>> brennan: you are watching now, the caisson, the horse carrying the flag-draped coffin of congressman john lewis, as he begins for the final time the 10-block trek from brown chapel to the edmund pettus bridge. he is, one final time, going those same 10 blocks that he did on that day in march 1965 that became known as "bloody sunday." and there in selma is our michelle miller, who joins us now. and, michelle, you know, it is incredible the symbolism here, the military honor guard, and i know that alabama state troopers will be there on the other side of that bridge as part of this procession, as part of this memory. and that's incredible to think

it was a group of alabama state troopers who beat him bloody as bob was just telling us in 1965. he couldn't even remember what had happened. he thought he had died because of the injuries he sustained that day. and, yet, today, it is alabama state troopers who will be helping to memorialize him. it's incredible. >> reporter: yes, and an honor guard taking him from the base of the bridge on the other side being passed to that honor guard, and then moving forward on to montgomery, where he will lie in state at the state capitol. i mean, the progress is incredible to think about. you know, as i was listening to you and nancy, i keep going back to that point of humility. it made him so approachable. and as i walk through the streets or i talk to people, each one of them has a slice of history that they can talk about, specifically, with john lewis. i think about cheyenne webb

criseburg, who was on this bridge as an eight-year-old with john lewis and so many other, those 600 protesters. she had conviction like he. and she talked about him and what he gave her, this incredible courage, always reaching out, always encouraging her, just like nancy mentioned, with congressman sewell. i think about what bob schieffer had mentioned, not knowing who brought him from the church to the hospital. in speaking to a few people, i was told that, in fact, some of his fellow protesters told the police officers that he was a veteran, and so that they needed to get him to a hospital so that they could respect this man who had, in fact, fought. and we know he did not.

but, you know, he was meticulous with how he cherished his own legacy, even to the trench coat that movie his helpers and handlers say they found inside his home, kept meticulously, that trench coat that he wore here on this bridge 55 years ago. so the man understood his place, but he still had a humble way about making sure that everyone knew that he was here for for them. >> brennan: and i think it's interesting to look back at so many of the remarks he made and his emphasis throughout on nonviolence as the best pathway to make change. and then the extension of that as a lawmaker, but always, michelle, coming back to that message of causing good trouble. >> reporter: good trouble.

"good trouble" is the name of the documentary that don port sought out-- or has now produced and just released shortly before he passed away. to the very end, the congressman was hoping to promote it, and had to bow out of a conversation that was supposed to be taking place. i mean, this man was on this bridge four months ago. he was sick then. and, yet, he met with protesters because this is a pilgrimage that meant so much to him and so much to the people of selma. so he was here. and i'm told he was in pain. i'm told that he was having a hard time. but he made is here. it's that conviction that pulled him through, and always the intention to move further, progress, so important to him. >> brennan: and jamelle bouie, our cbs news political analyst, joins us again. jamelle, i know you've been writing and reflecting on john n lewis and his legacy.

and he's been called, in some ways, a founding father, certainly a founding father in terms of a more-inclusive democratic america. and i wonder how you're thinking about that. >> reporter: i think that's the right way to think about him. we have to remember that for most of the 20th century, up until the 1960s, american democracy was still tightly limited. the only people who could vote right up until the 1920s were white men. after that, after the passage of the 19th amendment is became white men and white women. although african americans who happened to live in the north were able to cast ballots, they were never sort of the majority of african americans, a large portion of african americans. the majority of african americans still lived in the south for, you know, up until the 1960s and 1970s. and they couldn't vote that they wouldn't-- it wasn't just that they couldn't vote. they had no real access to our

democratic institutions. and so the voting rights act, the civil rights act, these things that john lewis is very much a part of bringing to fruition, really does end up extending american democracy in this fundamental way. you could even go as far as to say we weren't fully democratic until 1965. and when looked at it in those terms, i think it is entirely appropriate to refer to john lewis and other members of the civil rights movement as "founding fathers" in the same way we would consider jefferson or washington or frederick douglass, lincoln, in a previous generation. >> brennan: we are standing by. we know the buses carrying family members of john lewis will go to the capitol, go to montgomery, while john lewis himself, as we've been telling you, we will bring you that coverage of when he does once again make that final crossing of edmund pettus bridge. but as we reflect on his legacy, i do think it's important to have a reminder of what was

