center that's open to everybody, that when the big tent becomes a war party, when do you draw the line and say we're not in the same party anymore? those people are outside? i mean bill buckley to his credit said good-bye to the whole -- >> right. >> he said good-bye to the anti-semites on the right. he said you can't be calling yourself conservatives if you believe those things. >> right. look, here's the issue, if the republicans ride this wave of conservative, of sort of center right, unhappiness right now, when these two governor races this fall, if they make gains next year in the house and senate, chris, i don't think you're going to see any effort on their part to separate themselves from some of the anger that we're seeing. i think they're going to embrace it. obviously, they're going to have problems with the fringe, with the kind of folks talking about hitler and bringing a gun to washington. but i don't think they're going to learn any kind of lesson if

they are gaining politically, chris, in the next years ahead. >> ann, they're dancing on the edge of big danger for the country. >> well, it's interesting. i think jonathan exactly right. if it works, why would they stop doing it? >> because it's un-american. it really is, talking about bringing an elected governor, bringing down our republic base, that's not conservative. that doesn't maintain our society. that doesn't hold us together. that's insurrectionist. if that's what conservativism today, they got it wrong. there's a difference between revolutionary and conservative. there just is. >> and i would think members of both parties would have respect for the office of the presidency, regardless of who's actually in it. but i think you're absolutely right. >> thank you very much, jonathan and ann. let's hope our concerns are not fully justified. join us again tomorrow night at 5:00 and 7:00 eastern for more "hardball." "countdown" with keith olbermann starts right now. which of these stories will

you be talking about tomorrow? cheney doesn't know diddly. the individuals subjected to enhanced interrogation techniques provided the bulk of intelligence we gained about al qaeda. but that bit of sophistry only proves our spanish inquisition, people who talked were tortured, not that people who were tortured talked or talked the truth. health care. the republican logic elevator no longer goes all the way up. >> i oppose the public option because our -- one of the principles that we follow is we want people to have choice. >> uh, option, choice -- never mind. >> my husband has traumatic brain injury. his health insurance will not cover him. >> the idea that the government is a solution it our problems in an inaccurate -- a very inaccurate statement. >> and he is a doctor. and they nominally are a health

group, unitedhealth group. the insurance giant literally instructing its employees to go to town halls and spit talking points. how they have rigged the system to lower how much insurance pays of your bills. how they bought the independent agencies designed to protect you from that. how they have colluded with elected officials to fatten profits at their expense. how their ceo has made $750 million so far, and will make more if the public option does not pass. the "countdown" special report, united health group. worsts, congressman herger still won't acknowledge you can't shout terrorists in a crowded town hall. and after death panels, the death books and the dreaded "youth in asia" that's left for republicans to accuse the democrats of? of course, zombies! >> an experience more shattering than your strangest nightmare. >> health care reform will create zombies. how to defend yourself, your family and your grandma. all that and more now on "countdown."

>> it is vital that you stay in your home. good evening from new york. after having played fast and loose with the constitution of the united states, in our fifth story on the "countdown," dick cheney now wants to play a word game to support his now officially discredited claim that torture produced actionable intelligence. while cheney attacks president obama, another news report tonight said the redacted portions of that cia report contain details of the deaths of some tortured detainees, the near death of khalid shaikh mohammed and the agency's inability to locate some of the detainees. this according to attorney general eric holder as decision to allow a credible review of some abuses in a statement which reads in part the documents release monday clearly demonstrate that the individuals subjected to enhanced interrogation techniques provided the bulk of intelligence we gained about al

qaeda. this intelligence saved lives and prevented terrorist attacks but parse carefully, cheney says that the individuals provided the bulk of the intelligence, the enhanced interrogation just happened to be part of it. it is pure sophistry, tantamount to saying our bloodletting cure drew any patients because all of the patients died. cheney's saying all of the patients we gave intel we tortured, khalid shaikh mohammed gave up the intel before torture was used, not addressed by the former vice president. mr. cheney also pretends to be the champion of the rank and file. the people involved deserve our gratitude. he's obviously referring to himself. they do not deserve to be the targets of political investigations or prosecutions. but the policies so ardently endorsed by cheney actually caused great concern to those very agents, from the inspector general's report, quote, during the course of this review, a number of agency officers expressed unsolicited concern about the possibility of recrimination or legal action resulting from their participation. mr. cheney also attacks once

