speakers included former congressman patrick kennedy and virginia state senator creigh deeds. and singer demi lovato, who spoke about her own experience with being diagnosed with bipolar disorder. the session was about 50 minutes. [applause] >> hello, everyone. welcome to our national convention. i am so excited to see all of you here today. welcome to our national day of action. i hope you are ready to take some action. we want congress to act and so, today, our supporters here and around the country are going to be calling, e-mailing, tweeting, and visiting capitol hill. when you visit capitol hill, i want you to remember that you are part of the nami movement. we are a movement of people dedicated to providing help and hope to all of those affected by mental illness. a movement that demands a more caring and a better mental health care system that provides help to us when we need it, and where we need it. [applause] >> a movement that rages against homelessness, emergency rooms, jails, and prisons. we have had too much of it and we want it to change. [applause] >> and a mov

former congressman patrick kennedy spoke with doreen gentzler and opened up about bipartisan disorder. kennedy says instead of shying away from a topic that some think is taboo, he's going to talk about it. and that may start changing minds when it comes to how we treat the mentally ill. >> i've had three-and-a-half years of continuous sobriety. so that means i haven't used a drink or take a mood al tering r mind altering chemical in three-and-a-half years. >> reporter: for patrick kennedy, sobriety and candidacy go hand-in-hand. he knows he needs to stay sober if he wants to make a change in the way we handle mental illness in america. >> it's setting a new pattern in my life where sobriety is the norm, not the exception. and that takes a lot of focus. and frankly, it's -- as a result of that, i'm able to make a better -- do a better job advocating for mental health. >> reporter: kennedy has had a long and public battle with addiction. he admitted using cocaine as a teenager and to abusing drugs and alcohol while a college student. he sought treatment for addiction to pain killers in

they couldn't wait to tell me from their visit from patrick kennedy. what a difference he made by telling his story in such a heartfelt way the way he always does. one of them said it bees. he is one of us. that is how we feel at nami. patrick is one of us. he has been a great friend to nami, a great friend to those in the mental health community and we want to welcome our great friend, patrick kennedy. [applause] >> thank you very much. well, when i was in congress, you know, i got used to that standing ovation. now that i'm out of congress, i'm just going to stand up here and soak it in because i'm in recovery and not only recovery from -- [applause] i'm in recovery from being a in politics. let me just say from the outset how great mary has been in terms of hitting the ground run, really coming in. talk about trying to drink water from a fire hydrant, she came in at a time that will be the most formative time in mental health advocacy in the last 50 years and we couldn't be more proud to have you as executive director of nami here. [applause] and ro

and we want to welcome our reat friend patrick kennedy. cheers and applause] >> well, when i was in congress, you know, i got used to that standing ovation. now that i'm out of congress i'm just going to stand up here and soak it in because i'm in recovery. and not only recovery from -- [applause] i'm in recovery from being in politics. let me just say from the outset how great mary has been in terms of hitting the ground running and really coming in. talk about trying to drink water from a fire hydrant. she came in at a time that is going to be the most formative time in mental health advocacy in the last 50 years and we couldn't be more proud to have you as executive director. [applause] and ron and andrew, terrific policy team who are getting you all ready to go to go to the hill. the whole team is exceptional. i've had the honor of working with them for many years. let me just first say to demi lovato, i told her back stage, she's already a hit. we know she's produced lots of hits but she's already a hit star with all of us because she

patrick kennedy served eight 2011,in congress until representing rhode island's first district. he was the leading champion of the national mental health parity bill which was passed in 2008. [applause] he has been the recipient of nami's highest honor, the service award, and continues to be a leading voice for scientific research and the transformation of mental health care. patrick is all of those things, but he is so much more. he is a beacon of hope for all of those who struggle with mental illness and addiction. i had the privilege the summer of visiting a peer-run drop-in center in chicago on 47th street. i got a really warm welcome but they cannot wait to tell me about their visit from patrick kennedy and what a difference he made by telling his story in such a heartfelt way, the way he always does, and one of them said it best. he said, he is one of us. that is how we feel at nami. patrick is one of us, has been a great friend to nami, those in the mental health community, and we want to welcome our great friend patrick kennedy. [applause] >> thank you very much. [applau

