election 2016 on pbs - one. - what's wrong with my running for president of this country? - i almost resent vice president bush your patronizing attitude that you have to teach me about foreign policy. - ahh! - i'm doing this because i love you. - tomorrow nigname will go on nomination for presidency. - i will beat al gore. [cheers and applause] - i want my country back. [cheers and applause] - mr. president, you wer you chose to follow. and now it's time for you to get out of the wa female announcer: "the contenders: 16 for '16" is made possible in pati by the ford foun,

working with visionaries on the front lines of social change worldwide; the william and flora hewlett foundation, helping people build measurably better lives; the corporation for public broadcasting, and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. - people are interested in having candidates that are tthful, that have just a tiny bit of morality. - the bigger part of the joke for them isn't that she's a african-american running but, like, she's a girl running. we're never gonna have some girl president, right? ch less a black girl president. - i wi take the low road to the highest office in this land. thwere thousands of phone calls made that, uh, said, you know that the mccains ve a black baby. - bush says, "hey, it's politics. this is going to war." - when asked former secretaryof se who was the most impressive person who never become president,

d,without hesitation she s "senator john mccain." now, considered a maverick within his own party, mccain was a war hero who was willinto speak from the heart even when it wasn't politically expedient. y chisholm, a black woman who dared to run for congress just three years after african-americans saw the ghssing of the voting act, could be described the very same way. in fact chisholm, another bold straight talker who didn't w wait her turn. instead she saw an opportunity and she took it. for both john mccain and shirley chisholm, part of the reason they ran and part of the reason they lost, is that these contenders were supremely unbought and supremely unbossed. [upbeat music] ♪ ♪ - delegate strength, because that's the name of the game. you can go to the convention and you can yell, "woman power here i come."

you can yell, "black power here i come." white power, any kind of thing. the only thing those hard-nosed boys are going to understand at that convention, "how many delegates you got?" - shreley chisholm is consia pioneer. how she took the knocks and the stones and the bricks and the bats. i mean, you would've thought that she would've got enough of that in brooklyn, but it only strengthened her. - she was gonna shake up is country. she was gonna be a catalyst for change. - "if not me, then who? and if not now, then when?" in m--y ways is her her mantra. - shwas clearly smarter than all of 'em. and so why not? i mean, for me, it was easy. [laughing] she was a very complicated woman who understood politics. felt it in her gut. quite frankly, shirley chisholm didn't give a damn

what oeople thought about her. [upbeat music] - she's born in brooklyn, new york. her parents were barbadian immigrants, working-class immigrants. they were extremely poor and the family sent them to barbados where she lived for seven years with her mother's family. sh lived in a country where there, there were black teachers, there were black public officials. - she was expected to excel and it didn't matter that she was a girl or a boy. that's the way she was raised. and when she entered politics, her attitude reflected that. - send me to the united states congress. - in 196 shirley chisholm is the first african-american woman to be elected to congress from the 12th congressional district in brooklyn. e it was the front p "the new york times." people have to remember what an extraordinary thing it was

for her to get elected because five years earlier, african-americans in the south could not vote. - i think it was a moment of hope for some, but it was also a time of disaffection. i mean, you have assassinations of martin luther king, for example, and urban unrest. you have high unemployment, the vietnam war, you have under-education, right, and particularly in urban places but also in rural spaces, so it's not lacks. it's poor whites, it's women, it's latin , native americans, so it's not lacks. all kinds of people are really feeling like they're not being heard. - the that we cannot continue to take things as they are. when we see around us that government not responsive to certain segments of the population. - her first speech, a ich people call iry gendered way one's maiden speech, in congress was in opposition to the war in vietnam. the money spent on the t

on alleviating poverty, on expanding education. she believed in national health insurance. and she realted to expand lyndon johnson's great society programs. then she challenges the entrenched democratic party machine by refusing to accept a seat on the agriculture committee. - she makes it very clear that yn she is from broo and, you know, she wants to represent the people and not necessarily the trees. - she said, "if you don't have a seat at e table, bring a folding chair." - when i first got to the congress, some of men thought i had horns in my head. but what was very difficult for some of them to accept was that a black woman getting the same salary, that was very interesting to me, getting the same salary, $42,500, like they are. so you had this particur representative from a certain state. and every day i would come into the chamber and he would say, "miss chisholm, how are you doing?" i say, ."h, i'm feeling pretty we