again president obama and his national security policies. yet tonight abc news report thad an official who saw the unedited versions of the report indicates how it also detailed how some two tortured detainees in iraq and one more in afghanistan died, how two detainees, quote, just got lost and the cia does not know what happened to them. how khalid shaikh mohammed was nearly killed during one of or more than one of the 183 times he was waterboarded. our nbc news sources say the deaths were previously publicly reported that the report of the near death of khalid shaikh mohammed is not in the unclassified version of the inspector general's report. and then there is the criticism for the opposite direction. the justice department could investigate and possibly prosecute certain wayward agents and yet ignore the makers of a policy which may have been illegal on its face. criticism coming from the chairs of the house and senate judiciary committees, congressmen john conyers and senators patrick leahy. they applauded mr. holder's

appointment of a special prosecutor but said an independent truth commission is still necessary. meantime, the obama administration's decision -- or continued renditions, little notice amid yesterday's other news has drawn heavy criticism from human rights groups. let's turn now to an attorney who has conducted extensive investigations into the cia interrogation and detention program, also a contributor to "the daily beast," john sifton. thank you for your time tonight, sir. >> thank you. >> we'll get to mr. cheney in a moment. but about 36 pages out of 109 in this inspector general's report, totally redacted, 30 or more partially so, and we have this abc report, deaths of three detainees, near death of khalid shaikh mohammed, detainees who can't be found. translate that. does that mean we tortured people to death? >> essentially, yes. it's been known for some time that a number of cia detainees died in custody. they were not detainees in the high valued detention program. they were detainees in afghanistan and iraq, but abc news is breaking tonight that khalid shaikh mohammed was

almost killed during his interrogation. we have known for some time that one of the detainees almost died. that's pretty clear from some earlier memos that came out in april. but now abc news is confirming it's khalid sheikh mohammed. but, listen, this is just the tip of the iceberg. there are cases of some of the detainees now being competent to stand trial because they have such serious mental illness. >> noted particularly in the so-called radiation bomber, jose padilla. is the truth as simple as it means about that statement from dick cheney that he is now slid into this word play because the memo that's were released supposedly in his defense, supposedly in tortures' defense, do not in fact come anywhere close to showing torture worked? >> there are a few problems with that statement. one is the that the plots that he's talking about are pretty far fetched. i mean, they talk about the breakup of a plot in 2002 that they broke up using interrogation from 2003. so unless the cia also has a

time machine that allows them to travel back in time, i don't see how that's possible. and then you have the logic of it. just because you get information, doesn't mean the torture led to the information. what they really need to show if they want to make their case is they couldn't have gotten the information otherwise. and that's just not the case. the fbi's made clear they could have used fbi -- traditional fbi techniques and gotten the bulk of this intelligence anyway. >> we can go on all night about why mr. cheney would have thought something like this worked for him, thing that's were in these memos. this one quote, agency -- from page 104. agency officers report that reliance on analytical assessments that were unsupported by credible intelligence may have resulted in the application of eit, enhanced interrogation techniques, without justification. again, to translate that, that is we tortured people who did not under even the bush administration definition of who should be tortured, we tortured those people. >> one of the biggest things coming out of these documents is we now know that although interrogations were approved for the first cia detainee, abu zubaydah, they were flying blind afterwards. they did not authorization for khalid shaikh mohammed or al

nashiri. they used the observation for zubaydah and tortured everyone else and after the fact obtained the rest for the tortures. they're in hot water now. you have to read those memos now carefully to see that. in that, yes, you see essentially the cia was plying line, they were fishing using torture and they didn't really have adequate reasons to torture. >> well, that certainly does throw what mr. durham can and cannot investigate into a cocked hat, doesn't it? if there wasn't clear policy from minus x rather from point x, he's got a lot more latitude than people think he does. >> that's correct. once you knock out the legal authorization, you can really broaden the investigation quite a lot. the fact of the matter is, if you wanted a real investigation, you wouldn't go after interrogators. that's something that dick cheney and human rights activists agree on.

