jack kennedy had something called the kennedy party. >> let's talk about that. you know, that element that howard threw on the table and you just knocked out of the park. it is the element of, he ought to have these guys down the white house, he ought to play cards with them, have a drink with them. >> if you don't like them, they're not going to like you. >> well, that's the question. is he as -- is barack obama as good at politics at we initially thought? because he certainly, after this point in time, is certainly not john f. kennedy, who schmoozed these guys. these guys, in your book, they liked jack kennedy. you get the sense that a lot of democratic reps and senators, they admire the president, as we all admire the president, as we all ought to, but they don't really like him. >> you know what happened to jack kennedy, he got beaten for the vice presidential nomination in '56 and talked to the people and said, now i'm going to be a total politician. not just some popular guy. i'm going to be a guy that makes other politicians do what i want them to do. bec

kennedy. [applause] [applause] >> thank you all for coming. and thanks to the staff of the library and foundation for the stewardship and tremendous care and education that they show every day here at the library. and ford members who are here numbers i worked with over the years. and especially members of my family who are here. can mean so to me any think it's a wonderful tribute to our parents that we are all here together. so thank you all. most importantly, it means a great deal. 50 years after my father's presidency, so many people still share his vision for america and are interested in learning about its administration. his time is really becoming part of history rather than living memory. as president kennedy's words, spirit and example remain as vital as ever. now in young people often feel disconnect it from politics, it is up to us as adults to reach across the generation and we commit ourselves in our country to the ideals to live by. from our feeling the kennedy library, the clos

kennedy. my father adored hubert humphrey. i remember at the state house and the convention when the balloting was seesawing for vice president and kennedy was running downstairs to kennedy's suites or the brother-in-law was guarding the door, running in jack kennedy was pulling up his trousers. he shook his hand and congratulated him. by the time i got back up to my father's sweet, i saw him lose. all of us were reading to jack kennedy. this brought kennedy to the nation's attention. >> let's move that for years ahead it to the 1960 democratic convention in las angeles. senator stevens, how would you describe the relationship between your father and jack kennedy in 1960? >> i think the relationship between my father and jack kennedy was close. i know my father respected kennedy. i believe it was mutual. there was a circle or very protective circle around john f. kennedy, which is always fearful and resentful. in this case, concern that stevenson was a threat. people were pouring in from acros

kennedy. it is called jack kennedy, elusive hero. it's said of the book it's history at its best is about telling stories that bring the past to life. then chris matt yeups is a master storyteller forthis mass fating pour trust bringing jac kennedy to life more than any recent work. i'm glad to have cis matthews back at this table in fighting form. you should be pud. >> it takes years of work to get back here. it's worth it. >> keep writing books like this and you'll get a place at the table. everything about this is fascinating, including just the portrait. tell me when you look at this portra what do you think. >> i see a guy casual clothes on a beach probably in cape cod, hyannis. walking off into what looks like white space. so where did he go and also where did he come from jackie once saido ted sorensen his speech writer. she called it an unforgettable elusive man. that's his wife. she found him elusive. >> charlie: also unforgettable. >>nforgettable. >> charlie: but elusive because? >> he lived his life in compartments and one

and robert kennedy.iberals to the plate? >> the operation began with eisenhower. the bay of pigs is a kennedy fiasco. kennedy only live with it for three months. three months into is that the restoration. eisenhower was and control the operation for years. he had more to do with the development of the operation and kennedy did. robert kennedy did not play that much of our role when the bay of pigs first came up when kennedy came into power, but in the days before the invasion he became involved, and as it started to fall apart he came in by his brother's side, and this was really the beginning of what became a partner ship presidency between john kennedy and robert kennedy. john kennedy realized after words, after the bay of pigs, that he really needed his brother's advice, very close to him. and he played a much more important role in the white house after that. >> shaken vera. >> of course castro's right hand man. he was one of the people that just drove the eisenhower and kennedy administration that's

kennedy. at some point do people come up to you like after the life magazine came out with the superior film where they can see you running up to the car do they say are you that guide? did that happen? >> barely because i tried to make sure nobody knew who i was but i stayed with them a full year after the assassination until november of 1964 and then i was returned to the white house. >> did that make it easier or harder to deal with what happened in that personal relationship? >> made it more difficult because ha i had to go through the grieving process. christmas of 64 was an absent because here we are with these younger children who just lost their father and she just lost her husband. you can but it's just impossible. >> did you stay in touch after that? >> after 1964 they threw a going away party for me in new york where she was living at the time. she had moved to new york and i lived in a hotel room in new york and they wished me well and thought i was transferred to wyoming because t

