but you can follow me on twitter, like us on facebook or visit us on the web at cnn.com/unguarded. while we'll be off for the next couple of weeks we'll be right back in december for a whole new run of "unguarded" where the end of the game is just the start of the story. good night. detroit's the city of champions. the whole world knows that detroit is the american city whose products have revolutionized our way of living. and only in michigan will you find the men and women whose tant made us the arsenal of democracy in wartime and the economic pace setter in peace time.

♪ ♪ >> it's where nearly everything american and great came from.

the things the whole world wanted made here. the heart, the soul, the beat of an industrial, cultural superpower. a magnet for everyone with a dream of a better future, from eastern europe to the deep south. american dream, you came here. >> the one straight ahead with the green roof? >> the big ricocco building completely empty. >> unbelievable. >> the white one is being rehabbed. one next to it is completely empty. the great pyramid with the spire on top sold for $5 million. >> you can't buy a garage in the hamptons for that. >> 5 million for a skyscraper. >> it is post-apocalyptic. i mean, it's like a science fiction film. what the hell happened here? >> it is post-apocalyptic except for the fact there's 700,000 people living here. >> detroit, 2013. charlie ludoff is a writer, journalist, television reporter. he grew up here. >> but it used to be 2 million people.

that was rubber. that guy was steel. that guy was a doctor. this was what made america. the road started here. the automobile, frozen peas started here. credit on a mass scale started here. >> what was this like just before this? 20 years before? >> it was insane. there were like twice as many people here. this is a consequence because all the whites went, they took their money, they took their factories. the black middle class maintained for awhile, and then it got too rough for them. so there's little pockets of hippies and older black folks, a couple white folks, some arabs. but this is 140 square miles. so you're going to get tall grass because it's back to the wild. >> it is one of the most beautiful cities in america. it speaks of those industrial age dreams of an endlessly glorious future. the people who built these structures, they were thinking big. they were looking at a new rome and they built it, actually.

it's awesome. ♪ ♪

>> maybe the worm started to turn here, the pack ard automotive plant, opened in 1903 it was considered the most advanced facility of its kind anywhere in the world. huge, epically proper portioned. i mean, 3.5 million square feet. now, one man lives here. al hill. >> my name's allen hill. welcome to my home. this one right here is the forge room. it was a former packard motor car company. i started living here about seven years ago. by that time i was semiapprehensive about the place and the going on around here. but it turns out it's about as peaceful as the north woods. not having a credit card or a mortgage payment or a car payment is a real blessing. there's a few nails here, so -- what's happened here in detroit was unfortunate, but it's a sign of the times. woe find out that not only does it take a village to raise an

individual, it takes an entire world to support one city. one city suffering or one community suffering, the entire world should pitch in and help elevate it instead of sit there and stare at it. people have lost faith in a lot of things. quite of it has to do with the faith we had in detroit. one an industrial might of the entire world. >> it's enormous. >> yeah, it is. it's about a mile long, maybe a quarter of a mile wide. you get a pretty good view from up here. >> how many people worked here at its peak? >> well, during the war there was like 33,000 people working here. it went out in business in '56. they brute studebaker in as a partner and studebaker pulled them down. >> this has been abandoned since the 50s? >> well, actually what happened, in 1956 they rented out to various entrepreneurs. warehouse, trucking companies,

guys restoring cars. >> how long has it been like this, though? >> most of this damage happened within the five years. within the last five years? >> yeah. >> wow. >> china had this olympian effort. people came scrapping. took the windows out, destroyed everything. >> the place is pretty much open to anyone who wants to come in here. >> sure. a lot of urban explorers. people shooting music videos, taking pictures. oftentimes you see a wedding party come here. they use this as a backdrop for their wedding and take pictures, videos. >> wow. >> you want to take pictures here. the place, like so much of detroit, invites it. urban exploring as they call it, sifting through the remains of detroit's great american ongoing tragedy, photographing them, posing in front of them, is something of an irresistible impulse. detroiters hate it. all visitors like us, i should point out.