you want to go after the architects. the architects are the lawyers in the cia who set this program up and the llc lawyers in the white house ho who helped them do it. >> "daily beast" contributor john sifton, thank you for your time tonight. let's turn to george washington university, our old friend jonathan turley. jonathan, good evening. >> hi, keith. >> even if this abc report is incorrect, we tortured people and we killed some of them f guidance from the bush justice dent was deliberately vague, if officials created an environment for abuse, might that get this prosecutor, mr. durham, back to those officials despite what seems to be a narrow mandate at the start? >> well, it's a very curious mandate. i don't see how he can possibly do what holder's asking him to do, because essentially what holder is saying is that he wants them to do a preliminary investigation to look at whether anyone went beyond the legal advice, but the legal advice said you can commit torture. so basically holder is saying, i want you to look at the degree

of torture, that is we want to see if it goes beyond what is described as authorized. well, the bush justice department and the bush administration said they could do acts of torture. so it's a bizarre thing for a professional prosecutor to do. i mean, to go in and say, i'm going to look at a program that's based on what is a well-defined war crime and i'm going to see if any of these people went beyond what was authorized by people who were talking about a war crime. >> right. >> so it's a very odd thing. but the question here is whether durham will have the leeway, and frankly the courage, to recognize the obvious. i mean, he literally has to step over bodies when he goes into these interrogations and other news programs. he has all of the elements of a crime, including dead bodies by reports and the question is, is he going to go after those sort of low-lying fruit targets who went too far or is he going to go after the people who really set this thing in motion? >> yeah, he's got embezzlement and counterfeiting and clear evidence of both and they're looking for spelling errors.

parse for me legally and are there any legal implications or even inferences to be drawn from this piece of sophistry from mr. cheney. the documents released this monday clearly suggested the techniques provided the bulk of intelligence we gained about al qaeda that. careful construction can't be an accident, can it? he wants it to mean more but even he is admitting it means nothing. you might as well say the individuals who were detained provided the bulk of intelligence we gained about al qaeda. what is the legal meaning of that -- of that ridiculous statement? >> well, it sounds like a philadelphia lawyer.

there's no question about it. but i think that the problem, of course, is that this is part of the whole torture works campaign. the idea to convince americans that the question is whether we got something out of what we are prohibited from doing under international treaties. it's immoral. but putting that aside, all of the facts contradict the suggestion that he leaves, that is experts, including people who interrogated these detainees said that torture was not useful and was not necessary. we paid a great price on the soul of this country for something that cheney and bush ordered, and they got very little from it and they're desperately trying to tell americans that -- that this was justified, that embracing a well-defined war crime produced results. i mean, it's a terrible debate to even begin, because it suggests that if torture works, somehow torture is permitted. >> bingo. meantime, buried in all of this, renditions will continue but we have new assurances against abuse. are you scoffing along with the human rights groups and people who were say alive between the years 2001 and 2008?

>> yeah. i think that's the biggest surprise for this white house is the reaction of civil libertarians and human rights groups, which has been universally negative, including the announcement of this investigation under these unbelievable limitations. and i think what they're missing is the central truth. they know to investigate torture and stop trying to gain the system. >> we now know why they don't want to do that because they want to leave themselves certain parts of that system intact clearly. >> that's true. i think that is true. >> jonathan turley of george washington university. i guess this is something for us to continue to talk about for the years to come. i'm sorry about that, but it's always a pleasure to talk to you, sir. >> thank you, keith. mr. cheney was not alone in his verbal gymnastics. his effort to make it sound like he was saying more than he really said, which boils down to this -- that all of those who are subjected to torture were tortured. we have the latest of the escalating head-scratchers from senator grassley tonight about health care reform. quote, i oppose the public option because one of the principles that we follow is

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an oklahoma senator vows to help a woman at the end of her insurance rope, provided she does not seek help from the government, only from her neighbors. an iowa senator says something so self-contradictory that he better hope there really aren't death panels, or sanity panels. and our special report on one of the giant looming dragons in the health care battle. united health group, supplying everything from unconscionable profits to ready-made town hall protesters to independent groups designed to make sure the insurance agency does not rip you off, groups which united health group conveniently managed to purchase, now owns. all ahead on "countdown." it's a one-two punch of savings -- pow! pow! lower hotel booking fees mean you get a lower total price. plus, if another orbitz customer then books the same hotel for less, we send you a check for the difference, automatically. you weren't always my favorite day. with all the pet hair in the air, i'd spend class preoccupied, bothered by itchy eyes. but now i have new zyrtec® itchy eye drops.