former congressman patrick kennedy is joining d.c. families in a news conference at the bible wait church on new jersey avenue. organizers say alcohol and tobacco have done harm to the district's young people already and they don't want to see another drug causing more harm. they're urging people to vote know on an initiative to legalize marijuana in d.c. >>> had:41 is the time right now. we want to take a look outside. 57 degrees outside our studios and a bit of a chill in the air for a lot of folks right now, of course. >> meteorologist tom kierein here with your weather and traffic on the 1s at 4:41. tom? >> good morning. sky mostly clear over northwest washington and looking north into bethesda on the horizon. southern montgomery county. live view from the storm team 4 tower camera. it's only in the low 50s. much of the area, 40 in the rural areas. chilly through 8:00. a few high clouds. then a lot of sunshine. by noontime, up into the low 70s and quickly jumping into the upper 70s by late afternoon with the low humidity, plenty o

coming up later former congressman patrick kennedy has been out of congress for about three years now but he had that crowd of many hundreds elic triified at that convention today. he talks about his personal struggles with depression and addiction. >> you know you can learn more about mental illness on nbcwashington.com. that includes a list of resources for anyone who is looking for help. >>> now to a developing story out of prince george's county. this could be the last night thousands of people have to boil their water. right now an advisory is in effect for 11 communities including fair mont heights. families advised not to drink, cook or wash dishes with tap water because a water main broke tuesday night. if tests come back clear tonight a boil water advisory will be lifted. >> we have been around for 96 years and have never had drinking water quality violation. in situations like this when you lose pressure in a significant portion of the water distribution system there is a possibility, and i stress possibility for contamination to enter the system. >> until the tests come bac

. >> ladies and gentlemen, please welcome under secretary of state patrick kennedy. former secretaries of statstate. accompanied by the secretary of state john kerry. [applause] >> good afternoon. it is my great pleasure to welcome everyone here today for the ground breaking ceremony for the new united states diplomacy center. a state of the art museum and education resource that will illustrate the department of state's 225 year history of supporting our nation's national security efforts. i suspect that i was asked to officiate today because i might be the only remember of secretary kerry's leadership team that has actually worked for every single secretary of state in attendance, beginning with secretary kissinger. [applause] >> as a career state department employee, i have the privilege of representing the multitudes of civil and foreign service employees, americans and host nationals who have carried out the vitally important work for diplomacy of our country. the men and women of the state department have done this with skill, dedication and in many cases uncom

. >> patrick kennedy, with his deep political connections and famous name, is pushing the feds to fastearch. >> they ought to get at it quickly. >> that's my view. >> the fda and the federal government, they ought to just get it done. we just need a greater urgency to this issue overall. >> it's a bold statement for kennedy. a recovering addict who's been outspoken that making medical marijuana legal in any way is dangerous. that more children will be able to access it and more smokers will become addicted to it. now he thinks the only way to remove that risk is to have all medical marijuana products federally regulated, rigorously studied and strictly controlled. >> i think making this truly a >> i think making this truly a medicine as opposed to forcing people to go on the street and try to buy something that they can't determine whether it is what it says it is. >> but he understands why sick patients want marijuana now. remember his father, ted kennedy, died of brain cancer and his brother lost his leg to cancer. >> i wouldn't have begrudged any member of my family with cancer, and

patrick kennedy and secretary of state hillary clinton, one quick thing. we also learned yesterday that an individual saw documents being dumped. this individual was a deputy assistant secretary at the state department who gave money to president obama who supported president obama who now says he's being railroaded. >> and that was raymond maxwell. we're going to hear more on that. he's expected to come before the committee at some point but not today. rick, thanks so much as we continue to watch what's happening out of washington. a lot going on today. thank you so much. >> we know isis is a threat overseas but what kind of danger could it and other terror groups pose to us here at home? and what is the federal government doing about it? we're live with an update on that. and flooding fears in arizona as that state gets pounded by more rain. the remnants of hurricane odile, how bad is it going to get? we're live at the fox extreme weather center. >> we have clouds in the sky. we're trying to be prepared this time around. >> i'm praying that it won't do w

