our senior vatican analyst john allen has written extensively about this. joins me now live from rome. ever since, john, this argentinean born pope took power nine months ago, he has been a crowd employeeser. we saw again today this humbleness, this humility of his and looking out for the poor and vulnerable. it really is the way he does business, isn't it? >> it absolutely is, michael. let me give you another couple indices of francis' appeal. time was not the first publication to pull the trigger on declaring him person of the year. that was the italian edition you have "vanity fair" back in june which included a tribute from the well-known vatican expert elton john who described francis as a miracle of humility in an era of vanity. then i followed francis when he traveled to brazill in july. not only did he draw more than 3 million people twice to rio's copacabana beach break agattend tense record head by the rolling stones but there was a delicious moment when he was outside the cathedral downtown in rio where he was rushed by a gaggle of latin american

on november 10th, 2009, john allen muhammad was executed.luded chicken with red sauce and strawberry cake. >> mr. muhammad was asked if he wished to make a last statement. he did not acknowledge us or make any statement whatsoever. he seemed very unemotional. >> i'm still on death row fighting. >> prior to his execution however, muhammad did speak. this short video was made after his conviction and aired on cnn in 2007. it included what seemed to be an oddly upbeat farewell. >> thank you for your patience and kindness and the sacrifice that you always made. peace and may god be with you all. thank you. >> we will never forget, we'll never know their pain and we only wish we could have stopped this to reduce the number of victims. attempt" >>> we don't know precisely what happened. >> oh, my god. >> he's been shot. >> get down! >> the president of the united states has been shot. >> i could see it through the viewfinder. >> even now -- >> an inch from his heart. >> he was minutes away from not making it. >> who is the shooter? >> he says, you

o'connell and former president of the catholic university of america as well as cnn vatican analyst john allentch communion for a moment. [ speaking in foreign language ] >> john, can you talk a little bit about what pope francis has provided the catholic church that it certainly needed, coming off of, you know, years of fallout from the sex abuse scandal, he's really sort of turned things around, just in the course of really a few years. >> well, brianna, in the course of nine months, actually. if you want me to put it into a sound bite into what he's provided the catholic church, it's a new lease on life. nine months ago, there were stories about the sex abuse, and financial scandals and on and on. while none of those things have gone away, today the dominant narrative of the world about the catholic church is this humble, simple pope, a pope of the people and pope of the poor has given catholics, 1.2 billion catholics around the world a new sense of possibility. you know, when we talk about the francis revolution, i would say that's the revolution in action. >> and you have actually called

john allen was watching as always, cnn's vatican analyst joins me from rome. great to have you with us, john. >> merry christmas to you, pam. >> merry christmas. tell us what your takeaway was from the christmas message and how it was different from the predecessors. >> reporter:, of course, the mechanics the ritual are pretty much the same every year, those are all things we have seen before, but in many ways this was a vintage francis performance. the theme throughout is what the catholics call the social gospel, lifting up the special concern for the poor, for victims of violence and war, for those who have been forgotten about, cast aside, marginalized. for example last night we heard francis talking about how god chose to be born as a poor person, and that the news of his birth was presented to the shepherds in the field because they're the ones in the margins. this morning we heard this forceful, even impassioned appeal from the pope for peace. in addition, we all saw that vintage streak of dialogue and outreach when the pope said he wants to try to build

general john allen, sitting right here in the second row, has done extraordinary work. he commanded our coalition forces in afghanistan, trained up 350,000 troops there, not to mention the tens of thousands in iraq. this is a man who knows how to build capacity. he recently retired as a four- star marine corps general, and he is one of the best military minds in america. and he has been asked by the president and me and the secretary of defense to lead this effort of a security dialogue with the idf. he is helping us make sure that the border on the jordan river will be as strong as any in the world so that there will be no question about the security of the citizens, israelis and palestinians, living to the west. now, i will tell you point blank, and i have read all of the history of these negotiations and i have lived part of the history of these negotiations. i was on the lawn when the famous handshake took place. i have had many, many a meeting over time as chairman of the foreign relations committee and as a senator. never before -- ever -- has the united states co

