if you read the story of lyndon baines johnson you'll find out he went one vote at a time, republicans and democrats and brought a bipartisan house and senate together to vote for that act. you will find out as a senior member of the judiciary committee in 2006, we painstakingly, painstakingly collected 15,000 pages of testimony, people pleading from all of the states that were covered and said we need the voting rights act of 1965. what i want to say john, is that this is an american legislation. this is an american initiative. this is about protecting the rights of all americans. i don't know why people don't think that whether you're white american hispanic or asian, a woman, you all have civil rights. we all have civil rights. the voting rights act was on the basis of civil rights. >> john: exactly. >> so my fear is this... one, the emotion that rose up in me was based upon whether we were facing another partisan divide. the supreme court indicated by keeping section five that they believed or affirmed that discrimination still exists. but yet the enforcement part of it was thrown

i'm old enough to remember a time in washington when edward dirksen and lyndon baines johnson who might i disagree on the senate floor but then they would get together in the evening and work out a deal or tip o'neill and ronald reagan even. so there is something i think that we need to do something about that. not have these folks drive home every thursday afternoon and raise money for the next election campaign. >> and compulsory alcohol. [laughter] >> that's right. >> my favorite story if you will allow me about chief justice john marshall was it sounds like you did the exact same thing. he persuaded his colleagues to live together in same boarding house and they would discuss supreme court cases over the marshall's favorite drink which was madeira and all would get busted all the cases were unanimous. [laughter] then of course there was the famous moment when marshall looks out the window and says our jurisdiction is so broad it must be raining somewhere. [laughter] so this principle, the madura principle is important to leadership and yet we don't want to romanticize it because as

i'm old enough to remember a time in washington whenever dirksen and lyndon baines johnson might disagree on the senate floor but then get together in the evening and work out a deal work tip o'neill and ronald reagan even. so there is something, i think, that we could do something about, not have these folks fly home every thursday afternoon to raise money for their next election campaign. >> end provide that the senate compulsory alcohol. >> that's right. [laughter] >> this is actually an important typical of the supreme court leaders as well. >> my favorite story, if you allow me, it sounds like he did the exact same thing, persuaded his colleagues to live together in the same boardinghouse. they would discuss supreme court cases over marshall's favorite drink which was at the era, and all the buses as -- justices would get buzzed and all the cases were unanimous. and then, of course, the famous moment that the justices vote only with him when it rains. our jurisdiction is so broad command must be raining summer. so this principle, the principle is important to leadership and a foundin

>> ifill: the first picture i want to show here shows in the foreground the very familiar lyndon baines johnson> that is not his third finger up there. >> ifill: that's his index finger in the air. if you see behind him, however, there is john f. kennedy. they were not very close but he is reaching over to grab him. what is going on here? >> that was taken just before the election of 1960 but you look at it, and it looks like the icon of the noon 60s, johnson aggressively getting into the vietnam war, maybe, and kennedy trying to restrain him. that's why that picture particularly touchaise nerve. what actually happened was a couple of days before the election, kennedy came to amarillo for a really with johnson. kennedy began speak ago it was at the airport-- and republican pilots began turning on their jet engines to drown out kennedy. johnson was furious, and you can see him going, "turn those engines off!" that is exactly what was going on. >> ifill: this is 1960 before they were even serving together. >> absolutely. >> ifill: perhaps they were friendlier. >> indeed. >> ifill: the next pictur

the presidency of lyndon baines johnson. i was a congressman. it was the first federal budget in our history that it $100 billion and everyone just asked at the thought. >> now doesn't seem -- >> billion dollar deficit. >> doesn't look like the republicans are helping us any. will you write a book for that? >> let me say something about that. i think the republicans -- there are people all across the spectrum in both parties. i was asked, i was speaking about my other book, at fort leavenworth, the military base, not the prison. there were 1490 majors mostly from our country but from around the world too. it is a big school. someone asked me what is the biggest problem that i worry about, and the answer was american weakness. why do i say that? the signal that is being sent out from this country is that basically we are modeling the american economy on europe and it is a failed model. doesn't work. there is no way you can have the deficits we have had and have the debt we are incurring without sending out a signal to the world that this country