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republican politicians already have government health care plans, which is a good thing because clearly they're sick. our fourth story tonight, the gop takes a break on health care, kind of a psychotic one. patient number one, senator chuck grassley. diagnosis, probable dementia, telling a town hall in iowa he opposes the public option because he wants the public to have options. doing nothing to rebuke a man also who threatened grassley's fellow lawmakers, saying, quote, i'd take a gun to washington if enough of you would go with me. patient two, gop chair michael steele, diagnosis -- whiplash. three years ago saying cuts to medicare had to be on the table. yesterday release ago senior's health care bill of rights promising to protect medicare, today calling medicare, quote, a very good example of what we should not have happen with all of our health care. and then there's patient three, senator/dr. tom coburn, diagnosis, pronounced cardiac deficiency, or in layman's terms, he's utterly heartless. a constituent told him her

husband suffered a traumatic brain injury. he's on a feeding tube. they have insurance. it will not cover trained help or a nursing home. uh you will hear him say her neighbors should help out. you will hear him say that they will help out via the government and his office will help, even though his office is the government. >> what i need to know is are you going to help me, when he can't eat and drink and he leaves a nursing home and they tell us we're on our home and i can't get him to eat and drink. >> well, i think first of all, yeah, we'll help. the first thing we'll do is see what we can do individually to help you through our office. but the other thing that's missing in this debate is us as neighbors helping people that need our help. you know, we tend to -- the idea that the government is a solution to our problems is an

inaccurate, a very inaccurate statement. >> let's turn to chris hayes, washington editor of "the nation" magazine. chris, good evening. >> good evening, keith. >> sure, ma'am, ask your neighbors for the $400,000 for the around-the-clock nursing care. what the hell's the matter with these people? >> well, look, i mean the only way to make sense of the tape that you just played, and in all three instances is to understand first and foremost, the objective here is to kill the bill and to issue a political defeat to the president and to the democratic party. everything sort of derives from that. so what you're seeing is there's a complete like inconsistency internally. the arguments that are emanating from the right and from the republicans are a logical mess. they're self-contradictory, they're for medicare, they're not for medicare. they love medicare and they hate government-run health care. your neighbors should feed your -- your ill husband. i mean, there is no consistency

because it's not being engaged in, in good faith. it's a bad-faith effort to construct a series of arguments around a political objective, which is to destroy the bill. >> senator coburn seemed to give himself away there. individual people can help. and his office can help when it gets to decide how it should or can help. but there's no way that people can come together in the form of, you know, a government and decide to change things for themselves for everybody for the better. is that the heart of this? >> look, you know, civilization on this planet has had charity-based health care for a long time. i mean, during the bubonic plague, way back in the bad old days before we had, you know, sophisticated welfare states, et cetera, and you know, sure, fine, i guess if you're in the ninth century, then, you know, and you can -- you can drag yourself ill to the local church and get some charity care, that's fine.

but that's not the way that you -- that a country in the 21st century takes care of this fundamental public issue. i mean, we come together, as you said, through a government, through self-governance to address these things. this is not something that is just to be tossed off as a realm of charity. >> the government will pay for the -- for the paint with which to mark the cross on the door, however, if you're in that situation. on the issue of violence, the senate used to be this chamber of grown-ups of comedy and now we have grassley tolerating just basically ignoring threats of violence against fellow senators, threats almost of overthrowing the government. this is who the democrats are counting on for bipartisanship? >> you know, i have to say, i thought that was really disgusting, that grassley didn't say anything. and i don't use that word lightly. as a politician, it very often happens that you're in environments in which you can't control and town halls, people are going to say all sorts of things and you can't control what people say and that's part of what makes our crazy, wonderful democracy what it is. but you have an obligation when

people say things like that to make a point of -- of expressing the fact that you are -- you do not think that's an okay thing to say. and i think it just shows where grassley's at in this. i think he's been captured by the most extreme, crazy elements of the right in this, and yet somehow he's sitting across from the negotiating table. it makes no sense. he has to pick a side, and he has shown very clearly which side he's on. >> and unfortunately, that side has another side to it that transcends politics. we had another gun guy show up at a health care protest, only this one was pro reform, and he told talking points memo, part of the reason he went in armed was in response to the gun-wielders on the anti side. if he would could stipulate this is not a good thing for anybody under any circumstances, what does it mean? >> look, i don't know. i don't want to draw any large conclusions. i mean, it's a very big country

with a lot of guns, it should be noted, and so far this country has been in, you know, the last several decades, blessed comparatively with very little political violence. but that's not set in stone, and everybody needs just, you know, take a deep breath and bring it down a notch here. >> amen. chris hayes of "the nation." great thanks. >> thank you. still to come here on "sportscenter" -- man, they have really gone downhill since i split. oh, boy. and the count is now 36 sponsors bailing out. so lonesome road tries to get his revenge without telling his audience it's revenge. "worst persons" ahead. you're watching "countdown" on msnbc. it's outlast lipstain. [ male announcer ] from easy, breezy, beautiful covergirl.