internet's they're contributing to something called the sharing economy we get more from nhk world john allen's ordeal. granted he is a cook and food researcher living in oakland california. although she contributes to cookbooks and works in restaurants. her income is irregular. so she uses the space in her apartment and her call an airy skills to bring in some more naps in my hosting dinners in her home. she uses this website to advertise for dinners she was the menu the deacon cost and how many people can attend. anyone who's joined the website can book a place. to buy us something to do the technical extra money to set up a few slate definitely helps. today seven hundred resolutions because she's in her kitchen she can cook comfortably the high and the moon. says almost all the guests are meeting each other for the first time for the service will hold two course meals for anything between five and thirty dollars depending on the menu landon gets into a douche and yes it is good. you can send a wonderful meal a very reasonable price. forty has no restrictions on this type of shared meals and

john allen, he will present for the kind of security arrangement that might be acceptable both to israelalestinians in any -- post any final agreement. israel wants to maintain a presence with the palestinians. the palestinian says that is a dealbreaker to have is really -- israeli troops. they will present ideas to and later to the palestinian prime minister. >> secretary kerry will be key to focus on p talks -- be stocks peach talks. -- peace talks. yes. one imagines it will be hard to escape that discussion. it was a historic mistake, this agreement.ral enough, the six months period for that deal with kerry oppose deadline for an agreement between the israel, its and happened at about the same time. have thesen theory issues being resolved at about the same time. if you're a pessimist or a realist, perhaps we will not get either of them resolved. we had yesterday the former head of israel's domestic intelligence saying that the failure to reach a deal with the palestinians poses a greater to israel and the prospects of an iranian nuclear -- that is something that netanyahu ridiculous.

. >> john allen is in rome this morning. phrasing here, to continue to serve the people of the church and stay focused on the center mission of christianity this christmas. what can we expect from the pope this christmas message? >> hello there, pam and victor. i think he's going to continue to emphasize, as you say, this idea of the spirit of service. that was the heart of the speech he gave to the cardinals and other senior vatican officials yesterday. and then he provided a visual of ha that spirit of service looks like with that remarkable, almost three-hour visit to rome's hospital yesterday. providing another one of the iconic images of this papacy, that shot of pope francis reaching out and kissing a small child that's bald because of a tumor and wearing the surgical mask. that's going to be the scat let thread that runs through the christmas celebration. he'll preside over the christmas eve lit you aurgy. but i suspect it will be gestures of him reaching out to ordinary people and trying to bring them a taste of god's

that means one thing, john allen. what does it mean? the first pope elected from south america. >> the curtains are open. the cross bearer is coming out. and there he is. >> dubbed the people's pope, francis has laid out a vision of a more inclusive catholic church, focusing on compassion for the poor and afflicted. number one, the civil war in syria. more than two years of fighting, some 100,000 have been killed, more than 2 million are refugees. in august, a chemical weapons attack kills hundreds. >> it's absolutely horrifying. we've seen a video showing the bodies of lifeless children. >> syria denied responsibility. >> u.s. is making the case for military intervention in syria. >> the u.s. on the brink of military action. but a last-minute deal brokered by russia averted an international crisis. the agreement dismantles syria's chemical arsenal that left bashar al assad in power. a civil war raging and a civilian population still suffering. >> and right now, a live look at bethlehem as christmas day approaches. thousands of people g

john allen, thanks so much from rome. good to see you.py holidays. >>> every day people overcome odds to achieve their passion. that's what derrick coleman did. sanjay gupta has the story in "the human factor." >> derrick coleman is living a boy's dream playing for the nfl for the seattle sea hawks. he didn't start playing football until 7th grade. >> i was a normal kid. i wanted to play football. >> reporter: the dream of making it to the pros happened in high school. >> i didn't think about it so much until my senior year. then i was going outs there and playing hard. i just wanted to play. >> reporter: next stop, ucla where he was a runningback for four years. his college career ended with a degree in political science. now he's showing his versatility as a fullback for the sea hawks scoring his first touchdown for the pros earlier this month. he overcame something only two other players in the entire nfl have. he is legally deaf. the result of a rare genetic disorder. >> basically, i lost my hearing when i was 3. i have had hearing ai

with the cardinal john allen over gentle and kind of dirty coal creek might be on the issue of the cherokee. and that they could be looking at fifteen. apparently the moment remember that we have actually been the kooky scale of one being that the haul included stuart because the verve pipe. a media blackout imposed by the un but they would fuel to propel it maintaining them to leave military presence in the jordan valley down at the western part of the way they play the palate the wine i can't. and like to be. who would think of like a complete report. jordan that would completely rejected by the pallet in the milk of the palate the improvement of law without bought the book a week and he told the inner temple and dealt with it when i look in the america i will take the picture you can tell that they can go there to the jordan valley took a lot because it will be there kobe got him thinking i really don't reprint the topic completely unacceptable to the palestinians and don't care you think you mentioned back in the regent was perhaps one of them wielding they can change that can help with

