President Barack Obama said an emergency White House meeting he convened late on Wednesday to avoid a damaging shutdown of the U.S. government had been constructive, but called on negotiators to keep working.

Obama had convened the Oval Office meeting with Vice President Joe Biden, Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives John Boehner and Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid out of concern that too little progress was being made in the talks.

(Reporting by Patricia Zengerle, editing by Eric Beech)

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