"my! imagine making 42 five like me." i say, "what did you say?" "miss chisholm, you making 42 five like me." this all i kept hearing, "42 ve." - they were surprised that she wasn't just happy to be there. party aders kept asking her what di. to her that was just, you know, an insult. - i think one of the reasons i can do so much that i do, basically i'm a very happy woman because of a very understanding mate. - as anybody knows about women in politics, you're under a differeha kind of scrutinyare men. - and i think many of the ghcongressmen must have th that i was a very tough, big woman. many of them were surprised when they actually saw me, to realize how how small i am, physically speaking, and how nice i really was. a couple of them told me, "you're quite nice." but you see, this is what happened... - i went with her to congressional meetings. i saw her in action. la i saw the way she d to members of congress.

and we're talking about membs of congress who could not stand the fact that she was there. i remember that very clear s, being--beiuck on how she was able to maneuver through thshoals of-- of the congressional hierarchy, dealing with racist congressmen from--from the south. - she wants to be a leading african-american and a leading democrat. - she sees the level of despair that so many americans are in th nixon as president. es and so she decid to throw her hat in the ring because she felt like it was time and it could be her time. - i std before you today as a candidate for the democratic nomination for the presidency of t united states of americ [applause] i am not the candidate of black america, although i am blac and proud. [applause] i am not the candidate of the women's movement of this country, although i am a woman,

and i'm equally proud of that. [applause] i am the candidate of the people of america. [cheers and applause] [upbeat music] ♪ in southeast asia, south vietnamese troops swept into laos early in february. the drive met with early success but soon bogged down in heavy fighting. bhutan and other world leaders condemned the movement of troops into a neutral country. w ya doing? i'm shirley chisholm. how are you? i'm shirley. how you doing? - we were in-whe throes of an anti movement, where thousands of blacks and whites were being killed daily in vietnam. we were involved in a black power revolution. we were involved in a feminist revolution. and we were living with ricrd nixon.

ve no complaint over the fact that during this period, when i have been ending a war i did not begin, i have been subjected to vigorous criticism. and i do not question the patriotism or the sincerity of those whoesisagree with my polio bring peace. bu as i said in 1968, when was a , we only ne president at a time. - mrs. c., that's what we called her, was running to not only prove a point, but to prove to other people, to show other ople, to show minorities, whether it be women, blacks, latinos, whoever they may be, that you are entitled to sit at the table with white america. - i am a candidate, i'm a person, ll that has never rbeen favored tremendously by professional politicians beof my independent attitude.

because of my forthrightness. be use of the fact that i d not e. and if nothing else, i am finding out all over america that people are sick and tired of the tweedlydees d the tweedlydums who constantly flip-flap from one side to another. people--people are interested in having candidates that are truthful; canf dates that have,u will, just a tiny bit of morality. - the main things that she was campaigning for are the things that we're still campaigning for. ving wages, fair wages, equality for women. she was very clear that she wanted for mothers t and for women going bawork after they've had children. she really wanted them to have equal opportunity and essentially not get fired. - do not forget tomorrow, democratic primary. vote for thisholm slate. the bought candidate. vote for thisholm slate. vote for a person who represents people, not politicians. but people like you and myself. - nobody could buy influence. there was no party boss who could say, "shirley, i want to meet with you on saturday

over a cup of coffee, and could you tone it down?" she was unbond unbossed right from the beginning. and in every speech, she reminded people of that. - at this point don't know and anybody who's followed my pol career knows very, very keenly that i am the only unbought an and i mean that literally. - that's one of the most exciting political slogans ever heard. as a matter of fact, i've heard quite a few people steal it. it's a terrific saying. - for a particular segment of the population, that would probably resonate so beautifully a just as a fresh facesomeone who's not part of the machine and all the negative things that in come along with the ma for others, who see a black woman, a black woman speaking her mind and having the audacity to run for the presidency saying that no one has bought me off d i'm the boss of myself in this entire campaign,