>> what part of this factory are we standing? >> where the assembly line was. here they spray painted the cars. you can see in the forward the overspray. the assembly line ended like 35, 40 feet over here. there's bridges here between here and the main building. the assembly lines actually came across to the bridges. possibility of assembly line about 3/4 of a mile long. >> talking hundreds if not thousands of people all working on the process. yeah. >> this is sort of a -- not a perfect model for detroit but a perfect model when a big factory goes down, it's not just 33,000 people, that's 33,000 families who are going to be eating dinner out less. >> you got a point there on that. >> most people, i would guess, have no idea what a packard even was. we're talking about one of the great luxury cars in the world, yes? >> yeah, it was the kind of car that everybody would love to

have. kings and queens and every president wanted to ride in one. president wanted to ride in one. and popes and indian chiefs. carmaker went out of business. they realized there was a trend that started here in detroit. it affected detroit affected the entire world because it followed everybody home. 50 or 60 years later. but it started here. and then everybody else gets to experience the same problem we're having. in another 20 years this place probably won't be here and people won't have any idea what went on over here. >> it's hard to look away from the ruin, to not find beauty in the decay. comparisons to ankor wat, maccu pucu, ancient rome. magnificent structures left to rot. yet unlike ankor, people still live here. we forget that.

you tell people you go to detroit and chances are somebody from the home team is going to say "be sure to get a cone." i never really understood that. i mean, i'm like 30 minutes from a place called coney island where presumably they know something about freaking hot dogs, right? maybe the early greeks or macedonians who first experienced that golden land by the shore then took what they saw with them to florida, michigan and beyond. maybe they knew something. they've been doing coneys at dooleys for over 90 years. that's almost as long as the hot dog's been around. and i can't tell you how deep this creation runs here. deep dish of chicago, cheese steak in philadelphia. you'll find some ambivalence. not here. >> how are you, sir? >> good. now if i were from detroit would i be eating this with my hands or with a fork? >> probably with your hands. >> all right.

i'll do my best. logistical problems. that's delicious. this is like the best of my only three coney experiences. you're open 24 hours. >> yes, sir, 24/7. >> seriously drunk people trying to eat this? >> we have a fun time. >> is it a skill you learn over time? >> it takes practice. >> like kung fu. you got to practice and practice. >> exactly. practice makes perfect. >> that was good. i think i'd better have another one of these. >> yeah, you should. >> i'll be better at it the next time around. >> one coney up everything. >> it seems like a simple thing. hot dog, chili, raw onion, mustard, steamed bun. but the delicate interplay between these ingredients when done right is symphonic. ♪

okay, listen up! i'm re-workin' the menu. mayo? corn dogs? you are so outta here!

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detroit's problems are well-documented. a lot of attention has been paid to a history of spectacular mismanagement and corruption. detroit is hardly alone in this. new york was a says pit of mob and influence corruption. chicago, boston, machine politics, they wrote the book. but detroit differs in that its

scandal seem so comically lurid, so surrealistically squalid. the last mayor, kwame kilpatrick, is serving time in the jug for his than patriotic behaviors. one man seems to know what's going on. adolph mongo. he's seen it all. >> i know what i'm having but i'd love a beer. >> this is this kind of place. i thought you drank, man. you're drinking beer? >> what are you drinking? >> i'm drinking vodka. >> i'm going to fold under pressure. then i'll think about a burger down the way. you having something to eat? >> i'm eating. >> all right. i'll hold back. i will stick with this. >> i'll get you a drink and then you can decide. >> i have to ask, you're born and raised in the detroit area. >> right.

>> and academic star, marine corps, journalism. why department you ever run for office? >> you got to be crazy. you know what? they don't want straightforward politicians. they don't last. got to be real cold-blooded. being an elected official is like working for the drug cartel. you can't give anybody any mercy. >> it seems that whatever might be in your heart and however pure you might be when you finally arrive in office, somebody brings you a big dossier and opens it up and says mr. president or mr. mayor or mr. governor, this is the real situation. at which point it's a time to start making some serious accommodations >> yes. >> so kwame kilpatrick. what went on there? >> greedy. >> just greed. old school -- >> greedy. he was greedy. i didn't support him in the beginning. and when he was -- i was one of his biggest critics. but when he got in trouble, who did he call?

