White House says Democrats 'holding citizens hostage'

US President Donald Trump's administration accused the opposition Democrats of holding American citizens hostage Saturday after lawmakers failed to agree a stop-gap spending deal before a midnight deadline.

"We will not negotiate the status of unlawful immigrants while Democrats hold our lawful citizens hostage over their reckless demands," White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said in a statement.

Democratic leaders have blamed the breakdown of a possible deal on Trump's refusal to fund a program that protects 700,000 "Dreamers" -- undocumented immigrants who arrived in the US as children -- from deportation.