Shutdown Risks Rise as Democrats Issue Ambitious Counteroffer

An increasingly rancorous standoff over funding the US government intensified Wednesday as congressional Democrats swung big on a counteroffer, ratcheting up the risk of an Oct. 1 shutdown.

Democrats are demanding President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans agree to health care policy changes that House Speaker Mike Johnson has said have “zero” chance of becoming law as part of the spending bill.

The minority party’s proposal presents as a list of priorities written in legislative text, from which items could be taken to build a consensus for any future compromise plan. However, as of now, no such serious talks ...