Independent Ticket

Re “Of Independent Mind,” Opinion, Aug. 27: The prospect of a Colin Powell/Bill Bradley ticket stirs the juices of people who long to see the national debate taken back from the bickering between neutered congressional Democrats and the yahoos like Pat Robertson and Jesse Helms who increasingly call the shots in Republican circles.

A previous musing on this subject raised the caution that without party identification they would have no way to effectively guide and lead the legislative process. Well, President Clinton’s present ability to lead his putative party is so weak that he might as well be an independent.

I’d rather have strong leaders in the same situation than a President produced by the Republican Party making Supreme Court appointments for the next four years.

G.F. CAMPBELL

Agoura Hills

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* Sen. Bill Bradley (D-N.J.) recently bailed out; he’s not seeking reelection after three terms because “politics is broken.” What has he been doing for the last 17 years? Why didn’t he at least try to fix it?

JIM FULLER

Glendale