ten crucial days in and around trenton and princeton when george washington and his army alter the course of history. these ten days in which washington reversed the slide towards defeat and collapse are ten of the most important days in the history of the world. narrator: december 12, 1776. washington's army is on the pennsylvania side of the delaware. across the river in new jersey, the british-- well armed, well fed, supremely confident. they seem destined to capture philadelphia, america's capital. thomas paine sums up the situation in his pamphlet "the american crisis". man as paine: these are the times that try men's souls. the summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country, but he that stands it now deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. narrator: how did things become so dire? just five months earlier the continental congress ratified the declaration of independence, a glorious and radical document. "governments are instituted among men," it said, "deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed." that was f

in this panel, we have a depiction of george washington moving west.hat is interesting about it is the image of lewis and clark here is in black and white, something that is occurring in the future, painted as though it was in the past. what is interesting about it is the very obvious conclusion of slavery. the number of students were expressing unease around some of the themes. the additional mural would be placed in the school, one with more positive representation of the student body. in 1974, they completed three panels that were placed in the library -- in the lobby. they depict native, latino, asian american, and african- american heritage and culture. >> that artist was talking about the history coming alive. that is what we want for the students here. i also think they might share that with past alumni and the community, so they could no the treasure that we have here in the schools. many people have the same experience i did when i first walked into this building three years ago, being the new principal. the grandeur of these murals is fantast

in this panel, we have a depiction of george washington moving west. what is interesting about it is the image of lewis and clark here is in black and white, something that is occurring in the future, painted as though it was in the past. what is interesting about it is the very obvious conclusion of slavery. the number of students were expressing unease around some of the themes.

george iii says, he's told by bengmin west, the painter, the word is that washington has surrendered the crown. now, remember, ceasar didn't do that, comwell didn't do that, napolean didn't do that, stalin didn't do that, mao didn't do that, castro didn't do that. george iii says, if he does that, he will be the greatest man in the world. he did and he was. final little story. a few years later in the middle 1780's, as george iii begins to become dill lutional, the london papers say the first delusion he has is that he's not george iii. he's george washington. [laughter] thank you very much. [applause] >> stay for questions, but bill, >> mr.mething. [applause] upstairs that professor ellis just mentioned what i think many of us believe to be one of the most important documents in our history, the newberg address. and should you wish to see the newberg address, it is upstairs. in the red room. and you are invited after he has taken his questions to view the newberg address. >> it really is one of washington's most eloquent speeches and school kids ought to read it. he wrote -- i think

♪ >> this idea of putting a character who looks freely anlooksfreakishly like george washington. >> asong as the dollar bill looks like he did, right. >> to have him driving a challenger in this battle scene, even the back story in the ad is great with they happened on these reenactors, colonial reenactors, i thought it was a bold stroke, completely unexpected thing, first use of george washington in an ad i wasn't offended by that was so well done. >> not just on presidents day. selling furniture. >> exactly. i just thought it was so totally engaging, unexpected, thee theatrical, i can't describe to you really very much -- none from honda or acura in 2010, toyota is a reach for me, so it's completely memorable, that is a big part of the game. get people curious about the products. >> it's whiteman, kennedy, portland, they are wavingle wavg the flag, commercial broke at 4th of july, that was the seed of the whole thing, done very well. >> the other part that is really i have to agree with jean and david, they really nailed not only creatively, but george washington coming in a field wi

george washington was the father of our country. and he was an enormous blessing to this country. and, ron chernow's book is a terrific achievement because it tells you exactly what he was like and he was conflicted. and he, did some things that we wouldn't approve of today. particularly with regard to slaves. however, he was tortured by slavery and freed them in the end and treated the slaves very, very well in some respects. and, severely in other ways. he was a great, great figure, a great, great man. and, if the tea party movement shows an interest in the restraint and the wisdom of george washington, i think that they will be a force for good. >> martha, rankin, texas, you are on with mr. tyrrell. >> caller: sitting here, drinking coffee and see what i thought what this man would have to say because i am a liberal which is open mined and lost interest in his intelligence when he said, high dungeon... and it is high detchen... you might want to look that up and my point is liberalism will never die, as you claim because it is open mindedness and charity, and i've noticed in yo

by now, they have blocked off the whole george washington parkway, they've blocked off the front of the enclave in which i lived in mcclain, virginia and had cars strung in front of me house so that no bomber could get in. we had 240 people guarding the house. and we have a terrible rain storm coming down and the woman comes forward and the president is five minutes away, and, suddenly, the front of our house lit up and lights went on and the entire front of the house was lit up, and, by that time, i knew the president was there and so, the side of the garage was on the side of the house, and, the president for security reasons was going to come into the garage door, and not through the front door, so, i was asked to go out, into the garage and i go into the garage, and the door was open, and, up came, i think 8 motorcycles and two armored cars, and, one or two other vehicles, and, overhead there was two helicopters, and one helicopter shined a beam of light down, and there, standing in the rain, as it danced around his feet, with an umbrella overhead was ronald reagan and he turned to

