In Pew's poll, Trump's current job approval rating stands at 38 percent, with 60 percent of U.S. adults expressing disapproval of his performance. That is a modest decline from two months ago, when 41 percent approved. In January, his approval rating stood at 47 percent.

Just 38 percent of respondents approve of the way the president is handling his job, according to a new survey

The showdown in Washington is the latest attempt by Trump to test the boundaries of his legal authority to carry out his tough-on-crime agenda, relying on obscure statutes and a supposed state of emergency to speed up the mass deportation of people in the United States illegally.