US President Barack Obama speaks during

US President Barack Obama speaks during an unannounced appearance in the Brady Briefing Room on April 5, 2011 at the White House in Washington. Obama upped the ante in a budget row with Republicans, warning it would be “inexcusable” not to agree to a deal and risk closing down the US government this week. Obama warned that the slowly recovering American economy did not need the severe disruption that would result from a federal government shutdown, playing his cards in dramatic fashion as the budget row raced to a climax. AFP PHOTO/Mandel NGAN (Photo credit should read MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images)