in the presidency of lyndon baines johnson, i was a congressman and it was the first federal budget in our history that hit $100 billion. and everyone just gasped at the thought. but. >> but now it doesn't seem like -- >> now we have trillion dollar deficits. >> doesn't look like the republicans are helping us any. so will you write a become for system. >> well, let me say something about that. i think the republicans -- there are people all across the spectrum in both parties, but the -- i was asked -- i was speaking about my other book, "known and unknown" at ft. leavenworth, the military base, not the prison. and there were, i think, 1490 majors from mostly our country but from around the world, too. it's a big school there. and someone asked me, what's the biggest problem that i worry about when guy to bed at night? and the answer was, american weakness. and why do i say that? i think the signal that is being sent out from this country is that basically, we're modeling american economy on europe, and it's a failed model. it doesn't work. and there's no way you can have the deficits

voting rights act signed by lyndon baines johnson in 1965, then by president nixon, president ford, president reagan and president bush have all signed it. and this is what makes the ipartisanship of where we dust ourselves off and start all over again becomes so important. we can rise to this challenge. we don't have any alternative. and it is up to us to see that e remedy this in as meaningful and as fair a manner as possible. there were members on the supreme court that wanted to take out section 5 while we were at it, and i can't remember who it was that restrained that coming in, too, but our job is big enough as it is. this is a day from which we will be planning, strategizing, working with both bodies of the legislature and, of course, everyone in every party to get this right. it's been done before. we faced challenges like these, but the voting rights act must be continued. i haven't heard anybody say yet .hat we don't need it obvious, the record is replete with those that have been challenged or actions taken that have prevented it from happening. and so i join these members of whic

it was championed by lyndon baines johnson president johnson, after the murder of john f.nedy who was -- hadn't done a lot but then finally, was on the ball and moving -- he and bobby kennedy toward some voter rights legislation when he was assassinated. southerner lbj picked up the torch, probably got the bill passed where john f. kennedy could not have gotten it passed. signed it into law. historic moment. what it said basically was look, you cannot block people or make it more difficult for people of color to vote in the south and particularly those states and those counties mostly southern states where they have had the worst record of discrimination. if they do anything about voting regulations or requirements on their own voting. they have to first get approval. specifically named which district they've got of shelby county the big one. they have to get approval first from the department of justice. it wasn't an onerous burden. it was a necessary burden but it was not onerous. in fact, history shows most of the cases where the states and counties came up with a plan,

so the voting rights act signed by lyndon baines johnson in 1965, then by president nixon, president ford, president reagan, and president bush have all signed them. and this is what makes the bipartisanship of where we dust ourselves off and start all over again become so important. we can rise to this challenge, we don't have any alternative. and it is up to us to see that we remedy this in as meaningful, as fair a manner as possible. there were members on the supreme court that wanted to take out section 5 while we were at it, and i can't remember who it was that restrained that from coming in too but our job is big enough as it is. this is a day from which we will be planning, strategizing, working with both bodies of the legislature, and of course everyone in every party to get this right. it's been done before. we faced challenges like these. but the voting rights act must be continued. i haven't heard anybody say yet that we don't need it. obviously the record is replete with those that have been challenged or actions taken that have prevented it from happening. and so i join

so the voting rights act signed by lyndon baines johnson in 1965, then by president nixon, presidentord, president reagan, and president bush have all signed them. and this is what makes the bipartisanship of where we dust ourselves off and start all over again become so important. we can rise to this challenge, we don't have any alternative. and it is up to us to see that we remedy this in as meaningful, as fair a manner as possible. there were members on the supreme court that wanted to take out section 5 while we were at it, and i can't remember who it was that restrained that from coming in too but our job is big enough as it is. this is a day from which we will be planning, strategizing, working with both bodies of the legislature, and of course everyone in every party to get this right. it's been done before. we faced challenges like these. but the voting rights act must be continued. i haven't heard anybody say yet that we don't need it. obviously the record is replete with those that have been challenged or actions taken that have prevented it from happening. and so i join th