>> schieffer: welcome back to "face the nation." the president and vice president will be among those from washington in boston tomorrow for the opening of the edward m. kennedy institute, which includes among other things a life size recreation of the u.s. senate chamber where the late senator served for 47 years. it's all there from the senate well and senators' desk. his widow, vicky was a driving force behind this. >> ted kennedy was certainly a joyous democrat. he loved his party. he was a man of strong belief. but he always listened. and looked for that negative common ground that could move an issue forward. >> schieffer: in the historic senate room where he crafted so

much of the legislation that became law we gathered four of his long time colleagues. democratic senator barbara mikulski. former senator chris dodd, olympia snowe and john mccain. and we asked them how he managed to do it. >> he dedicated his life to the institution and there by being able become one of the most effective members of the united states senn at. i might add probably greatest antagonist i ever had on the floor of the senate. >> schieffer: yet you were friends. >> we had some of the great bouts, yet i remember one time we had a huge fight that two freshmen had begun we drove them from the floor and afterwards walking off the floor he put his arm around me. we did a good thing didn't we, john? he enjoyed the combat but he didn't personalize the combat. that is really one of the

reasons why i think so many, on both sides of the aisle had not just respect but after awhile affection. >> he was a legislative man he used his skills as a negotiator. he appreciated the traditions of the senate and also got to know his colleagues, their preferences and dislikes. understood that adversary today would be ally tomorrow. >> schieffer: he was one of your closest personal friends senator dodd. what do you think it was about him? >> once said that the senate changes a person. that it has ability to make heightened sense of responsibility. that is something i don't understand. this is the most unique institution in public life in many ways because of the rules of the place. mandates that you work with each other. in fact the minority given status here unlike any other place in the country. and teddy effect of the senate

really had an affect on him. in this very room, where we're gathered here today, i watched him day in and day out make it possible for people he disagreed with to have victories. >> the energy, the fact that he was more than willing to let other people take the credit even thoughers the big guy in the room. a very savvy strategic legislator. also made you feel welcome. made you feel like you mattered and you counted. i was with him when he met world leaders in this beautiful committee rooms, i was with him at in boston walking the streets where he made the kitchen staff and people making the meatballs as well as important as people making policy. >> ted always kept his word. only times i saw him angry was when somebody didn't keep their word. all senators have a -- the more

senior you get he had an interesting custom that if it was a new senator who had never visited there before he would take them on a little tour of the hide away, where there was various pictures of his brothers of his family, of the life, of the in tire kennedy family. i never saw anybody that didn't come away sort of impressed and more than that, of greater appreciation for ted condition de's devotion to his family. >> that's very interesting. where you say he was someone who kept his word. >> he kept his word. sometimes that was hard for him to do. >> chris mentioned about this hearing room, reminded me of an initiative that i work with ted on of the genetic nondiscrimination. coauthored the bill. it was reported on this committee, he chaired it, democrats were in the majority at that time. reported out as the

snowe-kennedy bill ratherrer than kennedy-snowe. the chair usually signs his or her name first. i wasn't a member of the committee. i give this as example imagine how frankly in today's legislative environment to have s.u.v. magnanimous gesture that kind of deference. >> he'd have a dinner at the beginning of each congress at his home. no staff, just members. he'd go around the room ask everybody what they would like to do. what they would like to achieve in that congress. and i know leadership used to try to send the meanest junk yard dog to be the ranking republican because he was too -- too productive. awfully difficult to say no the a guy says, tell me what you'd like to do and let me help you do it. invariably friends would turn around and how can i be mad at this guy he's going to help me

do something i'd like to do. it was magical and fun to work with. >> on women's health agenda which senator kennedy was very supportive. when i came to the senn eight i was the only democratic woman. senator snowe and i worked in the house along with some others in the fact women had not been included in the protocols at nih we were excluded. they said our hormones messed up the research, whatever that meant. [laughter] senator kennedy -- >> schieffer: what did that mean? >> well i could do a whole show on that, bob. but senator snowe working with others in the house we were moving an agenda, we realized there was no -- got women in the protocol, in the office of women's health. worked with me, reached out to

me reached out to olympia and the gang in the house we moved it. >> schieffer: let me -- can't be complete without his passion. bob dole once said that ted kennedy was the only senator he ever knew who could eviscerate you on the floor of the senate then come into the coat room convince you that he wasn't talking about you. but i'm telling you it was fun to do battle with him. but it was a daunting experience. and have no doubt about the fact that he was a partisan liberal democrat of the old school. but at the same time as we've described he was willing to work with the other side and come to agreement. but some of the most ferocious debates i've ever had, i will ever have, were with ted kennedy. >> schieffer: did you ever get mad at him on the floor? >> we got mad at each other. then when you walk off the floor