happening at that time. and, bob schieffer, you know these days we talk so often about the painful moment our country is in, and you hear again and again "this is unprecedented." but the one point to which people compare us now is what was happening in that period of the late 60s, the amount of change, the amount of tumult. where do you think we are now? >> reporter: well, i'll be honest, margaret. i wish i knew. we-- we are in a very, very difficult time. and if there is anything good to say because of the passing of john lewis, it is that it has given us a chance to think about who he was and what he stood for. you know our politics is so awful now, margaret, that our best and brightest don't want to run for office. how long has it been since you heard anyone say, "i hope my

child grows up to be president?" my grandmother, like the grandmothers of my time, all thought their grandsons were going to grow up to be president because that's the way it was. now people don't want anything to do with politics. and we find, you know, the congress, there are still good people in the congress. but in the congress, so many people seem not to want to do anything controversial because they think they're going to get a primary opponent. and so, so they do nothing. think about what john lewis did. john lewis wasn't worried about who was on his side. he was worried about what his side stood for. he was not afraid. his philosophy was very, very simple: if there is something wrong and we see it, we are morally obligated to try to do something about it. you know, i love being a

journalist. and one of the reasons i love about it, it gave me the opportunity to meet some of these remarkable people. the two great, genuine heroes that i came to know during my time at cbs news were very different in some ways but very much alike in others. john mccain and john lewis. they were men of great courage who were in politics because they thought it was a place they could make america better. and both of them did. >> brennan: bob, i think you-- you brought us to where we are. very eloquently there. in terms of trying to use his office to change this country for the better. i want to talk to nancy cordes about that. nancy, you're on capitol hill. i know-- and in just in reading up on lewis, since his passing, it stood out to me because of

the moment we're in, how he had been a champion of underscoring health disparities, particularly among brown and black americans. it was one of the things he championed, needed to be paid for attention to. at a moment when we are seeing that drawn into stark relief with how this pandemic is ravaging our country. he also worked on the african american museum here in washington. but what as a lawmaker do you see as his legacy that he was able to enshrine? >> reporter: well, i think he fought for rights for all kinds of people. as you mentioned, he fought very hard for health care, for the right of every american to have health insurance. he fought for gay rights. he fought for immigration reform. and just picking up on what bob was just talking about, he had this courage and conviction that enabled him to sort of lend

moral clarity to any debate that he was in. as hank johnson, his congressional colleague from georgia put it, when john spoke, it was like the voice of god coming down from heaven. so he lent a gravity and a sense of, you know, a clearness of purpose to every policy discussion that he was having. and i think it's important to remember as we see that caisson beginning to go over the bridge, that by the time he stood on that bridge for the first time in 1965, he had already been beaten multiple times as a freedom rider. he was no stranger to being arrested and being beaten. and, in fact, civil rights leaders chose that bridge to make this march because they knew that the local sheriff had a history of encouraging violence against african americans and civil rights fighters. and so they knew that this would

be a very stark contrast between their nonviolent approach and the approach that they were likely to meet from this sheriff and ther from his troopers. so while, yes, on one hand, it's true he didn't know what he would encounter when he got across the bridge, he knew it wasn't going to be good, and he still did it. and i think that courage that he showed on that day was a real inspiration for his colleagues here on capitol hill, in particular, his african american colleagues, many of whom had told me that they believe that they would not be here today serving in congress if it wasn't for the heroic action that john lewis and his allies took on the bridge back in 1965 that led to the voting rights act. >> brennan: and you're right. it was 40 arrests, 40 arrests that he had gone through. and bloody sunday just came to

encapsulate things because of the idea it did build up public support, as bob was describing, public horror, at the televised images of what happened. and, nancy, i know now there have been even calls to reform the voting rights act as some sort of memorial to john lewis. what will be the memorial to john lewis? >> reporter: well, democrats and his key allies say the best way to honor john lewis is not just by renaming the bill that passed the house several months ago in his name, but also by passing it in the u.s. senate. one of the things that really concerned lewis and that he really fought for until the end was his feeling that the voting rights act had been gutted by the supreme court a few years ago, and that a lot of the protections that he had fought for had been rolled back by states. and so democrats kind of went back to the drawing board. they wrote a bill that they felt would provide those protections in a new form.

