding a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an openness to an developing proposal from a small group of centrist lawmakers to end the closure in exchange for a future vote on the Obamacare subsidies.

One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the talks among centrists, said that Democrats "require another way ahead" after Republicans turned down an offer to reopen the government and continue the subsidies for a year.

Another senior Democratic senator continued in maintaining that Republicans should agree to a 12-month continuation of the payments before discussing the long-term of the subsidies.

"Doing nothing is irresponsible because people will go bankrupt, people will lose insurance, people will get more ill," the senator said in a Senate address. "That is what will happen if this Congress does nothing."

Political Dynamics

Not one of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that consumers would still need to buy coverage from the same insurance companies, or that Republican legislators need the support of eight Democrats to reopen the government, and the idea of eliminating and substituting Obamacare with savings accounts is unlikely to earn a single Democratic vote.

Some observers indicated that the core of such a proposal would eliminate the ACA's requirement that carriers cover individuals with existing health issues.

After his resort visit, Trump returned to his residence and reiterated on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking compromise and try instead to eliminate and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the plan that was unsuccessful to secure enough backing in 2017.