. >> john allen is cnn's senior vatican analyst, welcome. >> reporter: hey, carol, merry christmas toou. >> merry christmas to you, too, john. the pope delivered such a simple message, choose light over dark, it's what we learn all of our lives, yet coming from a man who's head of a church, it seems fresh. >> we have got a blustery roman christmas afternoon here today and just as the wind is blowing strongly in the city, a lot of people would say, a new wind is blowing in the catholic church with this pope. you're absolutely right, in a sense that he is not invented a new message, but what he is doing is lifting up elements of that message, that perhaps have not gotten the kind of attention he's devoting to them. in particular t social gospel, concern for the poor, for victims of war, for those who are in other ways at society's margins, that's something that's run through his christmas message this is year. and coupled with that, carol, when he talks that talk, people think he also walks the walk. this is a man of deep humility and simplicity, he much prefers to live life as an ordin

well, i'd say my next question of what was the reaction of the prime minister to general allen for johnrry. >> yes, ask john kerry, or ask the prime minister. >> okay. >> i don't want to speak for him. [laughter] >> they won't tell me, but, okay. [laughter] >> that's probably true. >> my last question. the palestinians are two people one in the west bank, led by president abbas that is negotiating the deal, and one in gaza, led by hamas that wants to eradicate israel from the face of the earth. president abbas, as far as i know, says he won't make a deal that doesn't include gaza, which he doesn't control. how do we get out from this labyrinth? >> well, i think this is going to have to happen in stages. but here's what i know from my visits to israel, my visits to the west bank. there are people of goodwill on both sides that recognize the status quo is not sustainable over the long term, and as a consequence, it is in the interests of both the israelis and palestinians to resolve this issue. there are young people, teenagers that i met both in israel and in the palestinian territories

i'll say the next question, what was the reaction of the prime minister to general allen for john kerry ask john kerry or ask the prime minister. i don't want to speak for him. >> they won't tell me, but okay. >> that's probably true. >> my last question. the palestinians are two people, one in the west bank led by president abbas that is negotiating the deal and one in gaza led by hamas that wants to eradicate israel from the face of the earth. president abbas as far as i know says he won't make a deal that doesn't include gaza, which he doesn't control. how do we get out from this. >> well, i think this is going to have to happen in stages, but here is what i know from my visits to israel, my visits to the west bank. there are people of goodwill on both sides that recognize the status quo is not sustainable over the long term. and as a consequence it is in the interest of of both israelis and palestinians to resolve this issue. there are young people, teenagers i met both in israel and in palestinian territories that want to get out from under this history and seek a future that is fu

general john allen, sitting right here in the second row, has done extraordinary work. he commanded our coalition forces in afghanistan, trained 350,000 troops there, not to mention the tens of thousands in iraq. this is a man who knows how to build capacity. he recently retired as a four- star marine corps general, and he is one of the best military minds in america. and he has been asked by the president and me and the secretary of defense to lead this effort of a security dialogue with the idf. he is helping us make sure that the border on the jordan river will be as strong as any in the world so that there will be no question about the security of the citizens, israelis and palestinians, living to the west. now, i will tell you point blank, and i have read all of the history of these negotiations and i have lived part of the history of these negotiations. i was on the lawn when the famous handshake took place. i have had many, many a meeting over time as chairman of the foreign relations committee and as senator. -- has thee -- ever united states conducted such an i

you have former commander john allen who says come with me and let's design -- let's take on --s projecto what would project. what would be a full proof security project? the most important thing to deal with with the israelis coming have to answer one question. do you know what neighborhood i'm leaving in -- i'm living in? john kerry is starting a conversation there. i know what neighborhood you are living in. in order to say to you, if you go this way, the balance -- i can change the balance between risk and opportunities. and also doing nothing is a big risk. we see mounting israeli- palestinian violence. there's also a movement to legitimize and isolate israel. john kerry is trying to say i will put the straight before you and i think the balance of risk and opportunities are here. and where the opportunities are greater. >> do you believe those are the places like toronto -- like questions arehese finding some residents? -- finding some resonance? >> yeah. i saw an interview the other day with the iranian foreign minister. some issue where we went after some companies that were appe

