David Skaggs: “Mr. Chairman, I am here to talk about what is not in this bill and not in the rule, rather than what is in it. What…”

“Mr. Chairman, I am here to talk about what is not in this bill and not in the rule, rather than what is in it. What ought to be on the floor this afternoon would be an amendment to end cyber censorship in the House, to end the restriction on information available to the American public about the work and positions of the minority members of the House's committees. Unfortunately, a decision, an absolutely incredible, astounding, un-American decision, was taken by the House Reform Committee back in May that puts the majority here in control of information flow about the activities and positions of the minority members of House committees. It is absolutely un-American. It should offend our basic sense of fair play, that the American public cannot get to information about what the minority in this place is doing without passing through gates that are kept and controlled by the majority, and which can essentially be shut so that you cannot find out what you may need to know about major activities of your U.S. Congress. If this happened anywhere else in this country, other than being buried in the House rules, it would be a patent, patent violation of the first amendment to the U.S. Constitution.”