US Careens Toward Government Shutdown As Both Parties Dig In

Without Congress passing a bill to fund federal operations before midnight Tuesday night, the government will partially close up shop -- and plunge Washington into a new round of political crisis (Credit: AFP)

The United States government was heading toward a shutdown on Tuesday, with funding expiring at midnight and Democrats and Republicans digging in on their respective demands.

A last-gasp meeting at the White House on Monday yielded no breakthrough on the issue, with top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer saying afterward that "large differences" remained between both sides.