By Nathan Layne

(Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump doubled down on Sunday on his push to gut Obamacare healthcare subsidies, which his Democratic opponents have insisted on preserving as a condition for ending the 40-day government shutdown.

Trump on Saturday urged Republican senators to take federal money used to subsidize health insurance bought on Affordable Care Act marketplaces, and instead send payments to individuals buying coverage.

The federal government has been shut down since October 1, making it the longest federal shutdown ever, because of a congressional impasse over healthcare.

The ACA subsidies, which helped double Obamacare enrollment to 24 million since they were put in place in 2021, are at the heart of the shutdown. Democrats want to extend them before reopenin

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