A public backlash against the political logjam in Washington has pushed Republicans to moderate their hardline stance on the budget, raising hopes of a deal with the White House ahead of next week’s deadline to raise the debt ceiling.
Senior Republicans were galvanised by an NBC/Wall St Journal poll showing the lowest ratings for the party since the survey started in 1989, prompting them to submit plans to jump start talks with Barack Obama and the Democrats.
Eleven days into a partial government shutdown, and less than a week before the country hits its statutory borrowings limit, the White House and Republicans have now begun trading proposals for a deal.