is it communist party has chosen mikhail gorbachev as his general secretary. in ninety ninety five gorbachev started his policy of perestroika to bring down the iron curtain soon after suffering of received that famous call from gorbachev who told him his seven year exile was over. when the abnormality of the situation became clear everyone went on to discuss it i said so what let's face the issue. i think we should get suckered back let him come back from exile and get to work because even at that time glasnost was already under way in the country. a week after gorbachev's phone calls sattar of return to moscow and was met by dozens of journalists sattar of had no idea what was in store for him he abstained from giving any political statements the first place he visited was his mouth or the limited physical institute he went there to attend a scientific seminar but unlike seven years before he was not detained by the k.g.b. on his way there was a verse of the three similar to the seminar as usual on tuesday it was a seminar very much like the one that is bein

raisa gorbachev at wellesley. and mrs. gorbachev spoke to the graduates and that too offered an interesting counter-point to nancy reagan, because nancy reagan and raisa gorbachev did not get along at all so it was quite a bit different. >> the comment i was waiting for you to talk about the rhymes with witch comment. could you put that in context. >> i certainly can. i'm sorry, i just ran out of time here. the comment that this gentleman referred to came about in 1984. it was -- mr. bush was running for re-election as vice president. and he had a debate with geraldine ferraro, the democratic nominee for vice president. and in the debate ferraro said he didn't -- he had no idea what normal people were going through because his wealth insulated him from normal life, if you will. so mrs. bush was on the campaign trail -- the campaign airplane the next day and she was talking to reporters. and she was, obviously, really unhappy about that comment, and she said, well, you know, geraldine ferraro and her husband -- they probabl

gorbachev. gorbachev wanted to improve communism. nelson was a true democrat who wanted to turn russia into a true democracy, and he is the person we should work with the spite of his personal problems, drinking, and all the other things we know about yeltsin. i was down in cuba and ended in 1987 in the for our conversation with fidel castro. it was simultaneous translation from 4:00 until midnight, and in the middle, castro ordered out, how did nixon know i was a communist? 1959, washington, castro comes into power, comes the washington, and he needs with the vice president. they had a conversation, and the vice president and produced a memorandum to the president, saying, this man is a communist. castro was then operating as a great democrat, the world, and the media was saying that we had turned castro into being a communist by our approach to him. castro was saying to me in that comment that he was a communist, he is trying to deceive people about that, and president nixon saw through him an

when he met with gorbachev he didn't dismiss. accept gorbachev's demand that the united states promise not to develop a missile shield. but there are other areas where he did compromise. he did agree in 1982 to let taxes cut the deficit. after a following year after defeat in the mid term elections he agreed to a reform of social security. it rejected any sizeable cuts in benefits. in other words, it reflected the results of the election that had just been held. >>> so the relevance is right here in front of us. president obama just had his party get licked in a mid term election last november. he is now going to the republicanes with a debt reduction plan that leans heavily if the republican direction, spending cuts three times the size of revenue increases. he is doing what reagan did, giving the other side the benefit of an election victory. they won, they get the biggest piece of the pie. but guess what? the republicans aren't dealing. they have the tea party making the plays so it is their way or nothing. they are governing

gorbachev, tear down this wall! but the historians say this did more to end the cold war. >> finally, we're all thought that politics changed history, but larry flynn historians say that politicians, as important. >> that's our show tonight. >> and now, john stossel. >> what built the middle class? unions, i'm told, but union leaders often tell me when i confront them about bad things that unions do, we built the middle class they say. here is the head of wisconsin's firefighters union. the middle class would not be where it is today without the unions. >> the unions claim they helped minorities. a sample of my interview with the head of new york city's 3400 member transit union. >> you discount the extremely positive impact that the trade union has had in this country launching people into the middle class, particularly african-americans and latinos, but that's just not true say tom woods and damon root. woods is the author of "33 questions about american history you're not supposed to ask" damon root writes for re

gorbachev. gorbachev wanted to improve communism. nelson was a true democrat who wanted to turn russia into a true democracy, and he is the person we should work with the spite of his personal problems, drinking, and all the other things we know about yeltsin. i was down in cuba and ended in 1987 in the for our conversation with fidel castro. it was simultaneous translation from 4:00 until midnight, and in the middle, castro ordered out, how did nixon know i was a communist? 1959, washington, castro comes into power, comes the washington, and he needs with the vice president. they had a conversation, and the vice president and produced a memorandum to the president, saying, this man is a communist. castro was then operating as a great democrat, the world, and the media was saying that we had turned castro into being a communist by our approach to him. castro was saying to me in that comment that he was a communist, he is trying to deceive people about that, and president nixon saw through him an

gorbachev, tear down this wall. >> the berlin wall did come down, of course. today, britain's saluted ronald reagan. the foreign secretary brought a message from lady thatcher who hoped to attend but was not well enough to attend. >> ronald reagan was a great president and a great man. he held clear principles and acted upon them with purpose. >> his legacy was hailed by connolly's arise as an example for today, particularly in the middle east. >> it gives us hope and optimism to continue to stand for those who are still trapped in tyranny. "the reputation of some leaders fade with time but for reagan, it seems to be the reverse. critics during his presidency regarded him as a second division actor who had no business trying to play a part on the world stage. ronald reagan has certainly found a place in the sun. >> on this july 4th, to all our american viewers, happy independence day. that you so much for watching. see you back here tomorrow. -- thank you so much for watching. >> make sense of international news at bbc.com/news. >> funding was made possible by

