THE AMERICA ONE NEWS
Oct 11, 2025  |  
0
 | Remer,MN
Sponsor:  QWIKET 
Sponsor:  QWIKET 
Sponsor:  QWIKET: Elevate your fantasy game! Interactive Sports Knowledge.
Sponsor:  QWIKET: Elevate your fantasy game! Interactive Sports Knowledge and Reasoning Support for Fantasy Sports and Betting Enthusiasts.
back  
topic


Illustration-by-Forbes;-Photos-by-J.-Scott-Applewhite-AP;-Valerie-Plesch-Bloomberg
Illustration by Forbes; Photos by J. Scott Applewhite/AP; Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg

America is a week and a half into its latest government shutdown, and there seems to be no end in sight. Many federal functions have simply ceased, with hundreds of thousands of workers furloughed and those still working doing so without any guarantee of getting paid. Constitutionally-mandated paychecks are still flowing for Congress, however, including the four top leaders: Senate majority leader John Thune, Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson and House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries.

None of them come from particularly wealthy backgrounds, but that’s about where their financial similarities end: As the leaders negotiate a way out of the impasse, they are doing so from notably different financial situations. All longtime politicians, Johnson is the youngest and least wealthy of the bunch, declaring no assets at all on his latest government financial disclosure, while the other three are multimillionaires sitting on sizable nest eggs no matter what happens in the Capitol. No one is less reliant on pay day than Schumer, who is worth more than the other three combined.

Because much can be learned about their politics from their wallets, Forbes has combed through financial disclosures, real estate records and public comments to estimate the fortunes of all four men. Here’s a breakdown of how they stack up to one another as the funding fight continues.

Government Shutdown Looms As House And Senate Disagree On Funding Bill
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Estimated net worth: $7 million

Age: 74

Schumer is living proof that career politicians can assemble sizable fortunes—if they stick to it for decades. The same year he graduated from law school, 1974, he ran for and won a New York state assembly seat and has been in elected office ever since. The lifelong Democrat bought his Park Slope, Brooklyn condo for $157,000 in 1982, two years after being elected to Congress; today Forbes estimates that it’s worth about $3 million. Combine that with diligent saving over the years, a high-earning wife (she hauls in over $450,000 annually as the New York Public Library’s chief operating officer) and a government pension swollen over 45 years in Congress and Schumer amassed a large nest egg. Read more.

Government Shutdown Looms As House And Senate Disagree On Funding Bill
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Estimated net worth: $3 million

Age: 64

The GOP leader in the Senate has also been in or adjacent to politics his entire life, but is a decade behind Schumer. After bouncing between jobs in Washington, D.C. that were connected to former South Dakota senator James Abdnor, who he’d met at a high school basketball game years earlier, he worked in various political positions back in South Dakota before winning a House seat in 1996. Thune promised to serve only three terms, then lost a race for Senate and tried his hand at lobbying. He won a Senate race in 2004, setting him up for life. His pension and government savings account are worth less than Schumer’s for now, but may be comparable by the time he reaches Schumer’s age. Especially since Thune, too, benefits from a well-paid spouse. Read more.

Congressional Black Caucus Foundation's 53rd Annual Legislative Conference - Annual Phoenix Awards Dinner
Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Congressional Black Caucus Foundation

Estimated net worth: $2 million

Age: 55

Both Democratic leaders are from Brooklyn—and live less than a mile from one another. Jeffries’ apartment is his single largest asset and has roughly tripled in value since he bought it in 2007. Most of his fortune, though, has come from legal work he did before and alongside his early years in politics. Case in point: In 2015, after he’d been elected to the House, Jeffries received a $1.6 million payout from cases he’d worked on in private practice. The funds helped him and his wife, who works at a legal aid organization, put their kids through college without straining their finances too much—and buy a small apartment in D.C. on top of that. Read more.

President Trump And Louisiana Governor Landry Make Announcement On Hyundai
Win McNamee/Getty Images

Estimated net worth: $350,000

Age: 53

The closest to a median American in terms of his finances, Johnson would have the most to lose of any congressional leader if Congress didn’t ensure its own pay during shutdowns. Now second in line for the presidency, Johnson’s meteoric rise from conservative Christian lawyer to Speaker of the House didn’t come with much money attached. His biggest asset by far is his Shreveport, Louisiana home, worth an estimated $600,000 before debt. His modest pension and government savings account round out his fortune—he declares nothing else to his name on his financial disclosure. Read more.