all that goes away. because legitimate belief, is that each of us had. the passion i think is not only appropriate but admirable. >> schieffer: it's not that way any more? >> no. john says something important. to take it a step further having spent a lot of time with ted on a personal level, i could be in the middle of the ocean sailing with him not another human being within miles you would think he was -- on the floor of the senate is wound up about a subject matter. calm down, just the two of us here. you're talking to the fish out here. he's talking about healthcare or whatever it was, just felt passionately about it. this wasn't just a staged event on the floor of the senate it was passionate but it was not mean. >> that's what i think the difference is today. there's a lot of meanness in washington. >> all of us here are pretty

vocal and outspoken can hit high decibel levels. it was situational. it was in the passion of the moment. the passionate debate of ideas. i feel that one of the ways ted kennedy organized the way he did with the meetings and was more friendship, less partisanship. because you knew each other. always trying to find a way. sure, we're going to fight and differ but when the day is over, the day has to be over, begin new day you find a new way. >> schieffer: will we ever see his likes again? >> if teddy were here he'd make this work. i have great confidence in the place and the institution. goes to ups and downs never perfect in the sense. the senate changes people. if you are here for awhile you understand it's different and requires exactly what olympia said, spree mice and collaboration. it will work again.

i think he would be optimistic. he'd be troubled by the differences right now. >> schieffer: what do you think, senator? >> may see his like again. i've seen with some of the newer and younger members of the senate. but i don't think you'll see the kind of credentials and background and experience and family. let's face it. the kennedy family is probably as close to royalty as this nation has ever had. whether that's good or bad i'm not prepared to say. but i think brought some unique background and history that probably we may never see again. >> he was fearless in getting things done, almost half century of his remarkable public service. the institute is designed to inspire the next generation of leadership to have hands-on appreciation of the potential and the power to do good through public service by virtue of serving the united states senate

>> i miss the back and forth. and i certainly do miss him. i miss the combat. i miss the integrity and desire to get things done for the people of this country. i do agree that there will be others that are equally as far as service is concerned. but frankly for those we may never see his like quite like that again. >> schieffer: thank you all very much. >> thank you, bob. >> schieffer: when senator kennedy died in 2009 i remember writing that as i watched his funeral i had thought of a book i had just read called "the art of racing in the rain" and the protagonist observes that no race is ever been won on the first turn but many have ended there. ted kennedy crashed and crashed again during the early turns of his life. but somehow he kept ongoing

through sorrows and tragedies over which he had no control and self destructiveness over which he did. and in the final laps he won. his children loved him his contemporaries even those who often opposed him admired him and those whose causes he championed thanked him. to what else. many laws he authored changed the lives of millions and many ways he was the classic american hero the imperfect man who was sorely tested and yet in that testing found a way to overcome personal flaws and go on to accomplish great things. you didn't have to agree with his politics to appreciate what he achieved. back in a minute.

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is important because with fewer symptoms to distract you you can focus on the extraordinary things you do every single day. live claritin clear. every day. >> schieffer: we're back with political panel to do a little analysis, the chief correspondent for the "washington post" who won prestigious prize for excellence and political reporting just last week. congratulations to you dan. also with us scott conroy, the senior political reporter for "the huffington post." and cbs news congressional correspondent nancy cordes along with politico senior congress mall reporter many raju. let's start with the cbs news poll. jeb bush is on top no surprise there. huckabee has slipped a little, what's interesting about the poll and may be simply because

it was being conducted while he was announcing he was running, ted cruz moved up considerably more than any other candidate. is he going to be viable candidate? >> i think he will be in iowa. the iowa caucuses typically appeal to more social conservative. huckabee had won that caucus in '08 and in 2012 rick santorum won as well. the question for ted cruz, can he broaden his appeal beyond those religious conservatives. put together coalition that could win in new hampshire, make him competitive in south carolina and run the table. that is a very, very big challenge for him. >> schieffer: you see him as a factor? >> he will be a factor because he will pull the field to the right. his position himself in unyielding conservative. someone that folks who are trying to vie for that same segmented of voters would have to pay attention to. when he takes a position, it

will be interesting to see how the other candidates adjust to that whether they move towards him or move a little bit to his left. >> schieffer: do you agree with the poll, dan that it's wide open on republican? >> oh, yeah. we're going to see a lot of fluidity in these numbers month to month as some people rise and fall. scott walker had a good month at one point, ted cruz makes announcement his poll shows movement. there was movement for rand paul in here. but the striking thing about a lot of these numbers is how little most republicans know about a lot of candidates. so, the question is, as they begin to come into focus do their numbers rise or do they fall? >> schieffer: one of the interesting things, nab see, is on democratic side, i don't think there's any surprise for anyone that hillary clinton some 80% say they could vote for hillary clinton. but what i found interesting was that 66% said they like to see her have very competitive