anyway anyway absolutely sure that we will self among them and to gorbachev it was the why did you yourself prefer living in the united states there are more people like ruby hi i'm not really i'm just a russian citizen like even if they have no. second american passport. why why hasn't because it's impossible to feel like to move very quickly show what it's like all americans adore is regrettable but if if i was authority dignity and with this bill we got it in for one day i have to ask and these are images of the program for many russian citizens and even for a while the i was forced men who predicted the giving world will be destroyed before. before the end of things and i was forced so publicly declared that it has to be destroyed in the old corporal so-called grange about me and what sort of people here it's i know from mars or him so he said what they can could could do with this if to surrender to something with a beer but he was aboard. so you see but i could tell you one thing when he came to i was flying through me it was a known flying car with a very difficult and solve the we w

anyway anyway absolutely sure that we will have monument to gorbachev he was fifteen why did you yourself prefer living in the united states there are more people like ruby i am not really understood russian citizens who live in have no. second american passport. my wife why hasn't because it's impossible to feel like to move very quickly she opens link all americans the door of history records but if i was a solid citizen of this both got it in before and they have to ask the reason you just insulted problem for many russian citizens even for a while the i was thought of men who predicted that during world will be destroyed . before the end of sensory and i was sort of. public he declared it has to be destroyed even the old recall pro shop complaining about me and what sort of him here it's i know from course mousehole results him so he said what they can could could do this is to say i'm going to send him to say dear but he was bored and. so you see but i could tell you once when he came to i was flying through me it was a known flying with them very difficult and solve a wee wind it wa

gorbachev, tear down this wall. the berlin wall did come down, of course, but today, britain's saluted ronald reagan. the foreign secretary brought a message from lady thatcher, who had hoped to attend but was not well enough to attend. >> ronald reagan was a great president and a great man, a true leader for our kind. he held clear principles and acted upon them with purpose. >> and ronald reagan's legacy was hailed by condoleezza rice as an example for today, particularly in the middle east. >> it gives us hope and optimism to continue to stand for those who are still trapped in tyranny. >> the reputation of some political leaders fades with time, but for ronald reagan, it seems to be the reverse. critics often regarded him as a second bit actor who had no business trying to play a part on the world stage. those critics are much less vocal now, and ronald reagan has certainly found a place in the sun. bbc news, grosvenor square. >> ronald reagan being honored in london, and before we go, cartop story, hugo chavez

is i didn't have well i think the soviet union collapsed because of the democratization that gorbachev would use them occurred because he couldn't make reforms chinese style he tried. he was resisted by the communist party he just stood by the military industrial complex he couldn't succeed and so he decided to introduce democracy as a result people began to fight against each other instead of working like what they do in china present whose entire said the people's trust in the party could be compromised by incompetence and corruption this is really any danger of that i mean as we know with you corruption is a danger to every government in the world. look at the middle east north africa one of the reasons they have to having troubles now its its corruption so in china corruption is also quite big and of course the government is whether it be the population does support the party does not what it does but if corruption gross and for. social differences some people are very rich some people a very poor some by the officials in bridge themselves and this is of course dangerous for the go

uses i didn't well i think the soviet union collapsed because of the democratization that gorbachev would use democratization because he couldn't make reforms trainee style he tried it so it was resistance but they're coming it's probably going to be just a possibility of industrial complex he couldn't succeed as he decided to introduce democracy as a result people begin to fight against each other instead of working for what they did for president hu jintao a said that people's trust in the party could be compromised by incompetence and corruption and it's a really any danger that sure i mean as we know with you corruption is a danger to every government in the world look at the middle east and north africa one of the reasons they have to have problems now it's it's corruption so in china corruption is also because of course the government is worried their population does support the past as well the desperately for corruption growth for. there are still those social differences some people are very rich some people have record some by the officials are in breach themselves and this is o

gorbachev tear down this wall. >> and this is more to end the cold war. ♪ >> john: finally we're allaught that politics changes history but larry flint says sex lives just as much. >> private lives of presidents and first ladies did shape you on how things went. >> a politically incorrect look at history. that is our show tonight. >> john: what built the middle-class? unions i'm told you about unions landlords tell me when i confronted them about it, we built the middle-class they say. the head of wisconsin firefighters union. >> the middle-class would not be where it is today without the union. >> john: and they claim they help minorities. here is the sample of my interview with new york city's 34,000 member transit union. >> you discount the extremely positive impact that the trade union movement has had in this country, launching people into the middle-class. particularly african-americans and latinos. >> john: but that is just not true, say tom woods and day monday route. the author of 33 questions about american history you are not supposed to ask. day monday root writes for rea

gorbachev, tear down that wall, he didn't say, gosh, i hope one day it falls down on its own. he said, teardown the wall. very, very clear in terms of what should happen. i think as we think about our future it is very important for us to understand our past. again, that is the core belief behind "the essential american." there are nation stories. we have family stories. i told you about my dad living twice, obviously a family story. i tell that to my children when they fail to remind them they have to get up and be nice and gracious and work hard again. they can't give out. we also have stories, a few family stories. my grandmother, man who, was raised on a farm. in a rural area of georgia that metropolis. everyone around her was probably related to work. eleven or 13. not really sure. we don't have good records. born in either 1911 or 1913. in any event, part of a fan -- part of the farming family. it did not own the land. that meant everybody had to participate. everyone was involved. when she told her dad that she wanted to go to columbus, georgia, and get hurt are in degr