What this country needs is more Q and A in Washington

SENATOR JOHN McCain's policy speech on May 15 outlined a number of ideas ("McCain describes world as he pictures it if he wins the White House," Page A10, May 16), including a proposition to begin periodic question and answer sessions between the president and Congress, modeled after the prime minister's question time in the United Kingdom. Such an idea is worthwhile to help restore the system of checks and balances among the branches of the federal government - a delicate system established by our Constitution but diminished significantly by the current administration. Additionally, a president's question time would serve as a counter to the unprecedented and unnecessary government secrecy of the last seven years by increasing transparency and accountability, as well as bringing direct political discourse into a public forum.

During the prime minister's question time, even if the prime minister stonewalls on a question posed by a member of the House of Commons, the public benefits from difficult questions being asked publicly and directly by opposition political parties.

I hope the Democratic candidate for president will consider the institution of a president's question time as well. As McCain acknowledged in his speech, much damage has been done to the presidency in the last seven years, and it will take much work to restore the nation's faith in the executive branch.
SUDHA SETTY, Amherst
The writer, an assistant professor at Western New England College School of Law in Springfield, specializes in comparative law and politics.