Yesterday, the New York City council held its second hearing on Walmart’s attempt to locate a store in Brooklyn. The D.C. Council has been decidedly less forceful, but at ANC 4B’s January meeting, anti-Walmart advocates thought they had at least gotten Councilmember Michael Brown‘s commitment to get Walmart proponents and opponents heard in some official capacity at the Wilson Building. Yesterday, Brown clarified via Twitter that he had never committed to holding hearings on Walmart, but would continue to attend community meetings on the subject.

Technically, he didn’t, though he came close. Here’s what happened. Commissioner Sara Green asked the Councilmember if he would support a resolution calling for hearings to be held. “Absolutely,” he responded without hesitation.

Later, Brown cautioned—as has become the councilmember’s mantra—that the Council couldn’t force Walmart to do anything via legislation. But hearings? “That is something the council could absolutely have,” he said. “All those things could come out in a public hearing….the public hearing thing, there is no reason we could not do that.”

Which, of course, isn’t a commitment that he would do so.