Salman Rushdie

Recently, Salman Rushdie, whose book was declared blasphemous by the late Ayatollah Khomeini and who has to be very careful to avoid falling victim to some Muslim fanatic determined to carry out the death sentence imposed on him, visited Washington and met with legislators. President Bush, however, was unwilling to meet with Rushdie, because, as his press secretary said, “There is no reason for any special relationship with Rushdie. . . . There is no reason for us to have any special interest” (March 26).

I say shame on George Bush. He has a perfect opportunity to make a ringing declaration in support of freedom of expression and to denounce, belatedly, the monstrous arrogance of government-sponsored murder. But he chose to remain silent.

LEO NEWMAN, Laguna Hills