i'm christina brown with breaking news. we just learned that senator ted kennedy has loes his battle to cancer. you may remember a year ago he was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor. we are learning again just moments ago that senator ted kennedy has lost his battle with cancer. we will, of course, continue to bring you details as we find out more information surrounding his death. he was diagnosed in may of 2008 with a many lig pennant brain tumor. he suffered his most recent seizure on january 20 on the day of the inauguration of president obama. last month it's reported that he and his wife had traveled to florida where he was receiving numerous forms of treatment to battle this brain tumor. and again, as i just mentioned,

we are now getting new information that senator ted kennedy, losing his battle to brain cancer. known as the liberal lion of the senate where he was a major force for decades in the senate. first elected in 1962 and of course, the brother of former president john f. kennedy. we will continue to bring you additional details. again, right now, msnbc reporting that senator kennedy at age 77 has died, louing his be t battle to cancer. you're looking at images of senator kennedy speaking at the democratic national convention. a true lion of the senate, a real force. part of the kennedy family, the royal political family.

at age 77, losing his battle to cancer. again, this is christina brown with breaking news about senator ted kennedy, one of several brothers of the same kennedy family who has had a long life and legacy, who has affected this country, not only politically, but also as a humanitarian. you may remember not too long ago his sister, eunice kennedy shriver died at the age of 82. unfortunately, senator kennedy was not well enough to attend his sister's funeral. but as i mentioned, not too long ago, msnbc again confirming that senator kennedy has lost his battle to cancer. again, my name is christina brown. we have breaking news that ted kennedy has died. now, more on senator kennedy's life and legacy from nbc's john

i can't think. -- yang. we will bring you that detailed story in just a few moments. right now we're talking about senator kennedy's passing. edward m. kennedy, the husband, father, grandfather, brother and uncle who we loved so deeply, this is a statement coming from the family -- died late tuesday night at his home. as you can imagine, there are so many people, not only within this family but across the country that have been touched by senator kennedy and the kennedy family in general. again, this is the kennedy family statement. edward m. kennedy, husband, father, grandfather and uncle died late tuesday night at home in hyannesport. we lost the irreplaceable center

of our family and joyous light in our lives, but the inspiration of his faith, optimism and perseverance will live on in our hearts forever. the statement continues, we thank everyone who gave him care and support over this last year, and everyone who stood with him for so many years in his tireless march for progress towards justice. right now, we have kelly o'donnell joining us live on the phone. kelly, can you hear me? hi there, kelly. >> yes, hello. >> this is something that so many of us have known was going to come at some point, but this is, again, as i mentioned, the lion of the senate, he was a lion heart in so many ways and was fighting this battle with cancer for such a long time. can you give us a sense right now as to, you know, what you are hearing from family and friends? >> well, we have been in touch with close associates and people who have been with senator

kennedy in recent days. and there has been a deep sense that this would be coming but many people i spoke to said they believed it was not imminent. we have been told on a number of occasions they did not anticipate there would be a swift and sudden passing, which is what we believe happened tonight. by example, we recall just a couple of weeks ago, his sister eunice kennedy shriver, she was in failing health and the family was able to gather around, to spend time with her and to each in their own way say a fare well before she passed. we had been given some indication by those close to senator kennedy that that would happen in his case if they had an indication that his death would be imminent. we did not get that sense today. i was in touch with his office today. we had no indication that the end would be so near. it has been a long battle. he was diagnosed last year after on may 17, 2008, he suffered a seizure at his home in hyaa

hyannisport. he went through aggressive treatment. he assembled a group in his home. he had access to a lot of great minds when it comes to cancer. he also had personal ties. his son edward kennedy jr. suffered cancer as a young boy. lost his leg to cancer. his dr. kara also is a lung cancer survivor. so the family has dealt with this issue. ted kennedy then assembled that panel, decided to have aggressive treatment. he went to duke medical center, had surgery and then continued with a course of radiation and chemotherapy. i cover the senate for nbc and the last time i saw him was in february when he came for a vote. i had an opportunity to speak to him then. we had a nice conversation and he had the classic ted kennedy smile, the warmth.