for instance, randall kennedy black professor at harvard law school. what did my raise have to do with that? sometimes it does. fine. explained that i don't think it should be randall kennedy, a black%, professor at harvard law school. if it is relevant, say why it is relevant. if you are not prepared to say why it is relevant then they should not mention the fact that i am black. >> host: one of your colleagues just died u.s. the professor 21 derek bell. the first black member of the harvard law school. >> host: is that fair to say the first black professor at? >> guest: it is if you are writing a story and you talk about his place in the legal academia or harvard law school, then the fact he was the first member of harvard law school faculty is relevant. but on the other hand, if we simply talk about a subject of affirmative action and/or the war on drugs or anything else and talk about the view of derek bell, then it is just derek bell and he has a few like anybody else. i don't think a racial identity should in the unexplained way be part of the st

jack kennedy was sick most of his life.rother said if a mosquito ever bit jack, the mosquito would die immediately. he was always sick. people didn't know that. he had addison's disease. you're catholic. he had the last rites in 1447, again in 1951, another in 1954. he was near death so many times -- >> sstephen: so he's a sacrament hog. >> you know you only get that sacrament when you're near death. he managed to make it to the presidency despite all those illnesses. >> stephen: why are you guys -- i mean you lefties-- >> he wasn't a lefty. >> stephen: but you are. why are you so obsessed with this particular democratic president. why not franklin pierce? why not grover cleveland? >> for an objective -- >> stephen: i'm still talking. two nonconsecutive terms. no one else ever did that. >> recently, the american people were asked who should be on mount rushmore with washington, jefferson, lincoln, and teddy roosevelt, they picked jack kennedy. the american people loved this president. >> stephen: i grew up with icones of hi

for instance, randall kennedy black professor at harvard law school. what did my raise have to do with that? sometimes it does. fine. explained that i don't think it should be randall kennedy, a black%, professor at harvard law school. if it is relevant, say why it is relevant. if you are not prepared to say why it is relevant then they should not mention the fact that i am black. >> host: one of your colleagues just died u.s. the professor 21 derek bell. the first black member of the harvard law school. >> host: is that fair to say the first black professor at? >> guest: it is if you are writing a story and you talk about his place in the legal academia or harvard law school, then the fact he was the first member of harvard law school faculty is relevant. but on the other hand, if we simply talk about a subj

the ca commanders who in turn bags john kennedy to run these these. kennedy refused. the brigade was just pummeled. now, the reason when you speak, part of this invasion, family members, many remain very angry at john kennedy for doing this. you have to be somewhat sympathetic to his point of view which was if he did send them an american aircraft to participate , he was turning it into an overt american operation, and once he did that he was opening the door to all sorts of escalating tensions with the soviet union. that was a great concern that he had, that he might spark a nuclear war. this was always a concern that both kennedy and eisenhower operated under, that if any of the wrong move provoked the soviet union too far that it could end very badly. >> jim rasenberger, how many people were involved in this operation on the ground, how many people were killed? >> 1400 men planted, and in addition to that there was a smaller force. 16b-26 bombers and some transport plans as well. at the most total a few thousand men. the actual men who saw combat, around 1500. >> h

the ca commanders who in turn bags john kennedy to run these these. kennedy refused. the brigade was just pummeled. now, the reason when you speak, part of this invasion, family members, many remain very angry at john kennedy for doing this. you have to be somewhat sympathetic to his point of view which was if he did send them an american aircraft to participate , he was turning it into an overt american operation, and once he did that he was opening the door to all sorts of escalating tensions with the soviet union. that was a great concern that he had, that he might spark a nuclear war. this was always a concern that both kennedy and eisenhower operated under, that if any of the wrong move provoked the soviet union too far that it could end very badly. >> jim rasenberger, how many people were involved in this operation on the ground, how many people were killed? >> 1400 men planted, and in addition to that there was a smaller force. 16b-26 bombers and some transport plans as well. at the most total a few thousand men. the actual men who saw combat, around 1500. >> h