he called me. i should've listened to my wife. she said hey, don't be messing with them. >> are there good guys out there? >> there's a lot of guys, yes, but they don't want to run. >> why don't they want to run? >> because you've got to take the bad that come along with it. you got to take the garbage. >> why should a bright young guy out of -- fresh out of law school start thinking about running for anything in the city of detroit? >> yeah. because sooner or later it's going to be all right. it's going to be all right. it's a tough town. >> is detroit going to turn things around? i could lie and tell you yes. but you know what? this city's screwed. only place i've ever been that looks anything like detroit does now, chernobyl. i'm not being funny. that's the truth. >> abandoned. >> you have to admire the bold, proud, ferociously enterprising survivors who decided to hang

on, hang, in and figure out a way to not only survive but do something extraordinary. there's tyree guitten heidelberg project, outdoor art project that began in 1986 and now attracts 35,000 visitors per year from around the world. >> that was gas right there. >> i love detroit. >> they got this field mowed last summer, the neighborhood, then lit it on fire. >> another block, and more decay. and a liquor store. with this neighborhood, the only store for miles. >> just be right back. >> how you doing? >> hey, lady. >> awesome spirit, man. god bless you. >> how are you?

>> see you later. >> cheers. >> cheers, man. >> yep. you want one? >> that's the benefit of a college education right there. people seem to like you in this town. who hates you in this town? >> who hates me in this town? >> nobody. >> politicians? >> i'm guessing there are a number of politicians and former public employees who are not too happy. >> i don't know. you know, yeah [ laughter ] >> yeah, but let's face it, a whole lot of people out there who just could be perfectly happy with just letting detroit go. >> it already went! look at this. see all those lilys there? i call those the ghost gardens. like they're all over. the houses that used to be? the gardens still come up.

>> off the main drag -- >> girl you're wearing the hat and everything? >> a backyard. thanks for coming. >> a well-tended home surrounded by many neglected ones. an example of detroit style entrepreneurship. greedy greg's, a do it yourself barbecue joint, started by these two, richelle and greg. >> i'm tony. >> i'm greedy greg. >> on the menu, absolutely delicious, straight from the

grill ribs and rib tips. but the really good stuff is inside. superb smoked pork-loaded collards and mac-and-cheese. >> thank you so much. this is perfect. >> that's good. >> well, i'm going to use this spoon here. >> this is unbelievably good. what the mac? >> the greens are incredible. >> oh, those are good. >> so in the greens, is that like smoked ham hock? >> i can't tell you my secret. >> some of the best greens i've ever had. >> this dude's been everywhere. >> i've been all over the south. met a lot of greens. those are not just delicious, they're luxurious. big hunks of you won't tell me what in there? >> that's my secret. >> will this kind of entrepreneurship lead detroit out of its sink hole? probably not.

>> i can't believe there's not like a line of cars around the corner. that was good. >> but it's no longer about winning, is it? it's about surviving. [ horn honks ] [ passenger ] airport, please. what airline? united. [ indian accent ] which airline, sir? [ passenger ] united. whoa taxi! [ british accent ] what airline, then? [ passenger ] united. all right. [ spanish ] what airline? [ passenger ] united. ♪

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there are approximately 80,000 abandoned buildings within detroit's 140-square-mile city limits. what that translates to unfortunately is about 14 acts of arson a day, nearly 5,000 a year. that's just arson. that doesn't include the thousands of other types of fires and medical emergencies the detroit fire department responds to every day. with an ever lower valued housing market where you can buy a home for as little as $500, many houses are burned down for the insurance. many because angry neighbors, desperate to hang on, see abandoned structures taken over by crack heads or drug gangs. with law enforcement stretched ridiculously thin, they resort to burning them out. they won't say it. i will. the detroit fire department is underfunded, underequipped, often badly and incompetently led and up against what seems

like a never-ending war. a city on fire their safety equipment, their boots, their clothes are often mouldering and shambolic but they fight on. this is the second time they've been to this house. if it happens to be arson, chances are no one will ever know for sure. given the ever shrinking resources available to the department, most fires can't even be investigated. this fire is out within an hour. and after the fire, dinner. the cliche' is that firemen are great cooks. in this case, the cliche' is true. lieutenant mike devins and the boys of squad 3 are cooking up a family meal. >> is every firefighter expected to cook reasonably well? >> if they don't they catch hell in detroit. >> really?

it's almost a perfect society in that sense in a perfect society believe everybody should be able to feed themself and their friends or their family at least reasonably well, that if they're not able to do that they should be shunned and demonized and marginalized. >> agreed. most of the firemen are known for our cooking. we've cooked some outstanding meals. we've learned to shop to get more for less. >> firefighters in my experience are a lot like the marines i've met over the years. no matter how badly led, ridiculously underequipped, underappreciated, how doomed their mission, they take a bizarre and quite beautiful pride in at least being screwed more than everybody else and doing it with style. they seem to do what they do for themselves. it's not a job, it's a calling. >> this is where the guys store their gear. as you can see, the gear's very weathered. >> how old? >> this gear is open a couple of years old. >> but it gets beat up quick.

