Trump to meet Democratic leaders Jeffries, Schumer to discuss government funding

By Richard Cowan and Kanishka Singh

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Republican U.S. President Donald Trump will meet top Democratic leaders in Congress - Representative Hakeem Jeffries and Senator Chuck Schumer - on Thursday to discuss government funding amid a looming shutdown ahead of a September 30 funding deadline, a source familiar with the talks said on Monday.

Schumer and Jeffries on Saturday demanded a meeting with Trump to avoid a government shutdown when funding ends.

In a letter addressed to Trump, Schumer and Jeffries said on Saturday that Republican congressional leaders had repeatedly and publicly refused to engage in bipartisan negotiations to keep the government open at the direction of the president.

Healthcare is at the center of the fight over funding, with Democrats seeking more money for subsidies under the Affordable Care Act and the restoration of funding cut from the Medicaid healthcare program for lower-income Americans.

Republicans currently hold 53 seats in the Senate compared with the 47 held by Democrats, and have a 219-213 majority in the House.

The Senate on Friday rejected a short-term funding bill and then left town for a week-long break, increasing the odds of a shutdown. The Friday effort fell short of the 60 votes needed to break a filibuster in the Senate.

Congress has struggled to pass spending legislation in recent years due to rising partisan tensions, repeatedly raising the threat of a shutdown that would leave government workers unpaid and a wide range of services disrupted.

The annual funding debate covers only about one-quarter of the federal government's $7 trillion budget, which also includes mandatory programs such as Social Security and Medicare, as well as payments on the nation's $37.5 trillion debt.

(Reporting by Richard Cowan, Writing by Kanishka Singh, Additional reporting by Jasper Ward in Washington; Editing by Matthew Lewis)