kennedy.ve happened if he had been made secretary of state? would the situation in vietnam have been different? >> let's start with richard norton smith. >> that is a very wide subject. it is certainly true that it was not a warm relationship between the kennedys and governor stevenson. in 1956, he had done something no one else had done. he had thrown at the nomination for the vice presidency open. he left the convention decide. jack kennedy came within eyebrow of winning the nomination. it introduced him to the country, paved the way for his campaign in 1960. one of the distinguished visitors that came to this house was jack kennedy. he very much wanted adlai stevenson's endorsement, who did not give it. he did not go away with his admiration of the governor enhanced. if he was ever going to be secretary of state, i think that possibility went down the drain right then. >> we will talk a little bit later about the kennedy relationship and his years as u.n. ambassador. the results in 1956, ad

what you thought his relationship with the kennedys was.as nominated in that convention and because of that, there were still feelings with jack kennedy. what would have happened if he had been made secretary of state? with this situation in vietnam have been different? >> let's start with richard norton smith. >> that is a very wide subjects. it is certainly true that it was not a warm relationship between the kennedys and governor stevenson. in 1956, he had done something no one else had done. he had thrown at the nomination for the vice presidency opened. he left the convention decide. jack kennedy came with then an eyebrow -- with an eyebrow of winning the nomination. in the end, -- it introduced into the country, paved the way for his campaign in 1960. it is also safe to say that the way in which gov. stevenson -- one of the distinguished visitors that came to this house was jack kennedy. he very much wanted adlai stevenson's endorsements, who did not get it. if he was ever going to be secretary of state, i think that possibility went

he learned to like robert kennedy he campaigned for kennedy in 1966 when he ran for the senate.n 1968, they had a meeting. they agreed that of humphrey got the nomination, kennedy would support of. kennedy got the nomination, humphrey would support him. he was a party person. >> next up is ron from washington. >> i would like to jump back -- forward to the 1968 campaign. can you elaborate -- my recollection that president johnson tried to scuttle humphries effort. that was one of the closest elections in history. it is my recollection that it might have made the crucial difference. can you elaborate on that? thank you. >> did lyndon johnson tried to scuttle his bid for the white house? >> he did not help him very much. he did these kinds of things were he had nixon had a ranch and then hubert humphrey had the ranch. he would tell humphrey that no press could be there. part of the belief among historians is that johnson believed that humphrey might end the war and make him look bad. nixon thought he might continue the war. nixon played a few dirty tricks, and so he came out for h

they were working together with kennedy. they got to sarge shriver, and he got to kennedy. mrs.death. she was pregnant at the time. her husband had been arested on a hopped-up charge, hauled into the backwoods the georgia, she was scared to death he was going to get lynched. she called her friends, they went to the president, the president made the call to mrs. king expressing his sympathy for her, and then he got bobby, very resistant -- you talk about being resistant, his first impulse was we're blowing this campaign. he got ahold of the governor of georgia. the governor gave bobby a heads-up on how to deal with the judge. the judge released him, and then the real politics began. they went to philadelphia, got two ministers, they mimeographed, creating this pamphlet called the blue bomb, it was printed in blue ink, and sent it to 2 million people. >> i found one. i've got that pamphlet. they put it into black churches. that's when many blacks, including his father, returned from republican -- dr. king's father had an "i'm a nixon man" took it off when kennedy helped get his so

kennedy. happened if he had been made secretary of state? would the situation in vietnam have been different? >> let's start with richard norton smith. >> that is a very wide subject. it is certainly true that it was not a warm relationship between the kennedys and governor stevenson. in 1956, he had done something no one else had done. he had thrown at the nomination for the vice presidency open. he left the convention decide. jack kennedy came within eyebrow of winning the nomination. it introduced him to the country, paved the way for his campaign in 1960. one of the distinguished visitors that came to this house was jack kennedy. he very much wanted adlai stevenson's endorsement, who did not give it. he did not go away with his admiration of the governor enhanced. if he was ever going to be secretary of state, i think that possibility went down the drain right then. >> we will talk a little bit later about the kennedy relationship and his years as u.n. ambassador. the results in 1956, adla

kennedy didn't care how he beat him, he beat him.ing john mccormick in massachusetts. in 1947 they took the train out to western pennsylvania. mckeesport. they had this booming debate. showed in the book who they really were. they never changed. you and i know about politicians about how they are behind in the cloakrooms between the parties when they're normal people. they had hamburgers together at the diner, got the midnight train back to washington together. they flip a coin for the top bunk. it's north by northwest with a somewhat different ending of course. kennedy is on the top bunk. nixon wins the toss and gets a bottom bunk. they have been in a war together, south pacific navy, talk about the coming struggle with the soviet warriors. and they're talking about how they're going to fight this new struggle with the soviet union, having just won the war in the south pacific. it's an amazing war of generations emerging, the young officer corps replacing old generals like eisenhower. imagine the scene of the two guys on the bunk, t