it passed the house, but it hasn't gone anywhere in the u.s. senate. and so, all the lawmakers that i've spoken to who were instrumental in putting that bill together, have said that the best way to honor his legacy is not to rename the bill. it's not to rename the bridge. it's to pass the bill and to restore some of these protections that have made it possible for african americans and others to vote for decades. >> brennan: unfinished business. and as we heard speaker pelosi, she called him, as you were saying, the conscience of the congress. and we are waiting to see this final crossing. but i want to go to selma again and michelle miller. michelle, i know it is hard to see from where you are because of the design of the bridge, but can you just describe to us what you're seeing on the ground? i know the pandemic has put some restrictions on what is possible, but what is happening in selma today? >> reporter: well, you know,

there are barricades here, but there are three to four people deep along broad street as they await the caisson with the body of john lewis, the congressman, to approach the bridge. you see people standing somberly. you see people singing gospel hymns. you see people sharing stories. it truly is a wonderful sight to behold because many of these people-- some from selma, some from around the state of alabama, but some from places as far away as california and new york-- have come here despite those warnings or cautions about the pandemic. they are masked. they are not social distancing along this route, but they certainly have a conviction. we're talking about convictions so often in this special report.

but they were determined to be here. people who are part of the black lives matter movement. people who were neighbors and friends. some who marched on that bridge with him. so this is something that they feel as though they need to do. they need to say good-bye to their fellow activist, to their congressman in heart, and to the man they say they owe their ability to exercise their rights as full citizens of this nation. >> brennan: and we know that this is about six days of events that are planned to remember john lewis, that he will go lie in state in the capitol in alabama and then he will go to washington, come here, as speaker pelosi explained earlier on this program, to lie in state, but will do so again, because of the restrictions all

of us are under, due to this pandemic, in an outdoor capacity so people can come and safely, or as close to safe as we get these days, pay their respects before returning to his beloved georgia for his burial. and remembering this today, i think it is incredible as we await these images, but just to see a military honor guard with that flag-draped coffin, the symbols of our democracy, the reminder that there are some things that persist, even the most strained times that we are under right now, and that in the middle of this, people still wanted to come out, michelle, and pay their respects. >> reporter: yes, as i said, it's-- it's chilling-- i'm getting goosebumps now as i think that this nation is honoring a member and an activist from 55 years ago.

this man, he meant so much then and still does. i think of the longevity of his career and his activism, and certainly his determination to when fawg down, getting back up. it's such a symbolic gesture, and it's something we should be living by, that there are things are you not going to succeed at. and yet, you just pick yourself up and move forward. and he did this over and over and over again. such an example for us in life, as he is now giving us an opportunity to share stories and share histories in his passing. >> brennan: and we're looking at that live picture there in selma of the caisson, the horse-drawn cart, bringing the casket. and you see behind it the hearse. you will see the transfe happen soon, and then he will be brought, just by-- just on that

cart, no others joining to cross the bridge that final time. you know, bob schieffer, when john lewis gave, i believe his final interview or one of his final interviews, it was to our colleague gayle king on "cbs this morning" and he talked about the protests, the black lives matter protests, the racial injustice protests that have been happening over the past few months. and he talked about the fact that it made him happy to see how diverse the crowds were, how widespread support was, that for him in so many ways, he was characterizing himself as someone who is about human rights, about any way that could be defined, not just enshrined in that moment in 1965. but he saw it as a continuous movement in many, many ways. >> reporter: you know, he did think of the black lives movement as an extension of the

struggle that he had been so much a part of. but i want to-- i want to underline one thing, margaret, that we haven't talked all that much about. we've touched on it today. he was an advocate of nonviolence. john lewis never even threw a rock at anybody. he never-- he never pushed back. he thought because martin luther king had taught him that the power in their movement would be the nonviolent act. and when they went through the training for the lunch sit-ins, and they asked, "how do we just sit at these counters and let people hit on us and beat us and slap us?" and the trainer told them-- i saw this film some years ago-- the trainer told them, "sometimes if somebody hits you in the face, keep the eye contact. it will make them think about

