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American lawmakers are working through the weekend for the initial time since the government shutdown began more than a month ago, but hopes for a cross-party deal on how to resolve the standoff appeared to diminish as Republican senators floated a proposal unacceptable to Democrats: eliminating the Affordable Care Act, called Obamacare.

Growing Impact of Federal Closure

The effect on Americans from the lengthiest shutdown of the federal government in history worsened on Saturday, as federal workers went without pay, airlines were compelled to ground planes and SNAP benefits have been postponed for forty-two million Americans.

Trump's Proposal from Golf Course

As Saturday's session got under way, GOP senators embraced a proposal made on social media early Saturday by Donald Trump from his resort in West Palm Beach, for subsidies to be substituted by HSA-style accounts.

"My recommendation is to Senate Republicans that the Billions of Dollars currently being sent to profit-driven 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 wrote.

Republican Endorsement

Several Republican senators praised the plan, which is comparable with a alternative for Obamacare put forward in 2017.

"We're going to replace this broken system with something that is actually better for the consumer," one senator said.

Another senator commended Trump's proposal on social media, 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 wrote in reply to Trump's suggestion. "We need to stop public funds from going to insurance companies and instead give it straight to Americans in HSA-style accounts and let them buy the health care they want."

Opposition Reaction

Opposition senators expressed concerned responses to Trump's proposal.

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

Another lawmaker responded to the censure of carriers by posting: "Well, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the large insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Really? In that case I welcome your support for universal healthcare."

Ongoing Talks

The Senate went into recess without finding a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have indicated an openness to an emerging proposal from a handful of centrist lawmakers to end the shutdown in exchange for a later vote on the Obamacare payments.

One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the talks among centrists, said that Democrats "require another path forward" after Republicans rejected an offer to restart the government and continue the payments for a year.

Another senior Democratic senator continued in arguing that Republicans should accept a one-year extension of the payments before negotiating the long-term of the subsidies.

"Doing nothing is derelict because citizens will go bankrupt, people will become uninsured, people will get more ill," 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 backing of eight Democrats to restart the government, and the concept of eliminating and replacing Obamacare with HSAs is unlikely to earn a single Democratic vote.

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

After his resort visit, Trump returned to his private club and doubled down on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to repeal and overhaul Obamacare with a version of the proposal that failed to garner enough support in 2017.