>> oh, yeah. got one new coat hanging in there. there's a lucky guy that's got a new coat. but that gear's seen a lot of action. >> where's the fire pole, dude? >> they took them in. late 90s management took the poles out. >> what does every little boy my age was all about sparky the fire dog and the poles. >> i used to love sliding the pole. the headquarters was three stories. when you were sliding that thing you had to really hold on because you were going for a ride. the old running board we put up here, we don't use the running board. but this is how many companies we used to have. >> what percentage of that number are active now? >> less than half. and we're fighting a lot more fires. >> i've got to say the kitchen's looking pretty good. >> that's one of the best kitchens in the city. tonight's meal is being cooked

by paul. he's squad 3's best, they say. >> awesome. look at this. >> he's reading the can. that's a good start. >> tonight's menu. crab cakes with a mix of actual crab and this stuff. sea leg. maybe you know it from such beloved menu items as california roll. hey, firefighters can't afford 100% jumbo lump crab meat, okay? >> do you know what this stuff is, by the way? >> it's fish, isn't it? >> pollock. it's a miracle fish you can make beef out of this, too. or beef-like substance. >> it should be pointed out that every meal is paid for by the the crew on duty. they pool their money and shop as a unit. >> what's the fire house favorite by consensus? >> oh, steaks, man. >> if i were the regular cook here, the whole fire house would be in totally open rebellion. >> why? >> first of all i'd be making stews because they're cheap and i think they're delicious. plus i'd be trying out like tripe and guts on you guys. >> that would not go. >> you'd be eating like italian

peasants every day if i was the cook. have a big bowl of stew with a big hunk of bread. that would be about it. i'd be pocketing the difference. yeah. >> lamb chops seared in the pan then finished over the grill. then ceasar salad with chicken. >> ever find out how are the other firefighters eating around the city? >> you know, what are you guys having for chow? >> do you ever get tempted and say oh, yeah we had foie gras. i keep telling them no more lobster. i just can't take it. we are free to eat? >> yes. >> nice job on the crab cakes. >> yeah. >> full of meat. >> very tasty. >> so if it's not good, are you not diplomatic about it? >> no. not at all. no. >> we tell him nice try.

>> a lot of cooks, they look at that kitchen. there's a lot of room. and there's always a lot of spices. our staples are always loaded. you can pretty much make anything in there. it's a good place to be a cook. nice job there, pauly. >> yes, well done, sir. >> generally speaking, you eat fast because you never know. in all likelihood, you are not going to get to finish that meal. >> well, obviously tony's not doing any dishes. >> i'll do all the dishes. >> hell no. >> won't be the first time. won't be the last. >> no way. no way. ♪

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at this point you may be asking, what about all the cool stuff i hear about detroit? that's what you're thinking. the vibrant, new, do it yourself culture of urban renaissance, young entrepreneurs, artists transforming the city one block at a time. where's that? well, that is happening. young, idealistic, true believing, hard-working creative people are indeed doing their best to bring life and hope and beauty to this greatest of cities. you've got to start with the deeply felt and absolute belief that detroit is indeed a great city and that it is worth saving. as utterly screwed as detroit may be, you have to be a twisted, unpatriotic freak to not believe that. >> behold the future. like cooking in a back alley? >> yes. >> all right. >> chef craig lightfield has done what many would call a very

unwise thing. after working at gothic grill in manhattan, instead of staying where the money and arguably was, he returned to detroit. he's been working to get a brick and mortar establishment going by first doing regular pop ups here at guns and butter, tucked into the back room of an art gallery under an overpass in downtown detroit. >> you have like a really weird attitude towards food in general. >> yeah. >> what's that? >> you got liquor, got cigarettes, got coffee. >> all of that. we're going to eat well. >> charlie rudolph may have a pulitzer prize. but his appreciation of fine food and dining is, shall we say lacking. >> is that cheese? >> simply put, he's a philistine. warm egg yolk with a smeltering of egg on top? he does these like he's at ruby tuesdays.