it was george washington, who never lived there, who laid the cornerstone and had a major say in its design. >> with the nation's capital scheduled to move to a new city on the potomac in 1800, in 1792, washington and thomas jefferson and of the design competition to build a president's house. after the selection of irishman, h jamesobon, problems soon arrived. before the cornerstone is even laid. >> of washington game before the commission and they simply don't know where to put it. do we put it to the north, south, east or west? these avenues are converging on it. they have to see it. barry and patiently, washington, the old surveyor took off his jacket, it is in the record, he drove the stakes into the ground for where it stands today. he had a certain taste that was very out of style. the white house was very at of style for its old standard for its day. it is full of carvings and that was very out of style. you go back and look over the door, there is a 14 foot garland carved of roses carved into the face of the stone. you would look at that and think it is stuck on. it is not. h

the east room, the most public and perhaps famous room in the house with a direct legacy to george washingtonngton had an instinctive understanding of the foyer of leadership. the east room was something in which he took a particular interest. >> it is the grand ceremonial room of the white house. public history unfolds here in front of a nation. it has borne witness to historic treaty and bill-signing. weddings,use countless musical performances, this is by had said state and the events celebrate its history. >> this house is forever renewed by the a's was fidelity of its founders and a boundless promise of a its futureheirs. >> is also a place where the nation mourned together serving as the remorse seven of the eight presidents who have died while in office had lain in state. more than a place of mourning, the east room and its events are symbolic of a home with the unfolding history of our country is represented and where george washington's idea of a public audience room connects to our nation's past. >> it is a room that has always been sanctified by the portrait of george washington it

(writer samuel swett) narrator: george washington took command of the continental army two weeks laterers. black men, however, were specifically forbidden from enlisting. quote: "neither negroes, boys unable to bear arms, nor old men unfit to endure the fatigue of the campaign are to be enlisted." (generaleorge washington) narrator: among the assumptions were, that blacks were too cowardly to fight, that armed slaves would be a danger to their masters, and if they fought, then they must be freed. still, others believed their service to be undignified and beneath the great principles of the revolution. quote: "is it consistent with the sons of freedom to trust their all to be defended by slaves?" (general philip schuyler continental army) narrator: not all the founding fathers agreed with those sentiments. john adams noted in his diary... quote: "they say if one thousand regular british troops should land in georgia, and their commander provided them with arms and clothes, and proclaimed freedom, 20,000 negroes would join from georgia and south carolina, in a fortnight." (john adams) na

left the country with the design benjamin banaker memorized the designs and he was able to help george washington relax. >> that is something we don't know. >> yes, he helped construct it from memory. the almanac, 1792, before the united states had department of war, he wrote about united states encouraging the united states to create a department of peace and dr. benjamin rush who was a friend of his, also took this and wrote a bill that united states should have a department of peace and put it on the floor of washington in congress in 1793. >> wow. i don't think they listened to that. >> can you imagine? what happened was instead of the united states creating a department of peace they created a department of war. >> and defense. >> it never really evolved even today, he rewrote the law every 20 or 30 years, someone signed it and redo it and address it and bring it back to the floor. >> kokomon coming from ghana what is your perspective on black history? >> yes t way my people see all of this is for us to remember those who came before us. our ancestors. it is not just public figures, but our

george washington in the united states. sassing aiding your enemy supreme leader is nothing new think of president abraham lincoln what was new was the car bomb. parked in the right place packed with enough explosives you can target any man on earth. keynesian presidents have to drive the roads just like the rest of us and the moment you do your vulnerable. car bombs are so easy you think use them purely for business if your business is controlling the world's heroin supply. in the early sixty's the sicilian mafia discovered a new way to make rival of mafiosa disappear. to be trapping their cars and blowing them to pieces. in sicily the power of the mafia is as old as the statues. five million people live here. but hidden amongst them is an estimated seven thousand mafia members. yet the power of the cosa nostra is felt everywhere from the highest political office right down to the smallest market stall. this market is the monitor here. so we how do you know the mafia this year. because. the flu plus the monster the finish

