Overview

• Trump scrapped a Thursday White House meeting with the two top Democratic leaders, calling their policy demands “unserious and ridiculous” in a Truth Social post.
• The session had been set after Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries requested direct talks to avert a lapse in funding; both quickly criticized the cancellation and argued Trump would own any shutdown.
• The Senate has already blocked competing short-term funding bills from both parties, leaving no clear path forward before the Oct. 1 deadline.
• Democrats are pressing to extend Affordable Care Act premium tax credits and reverse recent Medicaid cuts, while the White House and GOP leaders are pushing a clean stopgap and blaming Democrats for the standoff.
• Republicans need Democratic votes to clear the Senate’s 60‑vote threshold, the Senate is slated to return Sept. 29, and the House is not scheduled to reconvene until after the deadline, heightening the risk of a shutdown.