kennedy had lived?ing theory coming out from the great, brilliant steven king, who's written a novel about what would have happened had he not been killed that day. stephen king, who can scare the bejesus out of you sometimes, is going to tell a story of mixed development. i'm not sure this is a good ending either. this is "hardball" on msnbc. on november 26th you can make a huge impact by shopping small on small business saturday. one purchase. one purchase is all it takes. so, pick your favorite local business... and join the movement. i pledge to shop small at big top candy shop. allen's boots... at juno baby store. make the pledge to shop small. please. shop small on small business saturday. two of the most important are energy security and economic growth. north america actually has one of the largest oil reserves in the world. a large part of that is oil sands. this resource has the ability to create hundreds of thousands of jobs. at our kearl project in canada, we'll be able to produce these oil

kennedy did not like to be alone.e would have dave powers stay with him until 11:00 at night what jack would say his prayers at his bedside. he didn't want to be alone. when jackie was around, he wanted somebody else around. he didn't want to be alone with her. >> let's talk about her. >> they are in their honeymoon in al coo pull co. they are in santa bash remarks he moves up to -- santa barbara, and he moves to his company. he wrote and said this man seems strange to a man who just got married, but to jacqelyn, it but normal. >> and jackie knew about the women. >> yes. >> work to her friend, rachel melon. >> one of his buddies told her that at the wedding. >> yes. on the wedding day, he went up to her and said he is 36. he is bachelor. he won't change his ways. you have to be ready for this. and he went and told jack, guess what, i told her. he said thanks. >> but they were very much alike, jack and jackie. >> they were very much detached people. she totally loved him. they were perfect for each other. they totally

bobby kennedy was the number one enforcer. who is barack obama's bobby kennedy?> also the development of leadership, not just a style, but it's a core belief, that's really what you're writing about in kennedy. >> tremendous authority. jack kennedy got it in the navy. he was a commander of a ship, basically, a boat, and these guys looked up to them and he saved their lives. he had to build his own political party in massachusetts. the regula were all against him. the tip o'neill crowd were all against him. then he had to build his own political party to defeat the fdr crowd, the adlai stevenson crowd and he had to create a political party which was loyal to one person, him. and he built it from the ground up. obama cuts deals. he raises money. he does all the normal things, but there's no -- there's no -- >> he makes guys like jon huntsman ambassador. >> that's exhibit "a." if the guy isn't mad at you personally, i made you ambassador to the most important country in the world and you come back and run against me in the same term? >> this is particularly dangerou

irony of a wallace marrying a kennedy? >> yes, they have. when we got engaged, senator ted kennedy wrote my father a letter saying he was really glad that the kennedys and the wallace's could finally get together. i have that letter. >> peggy will be joining us a little later in the program. thank you for spending a few minutes with us. we will work our way back out to the set. we will be joined by joe lee -- joe reed, the chairman of the alabama democratic conference, along with our other guests. wallace by robert, dan carter. the next call is from houston. joe, you are on the air. go ahead, joe from houston. >> i have a question. had george wallace not been shot in 1970 to -- 1972, would he have run as a third-party candidate? i have another candidate -- another question. in 1976 if he had defeated jimmy carter in farda, how far would he have gone in the democratic nomination process? >> the third party in 1972 and what could have happened in 1976. >> in 1972, of course, he was shot and severely wounded. he did go to the

kennedy some years ago. his latest project features a group of talented artists and a unique blend of musical genres. first, yo-yo ma, an honor, have you on this program. >> i can tell you it's such an honor to be on your show. tavis: i was giddy when i saw the list come out of the kennedy center honors, i was, like, yo-yo ma. you're so young. you got to be one of the younger ones to get the honor. >> i'm trapped in the body of a 96-year-old. tavis: we had sonny rawlins here a couple of weeks ago. i feel blessed to have two of you in the matter of weeks. >> you have the most interesting people on your show and you do what i think is a citizen's duty to check out what's going on in our country, and i think that's -- i think, you know, as musicians, we can't keep a steady job. you, at least, have a steady job. i don't have a day job so we're always traveling and what you see we try and actually put into music so it's a kind of reporting on what's going on. tavis: i'm glad you said that, it's a great way to sta