“In my opinion, just speaking candidly, this is a defining moment for our nation,” Rep. Mark Meadows, chair of the deeply conservative House Freedom Caucus, said Monday night. “But it’s also a defining moment for the Freedom Caucus.” The three dozen or so members of the group, joined by Sens. Mike Lee, Rand Paul, and Ted Cruz, had just met for more than an hour in a Capitol complex seemingly occupied by only them and a couple dozen reporters waiting in the hallway.