Over a dozen Republicans break with Trump, back Democratic bill to extend ACA subsidies

More than a dozen House Republicans broke ranks with their party Thursday and voted for a Democratic bill to extend expired Affordable Care Act subsidies for three years without any restrictions. Why it matters: It's a rare instance of Republican lawmakers defying President Trump — though the phenomenon has become less and less taboo in recent months.17 House Republicans voted with Democrats to extend the subsidies despite opposition from Trump and Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.).The bill, which passed 230-196, now heads to the Senate, where Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) has signaled he has no plans to bring it up for a vote.Catch up quick: Johnson for months refused to bring up a compromise bill to extend the credits, prompting four vulnerable Republicans to sign Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries' (D-N.Y.) discharge petition.That brought the petition to the necessary 218 signatures to bypass Republican leadership and force a vote.The four Republicans are all centrists facing tough reelection fights who feared an avalanche of Democratic attacks accusing them of allowing health care premiums to spike."Those members need not ask me for any help in their campaigns whatsoever," Rep. Eric Burlison (R-Mo.) told Axios in December of his centrist GOP colleagues who signed the discharge petition. Zoom out: Instances like this of Republicans breaking not only with Johnson but Trump are becoming more commonplace.Republicans have broken with the president on the Jeffrey Epstein files, tariff rebate checks and "Arctic Frost" just in the last few months.Dozens of House Republicans also voted Thursday to override two of Trump's vetoes on relatively noncontroversial bills facilitating a Colorado water project and handing over a portion of the Florida everglades.Still, both veto override efforts fell short of the necessary two-thirds majority.Between the lines: The bill has no chance of becoming law in the Senate, but a bipartisan group of senators is working on a compromise plan that does have a chance of passing. Multiple lawmakers told Axios the emerging deal largely mirrors the centrists' original framework, with legislative language expected as soon as next week.Several more House Republicans are expected to support the compromise measure, if it reaches the House floor. Yes, but: There are still some sticking points — including GOP demands around expanding the Hyde Amendment, which prohibits federal taxpayer dollars from funding abortion. "It's already in the ACA, the Hyde Amendment. So, we're having a hard time trying to figure out what the real problem is here," Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) told reporters leaving a health care meeting Thursday. When Trump told House Republicans Tuesday to be "flexible" on Hyde, some conservatives were immediately outraged at the prospect of abandoning a long-held principle. But other moderates, like Rep. Dan Meuser (R-Pa.), called it "very helpful" for negotiations. What's next: If the Senate is able to cobble together 60 votes, the measure will have to come back to the House where Johnson has made no promises that he'll bring it up."We will get it to the floor one way or another," Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) told Axios, signaling another discharge petition isn't off the table. "It would be unfathomable if something came out of the Senate and were not given a floor vote," he added. The intrigue: Johnson has faced an unprecedented surge of successful discharge petitions this Congress from his own members, a key barometer of lawmaker frustration. The speaker told Axios in November that he would consider changing House rules to make them harder to achieve.