he looked very good at that time, although there was some, of course, declining health. and there were many senators who i've talked to even in recent days who hoped he would be able to return for a vote on health care should that come to pass in the fall. that was an important marker for him. he called it the cause of his life to try to see some form of health care in the senate. he's been missed greatly by many in the legislative process. if ted kennedy were present, perhaps the conversation about health care would have taken different terms and perhaps he would have been more successful in reaching out in a bipartisan way. of course, ted kennedy, a controversial figure for many people. there were some very difficult periods of his life when he was known for a very troubling time back in july 1969 when he drove his automobile off of a bridge at an island called ch

chappaquitic. he had a passenger in that car who died in that accident. ted kennedy failed to report that accident for about nine hours and he was cited for that. that was really an event in his life that probably made a pursuit of the presidency impossible. prior to that, he was always considered a potential contender for the democratic nomination, following his brother john and robert who, of course, were both killed by assassins. after july 1969, that seemed very unlikely. ted kennedy did run for president in 1980. he challenged a sitting democrat, jimmy carter, and he did not do well in the primaries. he won a few of the races but jimmy carter went on to win the nomination. and it was at the 1980 convention that ted kennedy had one of his most famous speeches where he talked about the hope goes on, the dream endures. and it was one of the most important quotes of his time, and that's something we saw him sort of put a fresh coat on when

he stood for barack obama at the democratic convention in 2008. that was a very emotional moment. it was almost in a way the final public tribute to ted kennedy. his niece caroline kennedy introduced him in front of the democratic crowd. there was a rousing reception in a room filled with kennedy signs. and he endorsed barack obama and gave what will now be known as his last big public speech. we also saw him here in washington in march when his birthday became the point of celebration at the kennedy center. the president and many others attended a gala affair to mark his 77th birthday. he was born in 1932 and the the event was held in march. he had an opportunity his brothers did not have, and that is feel the appreciation of those who cared about him and supported him to see in many ways the tributes to his life happen, and he's had that over these last months and the family

has as well. people close to senator kennedy have not wanted to talk about his condition. we had seen him in public recently. there was a brief glimpse of him at his sister's services. he attended the private family mass. he has also been out on his sailboat quite frequently over the many months of his convalescence. he want from massachusetts down to miami, florida, hoping the better weather might allow him to have more opportunity to go sailing. so as recently assorly august he went out on his sailboat. ted kennedy, of course, is survived by three children, two step children, his wife victoria, his sister jean and many, many nieces and nephews. >> to our viewers on the msnbc network, we now join our viewers

on the network. we have breaking news that ted kennedy has -- i'm christina brown. we have breaking news. ted kennedy has died. lost his battle with cancer. he died tuesday night in hyannisport. he suffered his most recent seizure on january 20 at a vip luncheon following president obama's inauguration. but late tuesday night, early wednesday morning, senator kennedy once again losing his

battle to cancer at the age of 77. this is a breaking news update on nbc. this is christina brown joining our viewers once again on msnbc. bringing you up to speed on the breaking news story that we have been covering for quite some time now. news of senator ted kennedy's passing. ted kennedy, losing hi battle to cancer at the age of 77. kelly o'donnell was on the phone with me just a few moments ago. kelly, are you still there? >> yes, i am. >> kelly, i'm sorry, i didn't mean to interrupt you like that. you have been covering the senate and this senator for many, many years. specifically, you were talking about this person that we know, not only as a lion of the senate, but the lion of our hearts in many wayways, battling for the hearts and minds of america on a number of different issues. but really the issue so mf of us

will remember this senator for is the issue of health care and no greater battle is being waged right now on the senate familiar and also the congressional halls than this issue of health care. as we talk about all this senator has been fighting personally as he tried to win this battle against cancer, can you give us any sense at this point how will this man's legacy be krark terized? is it even too soon to talk about that at this moment? >> well, i don't think it's too soon. it's such an enormous spokesperson of public life since we heard about his terminal diagnosis more than a year ago. and part of what ted kennedy has seen over these many months is there's a greater tendency to look at his accomplishments, to honor his service, and some of the years when he was much more

