Congressman Lloyd Doggett is not happy about the House's decision to go into a rare closed session to debate the FISA bill. He called it "mysterious hocus pocus". Here's an excerpt of his remarks:

Recent proceedings in this House served one and only one valuable public purpose--hopefully, this totally unproductive exercise will ensure that the Democratic Leadership will never again yield to demands that the public business of this people's House be conducted in secret.

Linking secrecy and political power is a dangerous recipe. Accountability often ends where secrecy begins.

Yes, there are always those whose self-importance grows by participating in mysterious hocus pocus, who insist that their judgment is superior to ordinary mortals because they possess confidential information not available to mere citizens.

Rarely is that true. It was not true before the costly and troubling invasion of Iraq, and it is not true now.

I am a big fan of C-SPAN (and C-SPAN 2 and C-SPAN 3). Arguments for open government aside, the universe is just emptier without the US House on C-SPAN.

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