I received your October 31 issue somewhat late, but found the comments of supporters of the presidential candidates (page 9) interesting anyway, especially in light of the key position Dr. Sununu will hold in the new administration.
It was unfortunate, however, that Dr. Branscomb resorted to an ad hominem attack on the former Education Secretary, William Bennett. Dr. Bennett is no laughing stock around here. He was the best Education Secretary we've had, the first one to be a scholar rather than an administrator. Where his predecessors were mainly concerned with money and maintaining the status quo, he used his position to generate discussion of serious issues facing education. Dr. Bennett lectured frequently on the Federalist Papers in schoolrooms; our other Education Secretaries have acted as if they had never read these and other fundamental documents.
I am sending Dr. Branscomb a copy of Dr. Bennett's new collection of speeches, ...