As I write this, Federal Communications Chairman Kevin Martin should be on his way down to Captol Hill to have a closed-door, "members-only" meeting with legislators who oversee his agency.

"Members-only" does not adequately convey the exclusivity of this particular meeting, however. Only Republican members of the House Telecommunications Subcommittee will be admitted. Democrats on the subcommittee will not be welcome. Nor will the press or the public.

The unusual meeting was called by Rep. Fred Upton, the ranking Republican on the telecommunications subcommittee.

The private pow wow between Martin and the Republican lawmakers comes just two days before the first of what is expected to be a series of aggressive oversight hearings before the subcommittee, which is now controlled by Democrats. Martin, a former campaign worker for Bush-Cheney, is expected to be grilled on a whole host of controversial issues including media ownership, net neutrality and video franchising.

We're not quite sure why Upton called the meeting or why Martin agreed to attend such a one-sided affair. In the end, their motives don't really matter. As head of a non-partisan independent agency, Martin should not be participating in such partisan shenanigans -- regardless of whether the folks in the room are Republicans, Democrats or any other party.

In closing, we note that the weather is going downhill fast here in Washington today, with freezing rain beginning to coat the streets and sidewalks with a treacherous layer of ice. Seems like slippery slopes are the order of the day.