that means one thing, john allen. what does it mean?s bearer is coming out. and there he is. >> dubbed the people's pope, francis has laid out a vision of a more inclusive catholic church, focusing on compassion for the poor and afflicted. number one. the civil war in syria. more than two years of fighting, some 100,000 have been killed, more than 2 million are refugees. in august, the chemical weapons attack kills hundreds. >> it's absolutely horrifying. we've seen a video showing the bodies of lifeless children. >> reporter: syria denied responsibility. >> u.s. is making a case for military intervention in syria. >> reporter: the u.s. on the brink of military action. but a last-minute deal brokered by russia averted an international crisis. the agreement dismantles syria's chemical arsenal but left bashar al assad in power. a civil war raging, and a civilian population still suffering. >> it's been quite a year. as you just heard, as well, more than 2 million syrians are now refugees living in neighboring countries. and many of them a

. >> we want to talk about this with john allen. he joins us now from denver. vision for the vatican's powers. he says there's too much centralization in the church. does that mean he thinks the d vatican has too much power? >> the answer to that question is, yes, he says in this document he believes in recent years there has been an excessive centralization, too much power accumulated in rome. he wants to spread some of that around promoting what he calls a sound day centralization. and he actually gives, to show you how important this is to him, he gives you a concrete example that is pretty much a direct repeal of previous policy. back in 1998, john paul ii ruled that bishops conferences around the world, such as the u.s. conference of catholic bishops in the states have no power to teach officially in the name of the church. that is, they can't proclaim the official catholic doctrine. francis says in this document he wants them to have exactly that power. and if that happens, that is a pretty significant shift of authority from the center, that is the headqu

today, general john allen who has been working with contrary on israeli security issues, will presenthow israeli security needs, particularly in the west bank, could be addressed in the context of a peace deal with the palestinians. it shows now the u.s. is really putting its own ideas on the table instead of leaving it to the israelis and the palestinians to negotiate because they are not getting very far. after this iran deal i think we can expect a lot of skepticism from prime minister netanyahu and secretary contrary will meet later with palestinians president abbas who will press his own demands a palestinian state based on the 1967 border are israeli which the settlement which continuous. everywhere secretary kerry looks, a lot of pressure from both sides. >> a lot of work to be done. no doubt about that. 'lease, live for us in jerusalem, nice to have you with us this morning. >>> 36 minutes after the hour. >>> vice president biden in beijing trying to ease tensions between japan and china. he is voicing the u.s.'s deep concern over china's null declared defense zone over the ea

you have former commander john allen who says come with me and let's take on this project. what would be as full proof of a security plan as you can put in place? the most important thing in dealing with israelis, if you want to be taken seriously you have to answer one question. do you know what neighborhood i'm living in? i think john kerry is starting the conversation, saying, i know what neighborhood you are living with. i can designst as of a security plan. in order to say to you, if you go this way, i can change the balance between risk and opportunities. it is going to be a balance, but doing nothing is also a real risk. we see mounting israeli- palestinian violence. we see groups like the american studies association joining the movement to delegitimize and isolate israel. doing nothing kerry is trying to , say i will put the straight before you and i think the balance of risk and opportunities are here. and where the opportunities are greater. >> do you believe those are the -- from those other places like , that theseamallah questions are finding some residents? >

lets bring in senior editor mark murray and "politico's" john allen. thanks to both of you for joining me. i just want to get your reaction, mark, and i'll start with you to obama administration's latest decision to essentially move this deadline a little bit until the end of tomorrow. is this significant or not significant? what do you think? >> the administration just insists this is for people who try to get in line today and somehow can't get that insurance until tomorrow. they say it's not that big a deal. the downside for the administration it creates more confusion and chaos about the law. this is the latest delay or extension, just one after another. the good news for the administration is this allows more people to get signed up. they might have a very big number to show by the end of december on americans who actually signed up for health insurance after december we might have already 1 million per the president have signed up. will that number be 1.5 million, de los 2 million by the end of the month, we don't know but they might have a prett

john allen for politico and jonathan alter. jonathan, let me begin with you.ome said at politico this is more or less an election for the president. if the deadline was an election, i want to know, did he win or did he lose? >> i guess i would disagree with the, you know, with the basic premise of that. because if he loses the election and let's say fewer people sign up or the system crashes again temporarily or all kinds of things go wrong, they still have at least a few months, you know, to get it together and get more people enrolled. whereas the big election, the 2012 election, if he'd lost that there would be no obama care. so this is something in this notion as david axelrod puts it where in washington every day is election day, it's really kind of false. because there's this sense that somehow this is all going to go away if it's done wrong. it's going to go south on the president. it's a done deal, michael. the republicans do not have the votes to repeal this or even cripple it. he has the veto pen. so these are all various bumps in the road of one siz

