Seventeen House Republicans broke with party leadership on Thursday and voted alongside Democrats to approve a three-year extension of recently expired ObamaCare tax subsidies.
The vote marked an increase in Republican support compared with the previous day, when only nine GOP members backed a procedural step that allowed the legislation to move forward. That earlier vote was widely seen as a sign that bipartisan negotiations were gaining traction.
Those nine Republicans went on to support final passage. They were Reps. Rob Bresnahan of Pennsylvania, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Tom Kean Jr. of New Jersey, Nick LaLota of New York, Mike Lawler of New York, Ryan Mackenzie of Pennsylvania, Max Miller of Ohio, Maria Elvira Salazar of Florida, and David Valadao of California.
Eight additional Republicans joined them on Thursday: Reps. Mike Carey of Ohio, Monica De La Cruz of Texas, Andrew Garbarino of New York, Jeff Hurd of Colorado, Dave Joyce of Ohio, Zach Nunn of Iowa, Derrick Van Orden of Wisconsin, and Robert Wittman of Virginia.
Four of the Republicans who voted yes — Fitzpatrick, Lawler, Mackenzie, and Bresnahan — also signed a Democratic-led discharge petition that forced the House to hold the vote.
While the bill is unlikely to advance in the Senate, a bipartisan group of senators is continuing to negotiate a compromise that would extend the subsidies in some form. Sen. Bernie Moreno of Ohio said a draft of that proposal could be released as early as Tuesday.