primary season. who would pose the challenge here? >> the interesting thing s when they ask okay, look at these other candidates two-thirds of the same people who answered the poll don't know enough about. to even form any kind of opinion about them. >> schieffer: bernie sanders isn't even a democrat. >> people don't know that. for a more active primary but there's no consensus on who those other opponents should be. >> schieffer: scott let's talk about senator clinton. we learned now from the chairman of the committee that is investigating benghazi that in fact she has deleted all of the e-mails in her server. where is all this? is this going to be a factor? is this a problem for her? has she done something illegal? >> i mean, if you talk to run of the mill voter i don't think

they cave so much about the e-mail issue. the problem is, that it feeds into perception that are already pre-engrained about the clintons wanting to play by their own rules. that is the issue for her. as far as hilary coming out and announcing here i think her biggest concern is coming up with her reason for why she wants to be president of the united states. that question that trips up ted kennedy in 1980. why do you want to do this? she's got to come up with a great answer for that that goes beyond the talking points of, well i want to help the middle class. because that is the question people are wondering, they don't want to just see coronation here. they want to see why she wants to do this. >> schieffer: dan they are all starting on both sides going to new hampshire going to iowa does iowa matter any more? we know ted cruz is going out there to try to get the conservatives, that's where

huckabee, i would guess, would be the strongest right now. because the democrats and republicans out there tend to be evangelical, many of them. is iowa a factor this time? >> it's a factor for two reasons. one is, it's one of the two places where candidates actually have to talk to voters face to face over extended period of time. new hampshire is the other. both those states have that culture. it's important in the sense in testing these candidates as to what they get out of those and how people react to them. the sect reason is, it tends to win on the right side of the field. it's not a good indicator necessarily who have is going to be the nominee. but it does wipe out part of the field early on. >> schieffer: my sense of it is that we're going to come down to jeb bush is going to be a factor right down to the end. and whoever wins the rest of the candidate -- >> i think you can't -- let's say it's at the time cruz after all rick santorum last time

around, won must 25% of the vote. ted cruz would get to 25%. i'd say he probably has most loyal followers at this point in the game. >> other factor is the money race. we're going to see a big indication in the next couple of weeks when they are to report their first quarter numbers. and jeb bush has been going before crowds asking for hundred thousand dollar donations apiece for his super pac. with the number that he posts early on will show how formidable he is. >> then someone like scott walker who doesn't quite have the other candidates who are well-known only 8% of people who responded said they wouldn't consider voting for him. lowest number in the poll. he's got loot of room to grow. >> schieffer: the other surprise to me in this poll was chris christie. he's down toward the bottom but what sticks out is that 40-something percent of the republicans said no, they would not consider voting for him.

he leads the pack by good measure on that. is he done? >> that's a terrible number for chris christie. but, the thing to keep in mind here that you don't need majority. in race where we'll have 12 maybe 15 candidates, chris christie can get this in thing, win 25% in new hampshire be on his way. i was a the town hall meeting in new jersey this week, actually and when chris christie is on his game, it's like watching ted williams hit a baseball. the guy just connects with voters better than anyone else in this race. he's got a big hill to climb not going to be a front runner remember in 2007 john mccain had no shot, no money all establishment supporters going to rudy and mitt romney he became the nominee. don't count him out yet. >> schieffer: what 'bought all this trouble -- i think i shed awhile ago. i can't remember a time when the world was more tangled up than it is right now.

you heard me ask governor huckabee, do you feel qualified on foreign policy issues. he said, yes he thought he was. but is foreign policy going to be an issue? >> a very big issue. going to be very important to be able to speak with fluidity about these issues. this is one area where senators like marco rub yes or rand paul have real advantage. secret of the fact that they're talking to experts, but they are not going to have the same kind of comfort level talking about these issues as someone who talks about them day in and day out. >> schieffer: what impact is netanyahu going to have on this election? >> he's polarized the whole issue of u.s.-israeli relationships. it has forced all the republicans to identify more closely with him than with policy of their own government.

and so he continues to be a factor. we'll see what happens once these iranian negotiations either reach a conclusion whether they get deal or not or whether they decide to extend few more months. but he has sharpened the polarization over that particular piece of foreign policy. >> schieffer: nancy my sense is that we're a long way from a deal right now. what do you think? what feeling are you getting? >> i think we are away from a deal. there's a break on capitol hill it doesn't necessarily go along partyline. folks who say, there's no deal, let's vote for more sanctions, mainly democrats who say, let's give it more time. let's let this process play out. netanyahu has had a big influence on republicans on capitol hill and they are lock step with him against this. >> schieffer: i'm sorry. our time the gong just -- our time has run out. thank you all very much. we'll be right back.

>> schieffer: that's all the time we have for this week's "face the nation." if you will tune in to this same place next week "face the nation" will be right here for you. thanks.

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live from the cbs bay area studios, this is kpix5 news. a search tonight for a cal student reported missing on a strip to southern california. the last contact he had with friends. good evening. visits friends in the los angeles area this weekend. he is a soccer student athlete in his freshman year at cal. he and friends were staying near campus but as the party wound down, he was separated from his friends. >> they were in contact with each other throughout the part