Axios Hill Leaders

April 02, 2026
Happy Thursday, it's a 577-word edition (2 minutes).
- 🛑 Schumer warning signs
- ‼️ The speaker's game plan
⚡️ Situational awareness: Members of the House Oversight Committee said today they will still fight to enforce their panel's subpoena of Pam Bondi after her removal as attorney general.
1 big thing: 🛑 Schumer warning signs
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer's approval rating in New York has cleared 40% just once during the last six months, according to polling from Siena University.
- His approval was at 53% at the same point in President Trump's first term, according to Siena.
Why it matters: Schumer is obsessed with his hometown polls. He's up for reelection in 2028 and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) is eyeing his seat.
- The minority leader's New York approval rating reached 38% in March, according to polling late last month by Siena.
- His recent high-water mark was 42% in September, and his local ratings bottomed out at 32% in November.
- That was around the time that Senate Democrats voted to end a record long government shutdown, outraging the party's base. Schumer opposed the deal between Democratic moderates and Senate Republicans but still faced significant blowback over his caucus' cave in negotiations.
Zoom in: Schumer's polling slide comes as Ocasio-Cortez campaigns across New York, far from her district in the Bronx and Queens.
- That includes a series of town halls in upstate New York last summer.
- AOC has the option of running for president or Senate, as Axios has reported. She's joined Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on a nationwide "Fighting Oligarchy" tour.
Between the lines: Schumer and his team focus intensely on his presence in the state, with the Democratic leader frequently holding press availabilities and public events while back in New York on weekends and during recess.
- Schumer has toured all 62 counties in the state for 27 straight years, a pledge he made during his first Senate election in 1998.
The bottom line: Schumer's national favorability among Democrats hovers around 43%, according to polling averages compiled by Decision Desk.
- In April 2018, two-thirds of national Democrats viewed Schumer favorably.
— Stephen Neukam
2. ‼️ The speaker's game plan
House Speaker Mike Johnson told his conference during a two-and-a-half hour call today that he thinks the Senate could pass a narrow reconciliation package funding ICE and Customs and Border Protection within two weeks.
Why it matters: Johnson promised he won't hold a vote on a Department of Homeland Security funding bill until the Senate makes significant progress on funding for ICE and CBP, sources told us.
- His members are deeply frustrated with leadership's plan to fund the agency, and he doesn't have the support to pass a DHS funding bill without ICE and CBP right now.
🤬 Driving the news: Frustration boiled over during the call as House Republicans vented about Johnson's and Senate Majority Leader John Thune's two-track funding approach for DHS.
- There was a widespread feeling among Republicans that they no longer trust the Senate after last week's split over DHS funding, sources told us.
- Members worry that if the House moves first on passing a DHS funding bill without ICE and CBP, the Senate could backtrack on funding those two agencies.
Another friction point: Several members want to strip language from the Senate bill that zeroes out ICE and CBP funding, avoiding a vote seen as defunding law enforcement.
- Johnson signaled openness to that idea, two sources on the call said. But any changes would require Senate passage again.
— Kate Santaliz
This newsletter was edited by Justin Green and copy edited by Kathie Bozanich.
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