that." john lewis was-- it's just remarkable that he was not killed somewhere along the way. i mean, he was beaten at one point during the freedom rides, heft left unconscious in a pool of blood in a bus station. he was hurt during those riots-- i mean, those sit-ins in nashville where he took a major role in that. and then along the way, and then, of course, this thing. and here we are, we're coming now. we see the caisson, margaret, coming to the bridge. he'll be on the bridge in just a matter of minutes here. >> brennan: he will, indeed. and as you point out, it was a concussion and a fractured skull that he suffered that march day in 1965. and, yet, despite those injuries he still went on, just some two weeks later, to continue the march from selma to montgomery. and this route that we are watching, it's also worth

pointing out here, this is the same route. the decision was made to follow that same route that they did back in 1965 from martin luther king boulevard to alabama avenue to broad street, and just over that bridge. and as you can see there, as michelle was describing for us, there are crowds, some we can see wearing masks. i'm told some people there wearing t-shirts that said, "good trouble," as michelle was remindsing us, that was how lewis described sort of his advice to young people, to continue to agitate for change. and as we await the ceremony to begin, which i believe will be starting soon, bob, i know when you made that walk across the bridge with john lewis just five years ago, that must have been incredibly powerful for you. >> reporter: well, it was. i've never experienced anything quite like it. and i've covered a couple of

stories in my time. this is not the first time i was involved in a big story. but just to be with him-- and i'd spent a lot of time with him benefit we went across the bridge-- and this man was so humble. we talked about this before. and, you know, he was humble even though he was one of the most-- i think one of the most famous people in america. i mean, john lewis couldn't walk from his office on capitol hill over to the capitol building without 10 or 15 people stopping him along the way. i mean, i've never seen anyone that had the kind of name recognition that he did. you know, elijah cummings was often mistaken for john lewis. and he said he got to the point when he was in airports that sometimes people would come up, there would be a large group and he didn't want to embarrass the guy who said, "john lewis," so

he told them that's who he was. >> brennan: bob, i want to allow our viewers to take this in as the casket begins crossing the edmund pettus bridge. ( applause )

ing .

>> brennan: and that is the casket of congressman john lewis, as you are watching a very solemn final passage across the edmund pettus bridge. you may have noticed a pause there midway through. and it wasn't until in 1965 on that march day that the marchers were halfway, at that half-way point on the bridge, that they saw and anticipated the wall of law enforcement that was about to meet them with force. john lewis, that day, suffering a cracked skull, a concussion. and today, alabama state troopers will be part of paying homage to him. they will come to that casket, and they will help to load it into the hearse, as the nation continues this period of mourning for the civil right icon and a public servant for more than 30 years. as you can see, that very

traditional passage rs horse-drawn carriage, the caisson there, passing through the crowds on the other side of the bridge where that violence happened that day in march, helping to propel public opinion and public support for the 1965 voting rights act. michelle miller is in selma for us today. michelle, a fitting tribute. but i don't know how you quite can encapsulate such a life. >> reporter: it is a poignant image to see. it harkens back to what we saw at the passing of martin luther king jr. in a horse-drawn caisson carrying his body in much the same way. before the casket and the caisson actually got to the bridge-- i'm close to, on the other side-- what was so incredible to hear was an eruption of that song-- i

believe it was "this little light of mine, i'm gonna let it shine." you think about the words to that and what he was able to do in creating a movement and certainly the progress. and as it passed, on its way up the incline to the bridge, people started shouting out, "good trouble! good trouble! good trouble!" and then, the family joined halfway up. and at that point, they are in t-shirts sathat say, "good trouble." i think about the weather. it has been raining and storming, and it has been cloudy, thunder storms throughout this area over the last several days, and look at it now. it's as if the heavens opened up to say, "we rejoice, ad we recognize." poignant scenes from this side of the bridge as the family

escorts the caisson now into the hands of what we believe are the state troopers. it's a bit difficult for me to see. i'll let you pick it up from there, margaret. >> brennan: you are right, michelle. i think this is the closest image we will get to see of the transfer, but as our viewers may be noticing, as they're shot from behind, that appears to be the same military honor guard that has arrived to be part of this transfer from the caisson of the casket to the hearse. as michelle was describing there, you may have seen those individuals step forward halfway across the bridge wearing black t-shirts saying, "good trouble." and we believe those are congressman lewis' family members who just dispersed but walked across halfway with him, including his son john-miles lewis. let's take a pause here.

