Washington, Oct. 1 -- The US government has for the most part gone dark as much of the bureaucracy was laid off on Wednesday, after Congress failed to reach a deal to approve new funding.
The ruling Republicans had proposed extending government funding at current levels until Nov. 21 to allow for members to continue working on full-year appropriations bills.
Democrats had countered this with a shorter extension until the end of October, but tied their offer to health care provisions and new limits on President Donald Trump's ability to withhold funds - conditions Republicans rejected outright.
Talks at the White House on Monday between congressional leaders and Trump failed to produce any compromise, leaving both sides entrenched and the...