Obama to meet congressional leaders for shutdown talks

WASHINGTON - US President Barack Obama will meet the four top leaders of Congress at the White House on Wednesday to urge lawmakers to reopen the government and raise the US debt ceiling, local media reported.

White House officials were quoted as saying that Obama will meet with Speaker of the House of Representatives John Boehner, Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell.

The meeting is scheduled at about 5:30 pm (2130 GMT), according to the report.

With the Congress at impasse, the US federal government lurched into a partial shutdown midnight Monday. It has been 17 years since the government last faced a partial shutdown.

There is so far no end in sight to the shutdown as both Republicans and Democrats have not made serious talks to break the standoff. The House GOP efforts to fund some parts of the government were rejected on Tuesday night. Fears are rising that the funding deadlock could stretch into a debt-limit fight.

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