Federal government on brink of first budget shutdown in almost seven years

Democrats and Republicans are angrily blaming each other for a looming federal government budget shutdown, refusing to budge from their positions.

They appear unable to find agreement or even negotiate as hundreds of thousands of federal workers could be furloughed or laid off.

The partisan standoff over health care and spending is threatening to trigger the first U.S. government shutdown in almost seven years at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday, October 1.

To avoid it, the Senate would have to pass a House measure that would extend federal funding for seven weeks while lawmakers finish their work on annual spending bills.

A vote on the bill, along with a Democratic alternative, was scheduled for early evening. But a resolution appeared far off as tempers flared, increasing the odds of a shutdown