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US senators are meeting during the weekend for the first time since the federal closure began more than a month ago, but hopes for a bipartisan agreement on how to resolve the standoff appeared to recede as GOP senators proposed a proposal unacceptable to Democrats: scrapping the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.

Growing Impact of Federal Closure

The effect on Americans from the longest closure of the federal government in history deepened on Saturday, as federal workers went unpaid, carriers were compelled to cancel flights and SNAP benefits have been delayed for forty-two million Americans.

President's Proposal from Florida Resort

As Saturday's meeting got started, 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 replaced 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 bad Healthcare provided by ObamaCare, BE SENT DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY CAN PURCHASE THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, HEALTHCARE," Trump posted.

GOP Support

Several Republican senators praised the proposal, which is comparable with a alternative 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 online platforms, and stood next to a large print of Trump's post as he spoke on the Senate floor.

"I'm writing the bill right now," a third senator wrote in reply to Trump's proposal. "We must stop public funds from going to insurance companies and instead give it straight to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the health care they want."

Opposition Reaction

Opposition lawmakers shared concerned reactions to Trump's plan.

"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'proposal' 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 senator reacted to the censure of carriers by posting: "Well, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the big, bad insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Seriously? In that case I welcome your support for Medicare for All."

Continuing Talks

The Senate went into recess without reaching a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an willingness to an emerging proposal from a handful of moderate Democrats to end the closure in return for a future vote on the ACA payments.

One Democratic senator, who is leading the talks among moderates, said that Democrats "need another path forward" after Republicans turned down an offer to restart the government and continue the payments for a year.

Another senior Democratic lawmaker persisted in maintaining that Republicans should agree to a one-year extension of the subsidies before negotiating the long-term of the tax credits.

"Inaction is irresponsible because people will go bankrupt, people will become uninsured, people will get more ill," the senator said in a Senate address. "That's what will happen if this Congress fails to act."

Partisan Dynamics

None of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that consumers would still need to buy coverage from the same carriers, or that Republican legislators need the support of eight Democrats to restart the government, and the idea of repealing and substituting Obamacare with HSAs is unlikely to earn a single Democratic vote.

Several analysts indicated that the core of such a proposal would eliminate the ACA's requirement that insurance companies cover individuals with existing health issues.

After his golf outing, Trump went back to his residence and reiterated on his demand that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to eliminate and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the plan that failed to garner enough support in 2017.