strongly criticized, he was often the democrat that republicans most liked to oppose. much of that has settled down and he's acknowledged some of those inappropriate behavior. he actually spoke publicly about the failings of his personal life. he spoke abochappaquiddick. while he has not seen the final bill that takes place in the fall, one of the billing dealing with health care bears his name. he has contributed many things in health care. for example, a number of the programs that provide health care to children in states across the country. he had a very strong hand in. he also had many, many bills, 2,500 bills and a remarkable 300

pieces of legislation were enacted into law that boar his name or were strongly influential. that's in part because of 4 years of service. but many in both parties would say he really became a master legislat legislator. he understood how to compromise and he was aggressive in putting legislation through. a whole range of things that would be a part of the traditional liberal platform. for example, the right to vote at age 18, that was part of his agenda. most recently, we saw the fda taking over control of tobacco products, putting a warning on that. that was part of ted kennedy's work. educati education, no child left behind. that was one of the things he was able to work on. the american with disabilities act. family leave. being able to take time off work.

there are many, many err woos where ted kennedy had a large imprint. and in the larger sense of american political life, the kennedy family has been unmatched in its wide scope and the way people have felt about the family. both those who have been intense admirerers and those who have been critical. he has completed a memoir that is going to be published probably in three weeks or so. it was originally set for an october release date. then it was moved up to mid september. his memoir, roughly 650 panls will provide insights we have never known before from ted kennedy, reflecting on his life in american politics and in his family life as well.

that would give us an insight into his legacy we have not had up until now. >> when talking about the look, the last lion, the fall and rise of ted kennedy, apparently there's a part in the book where he talks about joe kennedy, the patriarch of this family. the father said about this sun, he was the best looking, the best speaker, though not as smart as the rest. in this line here he's joking and in "the washington post" article, goes on to talk about joe kennedy never being one to mince words, but he was certainly also never won to mistake the talents of his sons. the talents of really all of the family members, but specifically with regard to their future in politics and how they are -- the fingerprints on american politics will be affected for

many years and decades to come. anyway kelly, as i was mentioning, in talking about the senator and how he, like his brothers and like his father were a family that taked their future in politics and those are affects that we'll continue to feel. >> well, the strong family dynasty, that word was applied to the kennedys. that went back to joseph kennedy who saw in his sons the opportunity to have the first catholic president of the niets. at first he put all that ambition on joseph who was killed in world war ii as a navy pilot. then, of course, that was transferred to john f kennedy who succeeded to the presidency.

>> doi not wish to interrupt you again but to our viewers on the msnbc side, please stand by while we're joined by our viewers on the nbc network. >> i'm christina brown with breaking news. we have received word that massachusetts senator ted kennedy has died. senator kennedy was 77 years old. senator kennedy was diagnosed in may 2008 with a malignant brain tumor late tuesday night. he lost his battle to cancer. you may remember in january of this year, he suffered his most recent seizure at a luncheon following the president's inauguration. he died in hyannisport where he

was fighting against his cancer. a biography was scheduled to come out next month. right now, we're going to go to john yang who will give us a better look at senator kennedy and what he was about and also certainly what his legacy will continue to be about. >> the work goes on, the cause endures. the whole still lives, and the dream shall never die. >> edward kennedy's hopes and dreams of becoming president were never realized. dashed in large part by a tragic accident and resulting scandal that would haunt him for years. despite it, he became one of the most influential and productive legislate tofrs his time, a champion of liberal causes even when they were out of fashion. >> he was a true senator who used that institution to create all sorts of thing he is cared about. went across party lines and

really was able to make that senator work in the way that it should be working. >> reporter: the youngest of four boys whose rich and powerful father was determined that the first catholic president be named kennedy. edward moore kennedy lived to be the oldest surviving brother. in his '20s and '30s, he was in his brother's shadows, working to elect his brother to the white house and then winning john's senate seat as soon as he was old enough to serve. when the slain president was buried he walked behind his brother robert. when robert was killed in 1968, edward kennedy led the mourners. the youngest son was now the patriarch. then chappaquiddick when his car went off a bridge. a young woman in the car died. he didn't report the accident for nine hours. it was the beginning of the end

to his marriage. even his future in the senate was doubt. >> i understand full well why some might think it right for me to resign. for me, this will be a difficult decision to make. >> reporter: but massachusetts voters would not forsake a kennedy. he remained a perennial presidential possibility until he took himself out of the 1988 race. >> i know that this decision means that i may never be president. but the pursuit of the presidency is not my life. public service is. >> reporter: he devoted himself to his senator work, passing legislation on health care, civil rights and education. in 1992, his son patrick was elected to the house, extending the dynasty with a rare capitol hill father-son team. kennedy would remarry and become the father of young step children. to the end, he was the family leader, a role that involves more public mourning. for his former senator in law