that we quite scary. - that's why i am running, i am running because when you grow up, nobody will laugh or make a lot of snide remarks when a black person says they want to run for the presidency or a woman says they want to run for the presidency. everybody's making a lot of snide remarks and laughing and think i'm kooky. - [speaking spanish] right on, brothers. - i'm only here to tanl you if you want ch, i'm here. if you want change, i am an instrument. - she did not have, shall we say, a well-oiled politil machine. she collected most of her money in cash, .sort of unheard of today but as all "pass the hat," which means she neve had enough money. but as all "pass the hat," - and i remember i had on jeans and a t-shirt, big afro, and she said, "litp e girl," and she-til she died, she called me little girl. she said, "you've gotta register to vote first." [chuckles] i said, "oh, no, no, no. "that's kinda bourgeois politics.

i don't do that." she said, "but if you really want to make a difference, "you've gotta get on the inside "and you've gotta become political "and you gotta rlly shake things up. and you can only do that through political work." and one of the efforts at i mounted was coordinating shirley chisholm's rn california campaign. - if my candidacy does nothing else, it's beginning to make america become aware of the fact that indeed people in america will be judged on the basis of their capacities thd their abilities anr merits, and not on the basis of the pigmentation of their skin. - and i recall very clearly irst trip as national student coordinator. i was incredibly excited. i had to wait for the bumper stickers and the brochures to be printed. i kept them in their original boxes, took a plane to raleigh, i get off and i go to the luggage carol to pick up my luggage, and the boxes

that i'm going to bring to the college universities. and i go to that carol and scrawled all over both boxes, "nigger go home." - a catalyst for change has to be able withstand the insults, the humiliation, the abuses, and the slurs. what's wrong with my running for president of this country? - and what made her believe that her candidacy was not quixotic, was t a pipe dream, she really believed she could bring youth, women, st the black freedoggle, veterans, older people all together in a coalition that had a chance of winning. - and what i did was organize these events around what people were interested in. and whether they--whether it was politics or not, i mean it, people wwed up at the events i had brunch for shirley chisholm, fashions for shirley chisholm, all kinds of interesting events for shirley chisholm and ople would show up and then we'd register them to vote and we'd raise money.

- a black mar vice president, a for head of hew, an indian for the head of department of interior, and all your heads of departments, your heads of agencies, your ambassadorships, your councilships, all of these diffent positions would be reflective of the different kinds of peoples that are found in america. - she was a very strong feminist. she wanted to promote women. she wanted to mentor women. and she hiack and white women. it was a diverse office staff. - so the white femin they found her candidacy exciting and they said that they would support. - and this campaign, the shirley chisholm campaign, is the note of the new politics. the st of it is just making tired old noises, tired old noises. i can't get excited abt any of it. i am excited about shirley chisholm's candidacy. - personally i have considered senator mcgorn the best white male candidate. and i have worked for him in states where shirley chisholm was not running.

but shirley chisholm was clearly better, is clearly better on the issues of powerless groups, - and it was, i mean, it was lip service. and slowly but surely that support from white feminists just trickled, waned, and then completely faded. when women said that thesiwanted a female pnt, what they really meant was a white woman. t music] ♪ - 4,000 blacks, some radical, some conservative, met in gary, indiana, for the first national black political convention. - a conference was called in gary to discuss black political power. passage of the '65 voting rights act, enabled a lot of african-americans tbelieve that they could play a greater s role in national polit as an organized ack force. when this conference takes place, mrs. cm decides not to go. - listen, when you have enough political courage to do what shirley chisholm has done,

which i never had this much of it, i'm not prepared to give advice as to what she should've done. - and chisholm chose not to go because one, she had already announced that she was gonna run for president she didn't feel like catching flak and she didn't want to be there when there was a vote of non-support for her. - i went to the gary, indiana, black political convention, and we tried to get an endorsement from the black political convention delegates for shirley chisholm for president. we couldn't ev it there. i mean, the guys had it so sewed up. - they could not stand the fact that a black woman kind of leapfrogged er them and made the decision for herself to run. for many, they thought a black should do this first. - she sees black men as often extremely hostile to her candidacy. the bigger part of the joke for them isn't that she's a african-american running, but, like, she's a girl running.