a portrait of george washington. ompany by the martha washington. >> it is this painting that is the only portrait hanging in the white house on november 1, 1800. the day his successor, john adams, becomes the first president to occupy the home. >> the house was woefully incomplete. no rooms were furnished. barry fritts -- q rooms were plastered. there was no running water. there was an outdoor privy. the grounds were withered with what you'd find on a construction site. there was no light. it was not a very livable house. >> inside this unfinished tom, abigail adams used the east room for anything but what washington envisioned. >> she did use it as a drawing room. it was not finished. it was leaking like crazy. she set up the clotheslines in there. it has no other functions for us. john adams was compared to george washington on favorably. washington would receive in a black velvet suit and he was stately and tall with his silver soared. adams would stand in front of the portrait that was always there of washington

it is posted at george washington university. it is expected to get underway shortly in two minutes. for about a story we have been covering today. hosni mubarak, the man who ruled egypt for 30 years, has said he will not run for reelection. he will oversee the peaceful transition of power ahead of the to september elections there. in a statement, john kerry said, "this was an important announcement by president mubarak to bring his presidency to an end and pledge that free and fair elections will be held. i believe that president mubarak should in list the military and civil society. that is from john kerry this afternoon. president mubarak's statement is coming up after this debate at george washington university. it was show him announcing he will not run for a new term in september elections. that is at a 30 p.m. eastern here on c-span. we're waiting on the debate between newt gingrich and howard b >> they are debating why pier and george washington university tonight. we are talking about what is happening in egypt. presiden

. >>> this president's day to celebrate the burst of george washington most -- birth of george washington. most businesses are closed today, courts, banks, and post offices and schools. check before you jump on bart or any other transit. >> maybe you don't have to. maybe you get to stay home and chill out and relax a little bit. >>> 4:39 a.m. teachers calling out how they are skirting the rules to stage a massive sick out out in wisconsin. >> more pain at the pump this president's day weekend. noticeable jump in gas prices in just two weeks. >> yes, the invitations are out for the big wedding of the century, who made the cut and who is getting snubbed by william and kate. we will tell you when we come back. stay there ,,,,,,,,,,,,,, >>> increasing clouds across the bay slightly warmer temperatures upper 30s, low 40s most locations slight chance of showers in the picture. >>> all right jim the time is 4:42 a.m. on your monday. last day to help out schools in contra costa county, buy a new car at ford concord dealerships they have partnered with local schools. some proceeds from car sales g

that george washington cut down the cherry tree and did not tell a lie. nothing could be further from the truth. because if we were taught history we would know about the great and wonderful people called african-americans and how much they gave and sacrificed to build this country and leave a rich legacy of -- to all of us. not just black folks, to everybody. this country was built by africans, yngsdz and americans. we came here in 1619, one year before the mayflower. we did not come here as enslaved people. we came as indentured certify vanlts just like whites did and the people of jamestown were starving until black folks came there in 1619 and showed them how to grow tobacco. any time y google it, because we're in that age. do you know in 1624 euro and isabella johnson had their first child. it wasn't out of wedlock, they were married. william tucker, 1624. i want you to know that we are just full of myths. we are full of myths and we bought them all and what we have do is to say that we're not going to deal with it. how many -- who told the colonies

. >>> still ahead at 6:00 -- >> president george washington wrote this letter in 179. i'll today behind the season to see a rare presidential collection on display in the bay area. >>> also ahead, an alarming new trend involving potentially dangerous youtube videos. are they sending the wrong message? >>> then singing the blues. the bay area mourn the loss of a music icon. how he is being remembered now. >>> plus, 40 acres and countless lives touched. the piece of landk sp tarhaa vee spark a movement. and the ceremony preserving its legacy. >>> sometimes the smallest towns have the biggest stories. the united states secretary of interior was in the central valley today to officially recognize the newest national historic landmark. it is the former home ofme civi rights leader cesar chavez. damien was the only reporter there south of visalia as the compound simply known as 40 acres. >> reporter: he put the weight of the farm workers' struggle on his shoulders. cesar chavez carried his nonviolent fight for civil rights to the small central town of delano. he fasted in 19

george washington high school is having a dance finally, i want to call the attention of my colleagues. attending classes there and interviewing students >> thank you, i wanted to briefly acknowledge that president mend owesa and i were at the black history mo kick off at city hall. coming up is a presentation. kinzie collection that collection depicts 400 years of african-americans in america. i know we'll have a more rebust presentation and how we can involve our school children in that. thank you. >> i wanted to briefly -- because it is 1:a. i'm going to make available, i have a hard copy of the review of waiting for superman which is wonderful. she was one of the speakers there. mainly this is the thing i want to say. preparing some of the extraordinary background term. we need to have a legislative platform. proposals and a lot of talk there are principles in that that i don't think will agree with. we started to prepare those principals probably flew the rules policy that would be my recommendation. we have the opening for the representative to the elections commission. if anyone