Axios Hill Leaders

October 15, 2025
Day 14, and we've got news. 793 words, 3 minutes.
- 🦪 Maine's Democratic drama
- 💪 Scoop: Unions flip in Ohio
- 🕊 Johnson's Nobel quest
⚡ Situational awareness: Senate Majority Leader John Thune is setting up a Thursday procedural vote on an appropriations bill for the Defense Department — which he told us he was considering last week.
- U.S. troops were expected to start missing paychecks tomorrow, but the White House says it plans to move funds to avoid that.
- "We'll see if we can get on it, and then we'll see if there's an appetite for adding some other bills to it, like we did in the other mini package," Thune told reporters. "So that's the plan."
1 big thing: 🦪 Maine's Democratic drama
The intraparty feud surrounding the Democratic Senate primary in Maine was on full display today.
Why it matters: The race is now a "toss-up" after Gov. Janet Mills entered the Democratic primary, according to the Cook Political Report.
- Mills launched a joint fundraising committee with the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee on the same day she entered the race.
- "I think we have a formidable candidate in Janet Mills, she's the sitting governor. I'm very excited about her candidacy," Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), the head of the DSCC, told Semafor.
- Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who has backed oyster farmer Graham Platner in the primary, told us: "The DSCC putting their thumb on the scale in opposition of Platner is very unfortunate."
The big picture: Mills and Platner have both made a bet that Democratic voters want a Senate nominee who takes on Trump.
- Platner's TV ad portrays him as "somebody who's going to take it to Trump."
- Mills' launch video highlights her recent clashes with the president.
The bottom line: Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) is the only Republican senator to win in a state won by former Vice President Harris in 2024.
- Mills, 77, is Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer's preferred candidate and said she doesn't plan to serve more than one term if elected. Mills has not committed to supporting Schumer if elected.
- Platner, 41, greeted Mills' entry by running a negative ad — which we scooped — suggesting it's time for "change" and that he "could shuck up the system." Platner says he wouldn't back Schumer for majority leader.
— Holly Otterbein and Stephen Neukam
2. Scoop: Unions flip in Ohio
A third union group has flipped to Republican Sen. Jon Husted in the 2026 Ohio Senate race, after supporting Democratic former Sen. Sherrod Brown in 2024.
- "Husted leads with action, not just photo ops or political talking points," Jesse DiRenna, business manager for International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 66, said in a statement first provided to us.
- "His values align with ours, which is why we proudly support him."
Why it matters: Republicans running for statewide office have been making inroads with local unions, but they have struggled at the federal level.
- "As someone who tried to get union support in the last two Senate races, it's a significant feat for Husted to get these three huge endorsements," said Bryan Gray, the campaign manager for Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) in 2024.
The big picture: Brown is seeking redemption with a comeback bid after his 2024 defeat. He spent three terms in the Senate as one of labor's biggest backers.
- But some unions — at the national and state levels — are moving toward Republicans. Husted wants to accelerate that trend and undercut Brown's traditional base.
- In September, the Northwest Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council and IUOE Local 18 flipped their support from Brown and endorsed the GOP incumbent for reelection.
The other side: Brown still has significant union backing. In September, he announced the endorsements from United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Locals 75, 880 and 1059, and Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) Local 390.
- He also has the endorsements of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, the United Association of Union Plumbers and Pipefitters and other unions.
- "Senator Husted voted to shut down the government and spike health care costs for half a million Ohioans, and supports reckless tariffs that are driving up costs across the state," said Patrick Eisenhauer, Brown's campaign manager.
- "That's why so many Ohioans want Sherrod Brown fighting for them in Washington, instead of Senator Husted's blind loyalty to billionaires and corporations," he said.
— Hans Nichols
3. 🕊 Johnson's Nobel quest
House Speaker Mike Johnson and Israeli Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana will jointly nominate Trump for the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize.
- "No one has ever deserved that prize more, and that is an objective fact," Johnson said at a press conference this morning.
- Johnson said he and Ohana will "rally speakers and presidents of parliament around the world" to support Trump's nomination.
— Kate Santaliz
This newsletter was edited by Justin Green and copy edited by Kathie Bozanich.
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