so he goes to the former marine commander john allen, he says "come with me, let's design -- take on this project. what would be as foolproof a security plan you can put in place here?" and then say to israelis, you know, one of the most important things i've always felt in dealing with the israelis is if you want to be taken seriously there you have to answer one question for them. do you know what neighborhood i'm living in? and i think kerry's starting can conversation there. saying "i know what neighborhood you're living in. here's as best i can design a security plan. in order to say to you if you go there way, no." what he's trying to say is i can change the balance between risks and opportunities. there's going to be a balance, but doing nothing is always a big risk. we see mounting israeli palestinian violence. we see groups like the american studies association in america now joining the movement to delegitimize and isolate israel. so doing nothing -- and so what kerry is trying to do is saying i'm going to put this choice before you and i think the balance of risk and stude

country for work on a goal for the note don't forget that the british were doing the same means john allen that's the journey to crisis and i've been on the tuesday american who paid the big deal. did i i can't stand example that isn't an act any excess taxes dairy and better but other than not there yet with a student as well the twelve you will feel the crisis in the english speaking countries. it was in kenya kenya same thing is huge on me. they've got the power to school the problems inside. that's not the case and an elephant twenty seven a m in the last position i studied in the form of weeds on the saturday there is an historical trend that the be all me in africa where a taking into account the fact that the french forces will come anyway. and that's where it must stop now because the french forces you are reducing debt. the presence in africa. why because the agreements have been changed and the french forces on want it to intervene for the savvy to tell the government it's no longer the case it was the case for the whole set but the thing that stinks going back to their tv and no

and john allen as well. john, i have a question, actually, john will be joining us in just a moment. but let me ask you first, father beck, one of the things i think that all people strive for, people want to be accepted. and so i think when you look at that picture of him kissing and blessing that disfigured man, a man who has neurofibro mitosis. and obviously this is a man who has dealt in his life with people staring at him and judging him for something he has no control over, but to have this moment with the pope says something to him, and it says so much, i think, to the people who are watching. is that really one of the most important things that the pope is bringing is this sense of incluesivity? >> the natural instinct is to shrink back. he moved toward him, put his face next to his. and it was so christ like. it reminded me of jesus with the lepers. extending himself to those who no one else wants to go to. we knew from the start this would be the kind of pope he would be. when he was elected, i was

well, i'd say my next question what was the reaction of the prime minister to general allen for john kerry? >> yes, ask john kerry, or ask the prime minister. >> okay. >> i don't want to speak for him. [laughter] >> they won't tell me, but, okay. [laughter] >> that's probably true. >> my last question -- the palestinians are two people -- one in the west bank, led by president abbas that is negotiating the deal, and one in gaza, led by hamas that wants to eradicate israel from the face of the earth. president abbas, as far as i know, says he won't make a deal that doesn't include gaza, which he doesn't control. how do we get out from this labyrinth? >> well, i think this is going to have to happen in stages. but here's what i know from my visits to israel, my visits to the west bank -- there are people of goodwill on both sides that recognize the status quo is not sustainable over the long term, and as a consequence, it is in the interests of both the israelis and palestinians to resolve this issue. there are young people, teenagers that i met both in israel and in the palestinian te

he has got with him john allen, the former commander of nato , a retiredfghanistan general from the u.s coming along with not plans, but just some ideas with regard to the security options that could be possibly palatable to israel post any independent palestinian state. they wouldn't specify whether this would relate to the jordan valley which is a very important issue here. that is the border between what would be palestine and jordan. israel wants to maintain presence there even after a peace agreement is signed. that is a dealbreaker for the palestinians. is focusing on peace talks but they are also going to talk about iran, right? >> it seems very unlikely that netanyahu given that he seems to place the danger from iran as a the danger ofthan any failed peace talks, it seems unlikely that he wouldn't have brought that up. he has labeled that deal between powers as ald historic mistake. interestingly, the expiring of reversible deal with a rent and the deadline for these peace talks, they tend to coincide at the same time. optimist, then in these you could have seemingly intractable

