Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) speaks during a press conference about his resistance to the so-called "Skinny Repeal" of the Affordable Care Act on Capitol Hill in Washington, US, July 27, 2017. [Photo/Agencies]

Graham said that the "skinny bill" as-is was a "fraud," "disaster," "pig in a poke" and also "half-assed," and that passing it would be "the dumbest thing in history."Ryan responded not long after with a discursive and far from definitive statement that blamed the Senate for being unable to pass anything, but said, "if moving forward requires a conference committee, that is something the House is willing to do.""The reality, however, is that repealing and replacing Obamacare still ultimately requires the Senate to produce 51 votes for an actual plan," he said.

There was no immediate response from Graham, McCain or Johnson.

The back-and-forth played out as the Senate prepared for a bizarre Capitol Hill ritual, a "vote-a-rama" on amendments that promised to last into the wee hours of Friday morning — at the end of which, the path ahead would perhaps be clearer.

AP