>> how is that going to play out? will there be political leadership in place to manage that fairly? >> it will be fine. everybody likes a nice thing in an eggshell with caviar on top. everybody. it's just all about keeping cool. >> it won't be fine. it will not be fine if there's not political leadership. it will not. >> well, you know, sometimes political leadership grows up out of what's happening. we don't have any political leadership and this is happening. >> are you an optimist, charlie? >> i'm an optimist. i'm here in this garage. >> summer soup with melon, tomato and lemon verbena broth. >> all the melons from the market. the coriander blossoms we picked from a farm in detroit. >> beautiful. thank you. >> thank you. >> that's good, isn't it? i would describe that. may i, chef? as a light, airy gespacho.

>> i wouldn't even go that far. >> an opportunity to make a little gimlet. >> in the soup? >> the soup is delicious. >> when i was a chef if you would have poured gin in my soup i would have stabbed you with a fork. i'm dying somewhere inside. you're like the worst case scenario customer. >> next up smoked mussels lightly steamed in white wine, aromatics and butter served in a lobster broth of fried onions, honey. quite delicious. baby greek salad with beets, tomato and feta, all sourced locally. a tribute to the greek diners where greg grew up dining. >> here he is in detroit. that's a heroic thing. >> the headaches are less. you're appreciated here.

>> now, this would be considered a fool-hardy venture in the chef world. >> guess what? we like good food, too. we're not space aliens. >> they often say thank you. we just moved back from chicago. we lived in chicago last six years. lived in l.a. six years. thank you. this is exactly what we wanted. >> what you've done is counter intuitive. there is a conventional career path for chefs. instead, you decide to go to detroit. >> hell, yeah, not just detroit. come back home. people think i'm crazy for going back to detroit. >> then another tribute to classic detroit, potato-filled perogi and kilbasa, simmered in white wine and fennel seeds. followed by locally sourced lamb. cooked perfectly. topped with sour cherries, mulberries, toasted pistachios, coriander.

>> how does this benefit the majority of detroiters? >> how is sitting back not doing anything making it better? how is buying my menu items only from detroit not helping? i'm buying from detroit, i'm hiring from detroit. everybody who lives here. >> i would say i'm doing what i do well, i'm doing it in a place i love, and i am demonstrating that yet another person gives a [ mute ] about detroit and believes in it enough to be here. >> you're 100% right. i never really thought about it until you asked that question. to me it's just obvious. >> what will the detroit of the future look like? whatever you may think it should look like, it will probably taste like this. okay, listen up! i'm re-workin' the menu. mayo? corn dogs? you are so outta here! aah! [ female announcer ] the complete balanced nutrition of great-tasting ensure.

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somewhere in this unassuming neighborhood, one can sit down for an excellent meal. but you won't find this place on yelp, and unfortunately i cannot tell you where it is exactly. why not, you ask? it's not exactly a restaurant, you see. which means it's not strictly speaking legal. >> what is this place? >> papoosa house?

>> it's a cultural thing. traditionally they serve out of of their houses. and it's just something that we bring over and they come. this is about as traditional as it gets right here. >> it's just like home. >> yeah. >> this is what's called a papoosa house. literally a house. this one serving home-cooked salvadoran meals. the one running it, we can't show her face. but she's been here for ten years serving a mostly salvadoran clientele looking for a taste of home. first up a staple done differently than the norm. tamales. >> you can get papoosa in nicaragua, guatemala. but for some reason a salvadoran papoosa get the most respect. >> general consensus seems to be they're the best. how come?

>> i would agree. >> george azar is our detroit fixer. he's been coming here with his friend joe for years. >> this is what makes it right here is this. cordito. >> it's just a pickled slaw. >> i don't know if you can hang, man. >> is it a manly thing? >> it's turning into it, it seems like. >> mexican spices. salvadoran not spicy. >> that's true. they don't do it that spicy. >> wow. chicharon. porky goodness in there. >> it's fried pork ground with peppers, onion and tomato. simple. >> take the liberty of ordering op detroit beverages we've egregiously overlooked so far. burners. >> a cross between ginger beer and ginger ale. not as spicy as ginger beer and not as sweet as ginger ale in middle. it's my favorite. >> i need this to enhance my street cred in detroit so i will be welcomed back.