he just met patrick kennedy. ted kennedy's son, last week after all this came out.hat did he say to you, richard? >> well -- >> by the way, kennedy and harding are the two senators to go straight from the senate to the presidency, the latest being barack obama, but it was an >> it's a public statement. in so many words, we were having dinner in a group setting for a meeting that we were at. i just leans over and said, patrick, we have a lot in common. and he said, why is that? he looked at me and said, warren harding? and i said, yeah. and he said, he is my hero. and i looked at him like, okay -- he's pulling my leg or is he -- he's my hero. he said, he has passion. he said, most people don't have passion. he said, that's so important to me. and so he was bringing that up as being better than the passionless that he was comparing people to. >> there's a letter in this collection dated 1916 written by a lawyer. it's very vague and obtuse. it appears both couples went to the lawyer. i think that two couples did confront this situation. he was too far along in politics

patrick kennedy -- henry made many the same arguments that you said you have created a potential monarch he is going to the commander-in-chief power and the power of the military and the opportunity for war to take our civil liberties and impose tyranny. james madison who is the guy who drafted the first draft the constitution is the leader of the fight for the constitution of virginia. his rely was not oh don't worry to declare war clauses there. don't worry congress has permission. his answer was this pretty set on their constitution as it is in england the sword in the purse are separate and so the parliament can always cut off funds if the king chooses to fight a war. he said so will be the united states. congress can have, always has control of the purse and without it the president cannot. i agree that a fat check however today congress has chosen to fund wars. again that's my point is not a failure of the constitution for democratic set that the congress and the president are in agreement. [inaudible] >> there's more than one way to try to corral the president. madison did state t

patrick pkennedy after all of this came out. what did he say to you, richard? >> well -- >> by the way, kennedy the two senators to go straight from the senate to the presidency. the latest being barack obama but it was an unusual thing so -- >> well, it's a public statement that -- in so many words we were having dinner in a group setting for a meeting that we were at and i just leaned over to him and said patrick we have a lot in common. he said why is that? >> he looked at me and said, warren harding? >> i said yeah. >> he said he's my hero. >> i looked atjeááz like okay i he pulling my leg or is he, you know -- >> no, he's my hero. he has passion. he said most people don't have passion. he said that's so important so me. so he was bringing that up as being better than the passionless that he was comparing people to. >> there's a letter in this collection dated 1916 written by a lawyer. it appears both couples went to this lawyer to talk about the situation. you can read it and draw your own conclusions. i write about it in the book. i do think that two couples did confront this situation. h

patrick kelly richard john kelly jr. thomas michael kelly thomas richard kelly thomas w. kelly timothy c. kelly william hill kelly jr. robert quenkin ten kennedy my cousin, we will never forget you. >> and karen petit, nypd, we miss your laughing irish eyes, your great sense of humor, your compassionate heart and loving heart that has touched so many. love you, glen, god bless america, and let us never forget. thomas j. kennedy yvonne e. kennedy john keohane ralph frances kershaw lt. ronald t. kerwin howard l. kestenbaum douglas d. ketcham ruth e. ketler boris khalif norma cruz khan sarah khan taimour firaz khan rajesh khandelwal seilai khoo michael vernon keiffer satoshi kikuchihara andrew jay-hoon kim lawrence don kim mary jo kimelman henrick kimick karen ann kincaid andrew r. king lucille t. king robert king jr. lisa m. king-johnson brian k. kinney takashi kinoshita chris michael kirby robert kirkpatrick howard kirschbaum glenn davis kirwin helen crossing kittle richard j. klares peter a. klein alan d. kleinberg karen j. klitzman ronald philip kloepfer steven a. knapp yevgeny knyazev >> and my great uncle, joel miller. i know you're up ther

kennedy who chose his brother. it's an incredibly important position for the president to pick someone he feels absolutely comfortable with. i think massachusetts governor duval patrick is very much a good candidate. he's a close friend of the president's. he handled the boston bombing very well. you know, he's up to play there. so again, it does matter because although we can say what we want to say, we can look back at president bush when we did have the financial crisis in the last two years and you want to make sure have you someone you can rely on. neil: no, no, you're right. look at rudy giuliani and even in and the last couple of months in office. duval patrick, i had a feeling he was a big deal at the 2012 democratic convention, when i seized this exclusive moment. take a look. >> governor, you have a minute to talk to us? >> i've got to fly, you can talk to us. neil: you are getting good reaction to the speech. >> thank you. neil: did you expect the reception that you got? >> expected a lot from this president and his agenda. >> he really liked you. [ laughter ] >> charles payne, i understand the enormity of how big a deal this guy is. it was like 58% questi