>> brennan: it may be hard for our viewers to make out what is happening here, given the crowds and the photographers that are crowding in. but you can just sort of barely make out one of the hands, if we pulled out a little wider, you would see that there are alabama state troopers on the sides of that caisson, of that casket, who are saluting. and that was a choice, that is a statement, given, certainly that there were alabama state troopers back in 1965 who beetle those marchers, those civil rights marchers, that john lewis led in that procession that day from brown chapel across edmund pettus bridge to where we are watching him now on this final crossing with that military honor guard now moving his casket, his flag-draped coffin,

into the hearse. that hearse will escort his body to the montgomery capitol of alabama, where he will lie in state there.

( applause ) >> brennan: and as you can see, the casket of john lewis, having been loaded into the hearse, the doors now closing, john lewis, one of martin luther king's top lieutenants, a civil rights icon, public servant to this country in the united states congress for more than 30 years. and he will be remembered throughout this week. here on cbs news, across the

country, he will go now to the alabama capitol, lie in state there, then come to washington, and finally, later this week, will be laid to rest in his home state of georgia. and we are going to leave you all with these final images. i want to thank our viewers for watching us on this historic moment. thank you for watching this cbs news special report. in a crisis, you're tested.

as a nation, we've been tested before. and he has, too. during the worst financial collapse in a generation, with our economy on the brink, joe biden led the recovery act that saved millions of jobs and restored the middle class. during the deadliest ebola outbreak in history, he helped lead the response that beat back an epidemic and kept americans safe. now, we're being tested again, and joe biden knows the answer is not ignoring the crisis, bailing out big corporations, and dividing a nation in pain. it's working together to protect the workers who keep us strong, rebuild the middle class, pay people what they deserve, and give every american the path to a good-paying job, a quality education, and affordable health care. that's joe biden -- tested, and ready on day one.

i'm joe biden and i approve this message. . >> brennan: 100 days until election, this morning we have a new cbs battle ground tracker looking at two western states, ohio and michigan. president trump won both in 2016.

and the results today show ohio is competitive. president trump is up 46 to biden's 45, but in michigan, former vice president joe biden leads, 48-42. cbs news elections and surveys director anthony salvanto join us from his home today in west chester county new york. good morning, anthony. >> how are you doing. >> i'm doing well. explain to us what is driving the vote in these two states? >> well, first thing we should say is that we see an increasingly expanding he electoral college map. they're pivotal as you said the president won last time and ohio he needs to win again. but look what's happening, let's start with michigan meanwhile that state was hard hit by the coronavirus outbreak last spring and still lingering negativity about how the administration handled that response.

neck, most voters in michigan tell us they think the station efforts hurt the state more than helped it. that's number one. number two, we see big negatives among voters for how to they think the president handles himself personally, and that is something that's accruing to joe biden where we find that more of joe biden's voters feel like they're voting more against the president than for joe biden. now, i should add economics here are something of a wash. it's about even between which candidates policies would help revive the economy. in ohio, some good news for the president, he seems a little better on protecting america manufacturing jobs but all of that ads up to not only are these states pivotal on the electoral map but he probably needs them again, margaret. >> brennan: you don't get more personal than talking about someone's children and the president has been talking quite

a lot about trying to get kids back in classrooms. back to school this fall. how are voters receiving that? >> so when we interviewed parents, we found a real weariness about sending kids back to cool in any regular way. they would prefer at most a limited reopening and many would actually preview not to have the schools reopen at all. there's still that real concern about coronavirus and what it might do to children. but where this cuts to vote, margaret, is we see parents telling us they feel like the administration is pressuring schools to reopen, and what that is doing is it's making parent feel, they say, like they're getting the impression the president doesn't care as much about the risk of coronavirus to children. and look, in any election, thea empathy is always part of how people select a candidate and if