well, i'd say my next question of what was the reaction of the prime minister to general allen for johnrry. >> yes, ask john kerry, or ask the prime minister. >> okay. >> i don't want to speak for him. [laughter] >> they won't tell me, but, okay. [laughter] >> that's probably true. >> my last question -- the palestinians are two people -- one in the west bank, led by president abbas that is negotiating the deal, and one in gaza, led by hamas that wants to eradicate israel from the face of the earth. president abbas, as far as i know, says he won't make a deal that doesn't include gaza, which he doesn't control. how do we get out from this labyrinth? >> well, i think this is going to have to happen in stages. but here's what i know from my visits to israel, my visits to the west bank -- there are people of goodwill on both sides that recognize the status quo is not sustainable over the long term, and as a consequence, it is in the interests of both the israelis and palestinians to resolve this issue. there are young people, teenagers that i met both in israel and in the palestinian terri

general john allen, he used to be the commander of forces in afghanistan, now is working on a very detailednd specific plan for how to address israel security needs in the event of a deal. and a lot of that is talk about how do you secure the west bank and what the president seemed to be saying today is to the palestinians, you're not going to get everything you want on day one. you have to be prepared for a transition period where israel is going to be very much involved in the patrolling of a future palestinian state. i don't think that's something the palestinians want to hear but i think it will give israel a lot of confidence going ahead in terms of negotiating the borders of a palestinian state. >> all right, thanks so much from washington. >>> a week of mourning under way for nelson mandela. he'll go down in history as a man who changed the world. ♪ [ male announcer ] this december, experience the gift of exacting precision and some of the best offers of the year [ ding! ] at the lexus december to remember sales event. this is the pursuit of perfection. where does the united states g

even in the face of our troop surges over the years and the work of stan and dave petraeus and john allenther great american men and women in uniform fighting as far as this huge coalition and through it all, taliban stayed resilient and i have to acknowledge that's been very disappointing and somewhat surprising. having said that, this year what happened was the international presence really got cut by more than half and yet, the taliban did not gain territory. the major cities, the major transportation arteries are still in government hands. now, admittedly they're backed up by us when they get into a pinch but they're doing 95% of the major operations themselves with minimal or no help. and i think that's very encouraging news. so we should certainly not be fatalistic about afghanistan. arthel: let me get back to the impact of the report and michael, i want to ask you two pronged question here. what's the impact of this report of president obama's deadline of pulling troops out of afghanistan by the next year and that tenuous negotiations to provide legal coverage and security for the

and a signed one of our top former generals, john allen, who used to most recently headed up the entireow, but he was willing to take on this mission, and he's been working to examine the entire set of challenges around security. >> has he concluded anything? >>. >> well, he has arrived at the conclusion that it is possible to create a two-state solution that preserves israel's core security needs. now, that's his conclusion, but ultimately, he's not the decisionmaker here. prime minister netanyahu and the israeli military and intelligence folks have to make that determination. and ultimately, the palestinians have to also recognize. >> so we're lis fling to the president at the tenth anniversary of the saban forum at the willard hotel in which he's talking about the u.s. to bridge the gap between the israelis and palestinians but not easy conversations to have. more importantly, the president addressed both the reasons for and the details of the geneva accord two weeks ago tonight with iran. and he said we don't know how that will turn out six months from now at the end of this trial p

. >> the other thing that really caught my attention today was john boehner addressing mike allen's report in "politico" about how republicans are trying to teach their respective members and senate candidates how to appeal to women voters. don't talk about, quote, legitimate rape. this is boehner talking about the coaching practices. >> trying to get them to be a little more sensitive. you know, you look around the congress, there are a lot more females in the democratic caucus than republican caucus. some of our members just aren't as sensitive as they ought to be. >> do you think they are making progress on that front? >> i do. >> they only have 8% of republican caucus. by 3-1 democrats have more women than republicans in congress. just the optics aren't great and some of their senate candidates have been disastrous. >> obviously we know example of todd akins of the world. what's curious to me, the republican perspective is how you communicate to them, nothing to do with policy. if they didn't make sarahception such a vocal point of the health care debate. these things resonate with wom

john mccain at 22%. condoleezza rice, shortly behind him, and then you had george allen and bill frist. that was the field. it didn't turn out quite that way. on the democratic side hillary clinton was leading both john kerry and john edwards by nearly 30 points each. so, obviously many things can change in the time we have in front of us. on benghazi, and hillary clinton, i would say that it has already had an effect. if you look at her favorability ratings just a year ago and look at where they are now, it's very clear that it's had an effect. she has dropped some 30 points depending on the poll that you look at. >> i would disagree though that she won't be a strong candidate. i think she will be a very strong candidate. and she also polls a lot of independent women, republican women who are -- who find her candidacy very appealing. i think the other factor to look at here is that the republican party is still in the midst of a civil war. and that's going to play out in the primaries and i think that's going to continue to hurt them in the general election. >> yeah, we will see what ha

