Obama steps up discussions with Congress to end budget stand-off Barack Obama is stepping up discussions with Congress as US political leaders seek a way out of a budget crisis that could leave the country without the money to pay its bills before the end of the month. The president will meet about 20 senior Republicans from the House of Representatives at the White House on Thursday, after talks with members of his Democratic party on Wednesday evening. Mr Obama's increased engagement with Congress comes as discussions have picked up behind the scenes on Capitol Hill about crafting a short-term agreement to at least temporarily break the deadlock. The impasse has already caused large parts of the US government to shut down. But even the prospects for a deal that would give lawmakers one or two more months of breathing room to solve the crisis remain far from assured. Mr Obama is sticking to his stance that legislation to reopen the government and to increase America's $16.7tn borrowing limit to avoid a possible default are basic congressional duties and should not be subject to "ransom." Republicans have said these measures should be paired with spending cuts and changes to the 2010 healthcare law, and have accused the president of being unwilling to enter talks. Mr Obama's decision to meet lawmakers from both political parties could mark the start of a thaw - and at the very least reflects a growing urgency and anxiety about the approaching deadline of October 17 to raise America's borrowing limit. The White House had invited all House Republicans to meet Mr Obama, but House leaders scuppered the chance for a confrontation between the president and the Tea Party rank-and-file and will instead send a more moderate delegation. Jay Carney, the White House press secretary, said he was disappointed. "The president thought it was important to talk directly with the members who forced this economic crisis on the country about how the shutdown and a failure to pay the country's bills could devastate the economy," Mr Carney said. Meanwhile, John Boehner, Republican House speaker, met Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic House leader, whose votes would be needed for any compromise legislation to pass the lower chamber. Republicans remain deeply divided on their strategy in the fight, amid signs that even staunch conservatives are becoming uneasy about the political consequences of their tough line. A Gallup poll showed backing for Republicans plunging to 28 per cent - its lowest level since the survey began in 1992, and down from 38 per cent a month ago. The Democrats also slid, but by a smaller four percentage points to 43 per cent. Paul Ryan, chairman of the House budget committee and the Republican vice-presidential nominee in 2012 who will be attending Thursday's meeting, called in an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday for "modest reforms" to big spending programmes and the tax code to solve the impasse. Crucially, he declined to cite changes to "Obamacare" as essential to a deal. We need to find common ground. We need to open the federal government. We need to pay our bills today - and make sure we can pay our bills tomorrow," Mr Ryan wrote. But Chris Van Hollen, the top Democrat on the House budget committee, rejected the overture, particularly since Mr Ryan left no room for any tax increases as part of an agreement. If the president were to threaten to veto the full faith and credit of the United States unless Republicans adopted his budget and policy agenda, Republicans would be screaming abuse of power. Yet that is exactly what they are doing," he said. Conservative activists such as Michael Needham of Heritage Action and Erick Erickson of Redstate.com have signalled that they might be open to an increase in the debt limit for a short period, as long as Republicans hold firm on demanding concessions from Mr Obama on Obamacare in exchange for reopening the government. "For the first time, we could see an outcome where there is a one-month debt ceiling raise without the government reopening," says Chris Krueger, an analyst at Guggenheim Securities in Washington. This seems unlikely, but this could be an option for the House Republicans if they decide that a default would cause too much damage politically as well as economically. It is not clear whether the White House or Democrats would entertain such a scenario, which would be disconcerting for federal workers and many government agencies..