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| President Obama: "Nobody gets to threaten the full faith and credit of the US just to extract political concessions" |
The US government is bracing for a possible shutdown, as Republicans and Democrats in Congress remain deadlocked on a budget to continue its funding.
Agencies have begun making contingency plans ahead of the 1 October deadline to pass a new funding resolution.
The Senate has passed a bill to fund the government until 15 November.
But House Republicans have said they refuse to approve the bill without a provision to strip funding from President Barack Obama's health law.
The Senate is controlled by Mr Obama's Democratic party, while the Republicans hold the majority in the House of Representatives.
As a result, lawmakers are at a stalemate as the deadline approaches.
Government agencies have been selecting workers considered essential should funds stop flowing.