john holtz. >> welcome, i'm natalie allen.nic leader who has every reason to hate but instead chose to forgive was 95-years-old. he guided south africa from apart hi aapartheid to democracy. jacob zuma told the world the news. >> fellow south africans, our beloved nelson mandela, the founding president of our democratic nation has departed. he passed on peacefully in the company of his family around 20:50 on the 5g9 of december, 2013. >> and there it was, the announce. . mandela retired from pub leg life years ago him he hadn't been seen in public since 2010 when south africa hosted the football world cup, where you are seeing him here. his health had been failing for quite some time. in recent years, he was in and out of the hospital t. south african press reports mandela's body has been moved to a military hospital. >> for 26 long weeks, south africans have been living with the knowledge that nelson mandela was gravely ill. let's go live now to robin kurnow. she has covered nelson mandela extensively. he was covering the wor

>> allen pizzey in south africa. thank you. >>> johnthe capitol. kerry served in vietnam 44 year is ago as the commander of a swift patrol boat. >>> this year six of the best college football players are here in new york and tonight's their big night. they're the finalists for the heisman trophy. here to break it down is cbs analyst and former nfl lineman -- >> lineman? i wasn't big enough. i was a linebacker. >> that's what they wrote. talk to me. four quarterbacks and two -- >> i think it's going to be a win for jameis winston. jameis if not for the off the field issues would win in landslide and probably would still. >> most people don't know jordan lynch. why should they? >> he's fantastic. he had three of four rushing games at the quarterback position. that i won four straight mac west titles. they had 20 straight mac whips until they lost in the mac championships versus bowling green. >> let's talk about johnny manziel who everybody's heard about. >> loose goose. he prays on an aggie but i've got to do it. he ooh is a phenomenal f

john, thank you very much indeed. >> okay. >> when military veterans lose and illegal immigrants win, lieutenant colonel allen west has a problem the's a saying around here, you stand behindhat you say. around here you don't make excuses. you make commitments. and when you can't live up to them, you own , and make it right. some people think the kind of accountability that thrives on so many streets inhis country sbut i know you'll still find it where it's needed most. en you know ere to look. anncr vo: introducing the schwab accountality guarantee. if you're not happy with one of our participating investment advisory services, we'll refund your program fee fromhe previous quarter. while, it's no guarantee against loss and other fees and expenses may still apply, we stand by our word. >>> to the senate where the vote is underway on final passage of the murray ryan budget. some of the 12 republicans to voted to let the bill move forward are expected to oppose it. 51 votes are needed to pass which it's expected to get. >>> ahead of this vote did you hear about this one? last night senate democrats voted to block an amendment that

her book is allen and edith, woodrow wilson's first ladies. john mills cooper is woodrow wilson's biographer. thanks for being with us. we have been telling the stories chronologically, but everybody knows about edith wilson managing the white house as it is described after her husband suffers a stroke. we will tell that story first because so many people really want to know what happened. john cooper, let me start with you. when in his administration did he suffer a stroke -- >> more than halfway through the second term. it was october 1919. here just returned from a whirlwind speaking tour. he was tried to sell the country on ratifying the peace treaty and going into the league of nations. he had really worn himself out on that and his doctors actually aborted the tour and got him back to the white house. after about five days in the white house, he suffered a massive stroke. >> the story of the stroke night itself is very dramatic or it can you tell us recently what happened that night? >> there are some conflicting reports about what happened,

eisenhower and allen put pressure on kennedy then he realized he'd agree to gave the airport after john foster dulles in this video clip he gives a speech then he pulls the curtain then there is the giant blast of john foster dulles debt stance of the center of dulles airport. if you have been through dulles airport you might ask yourself what bust is that? i asked myself that and of course, made a special trip to dulles during one of my travels in order to look at the blast which is placed right in the center of the airport near a reflecting pool at the architect center to call the turbulent spirits of the stress doubt travelers. suggest find the reflecting pool and there is the statue. where is the reflecting pool? there is none. i asked the security guards. they don't know. where is the blast of john foster dulles? some had no idea simon had no idea who john foster dulles was. [laughter] it is a long story but with the help of the measure to talk long -- metropolitan airport authority i tracked down the of bust of john foster dulles it is in a closed conference room opposite baggage

