In response to a question about the balance of power in Washington, Rubin commented that liberals cannot compete with the neo-conservative think tanks and the disciplined infrastructure of Washington conservatives.

Albright further attacked Bush’s Washington, calling it “toxic.”

“If you ask questions, you are accused of being unpatriotic,” she said. “[They have] lost their minds.”

She did, however, cite hope in Democratic voters who seemed to be mobilizing for this election, calling it a testament to the fact that individual citizens do and can hold their government accountable.

“Our charm is that we are undisciplined,” she said.

And while both former cabinet members detailed a variety of differences between their administrations and Washington today, they returned to one the most.

“We worked for a president who told us what books to read and had read them,” Albright said.

Championing Clinton’s scholarly instincts, she and Rubin agreed that a president must intellectually engage with issues in a way they said Bush has not.

In an anecdote resonating with the Harvard Square audience, Rubin recalled a meeting between Clinton, himself and University President Lawrence H. Summers. Then-deputy secretary of the treasury under Rubin, Summers had been put in his place by Clinton’s knowledge of a recent book on economics.

“I love Larry but he is not a model of humility,” Rubin said citing his surprise that Summers had been so humbled.

At the end of the evening members of the audience said they had appreciated not only the depth of the evening’s discussion, but also the honesty of the speakers.

Jane Rhee ’04, who worked as a intern for Albright two summers ago, said that she found the informal setting refreshing.

“They had to be non-partisan in office, but since time has passed, I like the frankness, which you don’t often hear from a public figure,” she said.

—Staff writer Jessica E. Vascellaro can be reached at vascell@fas.harvard.edu.