Nov. 1 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. Senate Democrats forced a closed session of the Senate to address the Bush administration's use of intelligence, a maneuver Republicans dismissed as a political ``stunt.''

Democratic Minority Leader Harry Reid invoked a rule that requires a closed session on the Senate floor in which the galleries are cleared of visitors, to discuss whether the Bush administration's use of intelligence before the Iraq War should be the subject of congressional investigations.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist called the move ``an affront to the leadership of this grand institution.''

To contact the reporters on this story: Laura Litvan in Washington at llitvan@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: November 1, 2005 15:14 EST