>> then pollo asado. butter, garlic, simple, delicious. >> it's the low fat butter. >> that's good. >> it's like a big hug. >> how did you find your way here? >> honestly it's only word of mouth. >> you have annoying foodie web sites, right? >> true. but they're not coming here. >> they're not coming here. >> oh, no. they walk in the door, oh. >> there are thousands of foodies with ironic sunglasses and fedoras just waiting to go get in here. >> we don't want this place to come to the food -- i get mad at him when he brings people. >> you don't want people outside with a two-hour wait. >> who doesn't want money? >> with her it's not about the money, it's about keeping the tradition alive. >> what happens when a city goes bankruptcy?

when it's at the point that it's actually considering selling what's left of itself in chunks. in detroit, city services are reduced or cut out completely. fewer buses, fewer cops, fewer firefighters. answer, they turn to each other for help or figure out how to do it for themselves. detroit has a reputation as a tough town. but that toughness is about resilience, too. the insistence on sticking with it no matter what. on not giving up in the face of the utter failure of leadership year after year. if the city abandons its parks and leaves them to be overgrown by tall grass and weeds, then somebody has got to do something, right? meet the mower gang. started by this guy, tom nardone with a simple mission of doing what they can to keep detroit's abandoned parks maintained. >> who are you guys and what are you doing here? >> we are the detroit mower gang.

and we clean up the abandoned parks and playgrounds in this town. >> why would you do that? >> kid need a place to play. i don't care who your. if you're under 10 years old i think you deserve some justice in this world, don't you think? >> yeah. >> yeah. >> how did this thing start? >> i guess i started it. i bought a lawn tractor when the city announced they were closing 72 parks. >> what's the difference between being open and closed? they stop maintaining it? >> yeah. >> or do they physically shut it off? >> no. they don't physically shut it off. they just take the trash barrels away and stop mowing. >> crazy. >> it's a strange place, detroit. when we're done here, it will not look like a nice park. >> but still a playable park. >> yeah. and a visible park. so if you had kids you could see what they're doing in this park. it's safer. >> all right, well, let's cut some grass. >> yeah. come on. you'll like it. it's fun. ♪ ♪

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in detroit, approximately 40 square miles have been reverted to basically unused green space. in many cities, so-called urban farming may be looked upon by cynics like me as an affectation. here in detroit, it's not. with nature taking back the landscape, block by block, the urban farm is really the last line of defense. d town sits on the western border of detroit. >> where are we? >> we're in the largest park in the city which is called rouge park. >> did you just come in and start digging or did you have permission to come in. >> we had permission to come in. >> was that difficult? >> it was difficult. we negotiated with the city for two years.

part of the difficulty they didn't know what hook to hang our request on. they're used to developers saying i want to build a strip mall or parking structure. they're not used to people saying we want land to build a model organic farm. >> maleke started the farm with the goal of providing greater access to foods which grocery stores have completely abandoned. that's basically all of detroit's upper city. >> other than whole foods who just came, in not a single national food chain. >> no. no. in 2007, farmer jack closed its last stores in detroit. that was kind of the end of the big chains in detroit. >> just subsistence farming, not cash crop. you're not anticipating selling outside of detroit. >> there's greater demand in detroit than all of the farmers locally can supply. so first we want to supply that local demand in the city of detroit. >> to what do you think that this model can be replicated in and around the city? >> clearly we think urban

agriculture has great potential. and one of the things that we have in detroit is access to huge amounts of land. if we're able to produce even a small percentage of the food which is consumed in detroit and circulate the revenues from that food within our community them we're able to create a more vibrant, healthy, economically strong community. so we think it has tremendous potential. >> who will live in the detroit of the future? there's no question, is there, that detroit will come back? in one form or another, a city this magnificent, this storied, this american, cannot, will not ever disappear into the weeds. there are too few places this

beautiful for it to be allowed to crumble like ankor or rome. someone will live in a smaller, tighter, no doubt hipper, much contracted new detroit. but who will that be? will it be the people who stuck it out here, who fought block by block to keep their city from burning? who struggled to defend their homes, keep up appearances as all around them their neighborhoods emptied? what will detroit look like in 20 years? or 50? that's not just a detroit question, that's an america question. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

this is "piers morgan live." welcome to the viewers in the united states and around the world. tonight a tale of two presidents, one cut down in the prime and another struggling to preserve the legacy as the nation remembers john fitzgerald kennedy. how will we remember this president? will barack obama's legacy be a failed health care law. is obama care his katrina? >> i'm not a perfect man and i will not be a perfect president. >> and the president survived clinically and what about the second term agenda? i'll ask the man that wrote a book on him and one of barack obama's biggest survivors.