there's empathy between the president and joe biden that's probably advantaging joe biden at least for the moment. >> brennan: the president was tweeting about suburban housewives of america. that was the phrase he used. seems he's trying to target. i'm not asking what his strategy is. but i'm wondering why he's focused on this demographic and who is that demo anyway? what does that mean? >> so couple things. users guide going forward, one is you're going to hear the word suburban a lot. wide range to a lot of people. often stand in for middle class, often stand in for areas of the country where there's more competitiveness. we often find nowadays, that a lot of these suburbs are moving towards the democrats, a lot of them did in the mid-terms in 2018, so that's something that the republicans would certainly try to win back. now, as far as the women's vote

is concerned, we see that too with large gap as towards joe biden. he's doing better among women in particular we'll talk a lot about white college degree holding women, those groups have been moving towards the democrats and that's the kind of trend that the republicans and the president's campaign probably wants to try to slow down or reverse, margaret. >> brennan: probably why he sent the tweet. anthony salvanto. thank you for breaking it down. we'll be back in a moment. ♪. ♪. want restaurants to open? and schools? want the economy to get back on track? you're not alone. and you can help make it happen. stay 6 feet apart.

wash your hands. wear a mask every time you leave your home. choose to join the fight against covid-19. do your part. slow the spread.

. civil rights icon and congressman john lewis is being remembered this week in a series of of memorize and services. cbs anchor michelle miller is in selma. alabama. the nation has been in mourning a week now, what has stood out to you? >> the women, the women who are taking the lead on speaking out about this man, not only homage to them and lifted them up. the civil rights movement is something you heard about the men in the movement.

martin luther kings, the whitney youngs, the big 6. they got all the attention. but you didn't hear about amelia robinson or annie lee coopers for daring to cross this bridge or daring to try and register to vote and women like cheyenne cystberg eight years old walked across the bridge and were counseled because she was so traumatized, the youngest person to walk that bridge, she spoke about him last night at am e church and how he stayed in touch with her the past 60 years or the terry sewells the first black woman to represent the state of alabama ever who went to capitol hill and the minute she got there she said that lewis was there to greet her, to mentor her, to guide her. in fact, he insisted that she

become a co pilgrimage maker every year to cross this bridge and was always there to take stand with her. i think of the woman's march of 2017 in and the fact that many of those leaders including tamika, mall ory who said he was the first in congress to legitimize that movement. she showed me a letter written to her a week before he died saying i pass this torch on to you and i know it will burn brightly. i want to mention one woman who walked a line wearing a purple t-shirt saying yoie, standing for she said your only is enough inspired by john lewis, she said, because you know, if you can only register five people to vote, then that is enough. again, his mantra, if you see something wrong, say something, do something.

and that is his lasting legacy. . >> brennan: i love that passing of the baton, michelle. would this profession and this process of mourning, what should we expect in the coming days? >> the family does not want people to travel because of the pandemic, of course, but a lot more taking place this afternoon, he'll lie in repose at the alabama state capital in montgomery which ironically was the end point for the famous 19 executive order march, on man monday there's a procession through the streets of the capital. and his casket will arrive at the rotella monday, outdoor viewing on the east front steps of the capital. that viewing continues on tuesday. wednesday, he will be returned to his adopted hometown of atlanta, and george state

capital. finally thursday the funeral at the be a niecer's baptist church and the sanctuary something expected to be very special. the burial that afternoon will take place in atlanta side effect cemetery he will be laid to rest next to his beloved wife lillian who passed in 2012. full week of celebrations in honor of john lewis. >> brennan: a celebration of his life and message. michelle miller. thank you, i know you'll be covering it for all of us. we'll be right back. ♪. ♪. ♪ come on in, we're open. ♪ all we do is hand you the bag. simple. done. we adapt and we change. you know, you just figure it out. we've just been finding a way to keep on pushing. ♪

put. >> brennan: thank you for watching, until next week for "face the nation," i'm margaret ♪. ♪. ♪. ♪.

♪ spake out this all seemed impossible. but these inspiring athletes, my friends and teammates took the brave first step. proving once again that women lead the way. you show this nation how to come together. you reveal the power of believing in each other. you had the courage to take a stand