The news gets to the family some other way, I thought--these letters don't hold up the process. Or am I wrong?
It shouldn't be hard for Rumsfeld to sign 4 or 8 letters a day. He can easily set aside 1 minute from his busy schedule to show respect for men who have made the ultimate sacrifice for their coutnry. 5 minutes one day a week, if he must.
If these letters arrive after the fact then he sure as heck should have signed them.
That is of course predicated on time not being a factor.