less than one month later, on may 5th, allen shepherd, one of the mercury seven, became the first american in space. just over three months into his presidency, johny, like millions of other americans across the country, was glued to his television. >> alan shepherd became an instant hero that the life needed but the cosmonaut had circled the earth a month before. >> jfk sought out advice from nasa's top engineers. one was famed rocket scientist von braun. >> huntsville, alabama, president kennedy here with von braun, begins a two-day tour -- >> i read a letter that he wrote to kennedy, when he said, how can we beat the russians? and von braun's letter basically said, we can't beat them they were except to be the first on the moon. and so, that's what we committed to. >> may 25th, 1961, the president made a dramatic announcement before a joint session of congress. >> i believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal before this decade is out of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the earth. >> we didn't go to the moon to collect rocks. we went to the moon to stick the flag in the moon before the russians did.

. >> jonathan allen, shira center, good to talk to both of you. we are still waiting to hear from john boehner, the speaker. these will be his first comments since the budget deal was announced. as we said, conservative groups and some conservatives are making it tough for him. they're suggesting already that they're going to be voting against this deal. so when that happens, we will have that for you live. >>> in the meantime let's check the news feed this morning. the body of nelson mandela lying in state at the same amphitheater where he was sworn in as south africa's first black president 19 years ago. it's part of ten days of mourning following his death, ending with sunday's funeral. thousands lined the streets this morning just to catch a glimpse of the casket. along the way the procession passed key land marks in mandela's life including the court where he was sentenced and the prison where he was jailed in 1962. >>> and then there is this new piece of information from yesterday's memorial service. you might have seen a sign language interpreter standing next to the podium, inc

allen. he's got a look at the play book. good morning. >> good morning, willie. >> the new issue of politico magazine actually has a really good piece by johnrry reid. his secrets to staying in power. you guys calling him machiaveli. a ma lange of contradictions. what's the big take away from the piece? >> what we see in here is that harry reid is not a preener. that unlike most senators, he pays more attention to what's happening behind the scenes than his image out front. john ralston who, as you pointed out, as covered harry reid for more than 25 years there in nevada, point to a great moment a couple of days ago when senator reid was back home in the state. and he was talking about an assemblywoman who he's hoping will run for lieutenant governor as the democratic candidate. and he described her outloud as demographically perfect. dynamic. young. hispanic. and you want to say, senator, you're saying that outloud. of course, that's how politicians think. that's how operatives think. that's how you have to work and think to be successful. but you're not usually going to say it out loud. so we're going to see this week as the budget gets i

allen west coming up next. >> in the flesh. >> first, more from the american country music awards and lady antebellum. ♪ ♪ >>> secretary of state johnhe united states is stronger under this first step agreement than it was before. israel's national security is stronger than it was the day before we entered into this agreement. and the gulf and middle east interests are more secure than they were the day before we entered this agreement. >> really? well, his testimony coming just one day after iran's foreign minister told time magazine, quote, the entire deal is dead. we do not like to negotiate under duress and if congress adopts sanctions, which they're threatening, it shows lack of seriousness and lack of desire to achieve a resolution on the part of the united states. so is the united states on the brink of another foreign policy disaster by the administration? let's ask colonel allen west. good morning to you. >> good morning. merry christmas. >> thank you very much. you don't like this administration deal with iran? >> no, it's absolutely horrible. when you listen to what secretary kerry talked about, that's a delusional statem

allen. can you see it live starting at :00 a.m. eastern on use. the senate approved the 2014 federal budget agreement by a vote of 64-36. next remarks from john mccain, patty murray and lindsey graham before the vote. this is 50 minutes. >> i would say to my friend, the chairperson of the budget committee that has done extremely hard work on the budget agreement. t the simpson-bowles plan which was embraced by many, many members of this body, including on this side, includi ng o other side, including those who are now announced their opposition to the agreement, the ryan-murray budget, that the simpson-bowles plan recommends scrapping colas, cost-of-living adjustment, entirely. not just cuts them, but the simpson-bowles plan, i wonder if the chairperson knows, eliminates colas entirely for working-age military retirees? the simpson-bowles plan which was so embraced and everybody thought was the greatest thing since sliced bread said -- quote -- "defer cost-of-living adjustment cola for retirees in the current system until age 62, including for civilian and military retirees who retire well before a conventional retirement age in place of annu