jacqueline kennedy onassis, for his nephew, john kennedy jr. in 2008, he invoked the family name, endorsing barack obama, likening him to another young charismatic first-term senator elected president before he was ever born, john kennedy. later that year came stunning news. he was diagnosed with a many lig pennant brain tumor and underwent brain surgery, but that didn't deter him from doing what he could for obama, even at the risk of his own health. leaving a hospital bed to make another stirring convention speech. >> the work begins anew. le the hope rises again and the dream lives on. >> on the day barack obama became the 44th president, he went to the ceremonies only to suffer a seizure. kennedy found fulfillment at the

other end of pennsylvania avenue on capitol hill. john yang, nbc news, washington. >> you know, kelly, this was something that so many of us knew at some point was going to come but certainly no one was thinking that it was going to be imminent. what can you tell us with regards to friends, family and those closest to the senator? >> well, we had mixed reports. there had been frankly a lot of rumbling and rumors about his health. a lot of observations, because there were some photos of ted kennedy as he headed out to go sailing with family. and he did look more frail. but at age 7, more than a year of cancer, vigorous cancer treatment, that was to be expected. people close to him had told me on many occasions that they did not since there was anything imminent. that was as recently as the last day or two. once the family tells us more, we may have greater insight.

but some of the people i talked to said they had hoped there would be an opportunity to bring the family together. >> ok thank you so much. that concludes our special report on the nbc network. to our msnbc viewer, please stand by. >> i'm christina brown, continuing our breaking news coverage of the death of senator ted kennedy. dying late tuesday night in hyannisport, losing his battle to cancer. a statement to the kennedy family reads, edward m. kennedy, the husband, father, grandfather, brother and uncle we loved so deeply died tuesday night. we lost the center of our family

and joyous light of our lives, but the inspiration of his fate, apt michl and perseverance will live on in our hearts forever. we thank everyone who gave him care and support over this last year, and everyone who stood with him for so many years in his tireless march toward progress, toward justice, fairness and opportunity for all. he loved this country and deed his life to serving it. he always believed our best days were still ahead but it's hard to imagine any of them without him. that statement coming this early wednesday morning after the death of 77-year-old senator ted kennedy. again, this is christina brown, following our breaking news here on msnbc. we having word tonight that ted kennedy has died. he turned 77 on february 22. in nay 2008, he was diagnosed

with a malignant brain tumor. over the past year, he has undergone surgery, treating that tumor in his brain. aggressive chemotherapy and radiation. but we now know that all of this simply was not enough. you may remember the afternoon of the inauguration on january 20 at a vip luncheon, the senator suffered his most recent seizure following president obama's inauguration. late tuesday night, he died in his home. kelly o'donnell again joining us on the line, who has really been giving us a sense as to what's going on for those around senator kennedy, a better sense as to what was going on. one of the things that so many of us were speculating was just

how much longer could this lion of the senate hold on. and as you mentioned, one of the things that people were not quite prepared for was the thought of his death being imminent. kelly? >> well, we have certainly been talking to people close to senator kennedy and those who certainly were very concerned about the course of his treatment. what he was able to do outpaced any doctor's expectations. when he received the diagnosis of brain cancer, it was very grave indeed, especially for someone in his late 70s, 76 at that time. and doctors generally, though not particularly treating his case, but generally spoke of the fact that it could just be a matter of months. so the fact that he lived roughly 15 months longer, many people saw as a sign of great resilience and of fight, if you will. in recent weeks and months, there has been a bit less from

senator kennedy in terms of communication from his office, for example. earlier on this year, when there would be news of the day that was of mar interest to him, we would hear from some of his close associates and aids about senator kennedy following those developments. we have seen less of that in recent days. notably just a week or so ago, he sent a letter to the governor of massachusetts and the top two legislators of state asking them to consider a change of succession for the u.s. senate seat in massachusetts and he did that because he was concerned in the event of his own death, although that was not expressly stated in the letter, he was concerned about a possible vacancy. he was concerned the state of massachusetts would not have the additional voice and vote. now john kerr vi the senior senator from massachusetts. that was an indication he was looking ahead to a point when he