we're never gonna have some girl president, right, much less a black girl president. - the convention voted not to support her. - you see, the black politicians are no different than the white politicians. they've made their deals. they've made their contracts. 'cause they didn't believe that mrs. chisholm knows how to maneuver or what have you. that has always been their problem with me. "don't payny mind." but, you know, you can't wish me away. you can't. - she knew that she wasn't taken seriously and stfought the good fight. - because she was so committed to actually shaking it up, that's why she was able to get out there day in and day out. - because i burn myself up with, you know, with what i see and it makes me more determined than ever to-- to see if i can't conquer it. and i know i can't conquer it, but, you know, it's deep with me. it's not, you know, it's intense. it's deep. i see too much suffering. mm.

and now i want to tell these politicians around here. they don't care. they don't care. - she was very sensi hve and she was vet by people whd tell her one thing, do something else, elieve in her. you know, they tried to shut her out every step of the way. she had to file a lawsuit, from what i remember, to just get on the stage in a debate. - this diverse array of delegates now converged on the convention ci where the final chcrce of the deic candidate would be made. - the black people of america are watching us. find out what these candidates who need our vote to get across the top are going to do for us concretely, not rhetorically. - we knew we weren't going to be necessaril we didn' enough delegates. but there was no way she was going to step aside ork down. she was going to finish the race

and she understood the symbolic importan of doing that. so she was really out there alone. and it was like that from the beginning to the end. there were a few exceptions. and she always spoke so highly of representative llums out in--out san francisco, in california. - ron dellums, who was a prominent member of the house of representatives from oakland/berkeley, and he was very progressive, he had once been a panther, had promised that he would put mrs. chisholm's name into nomination. and then at the very last moment, dellums said he would not. it was a real betrayal. it was a terrible betrayal. - the supp of congressman dellums. i know he has supported in recent months the candidacy of congresswan chisholm out of the conviction, out of the same kind of sincerity that he brings to this endorsement

of my candidacy here today. and i'm most grateful... - i want my people to know, that, you know, there's no feelings, you know, towards ronald dlum. if any of you see him, whatever, you just tell-- you jul ron, "shirley wants you to come say hello." - she understands it but it ss because this is a friend who had actually stayed with her for quite some time and when other elites had abaoned her or flat-out said that they would not support her. me - so i think at oint she just realized this is just politics, right, it's not personal. - i stand you here tonight at an historic moment for the democratic party and for the american people. - fortunately for mrs. chisholm, t she had percy suttput her name in nomination. - i present to you, in nomination for the presidency for these unitedtates, all these united states, the ho. [ches]

- she was able to claim that she's the first homan who ever had name placed nomination for the u.s. presidency. in - she eventually relishes her delegates so they can be free to pledge their support for whatever candidate was left. - so people who might naturally support shirley chisholm at a certant said they had to make a judgment. they couldn't live with the thought that richard nixon would be re-elected. and when the crunch came, so many them en threw their hat in the-- in the ring to support george mcgovern. - senator george h. mcgovern is hereby by declared the 1972 democratic nominee for president of the united states. [cheers and applause] - come home, america. come home to the aff amation that we haream.

come home toanhe conviction that weove our country forward. come home to the belief that we can seek a newer world. - don't let the spirit die. don't the enthusiasm die. just let's say, that this was a wonderful trip that we all took together during the past seven months. that we have learned from our errors. god knows there were plenty. that we have gained experience. and that if there is to be a next time, we will start a little bit differently because we will have learned and we would be able to continue. am not downheartened. i'm not disillusioned. i am not bitter. the only thing that i continue to regret, of course, is that w. [laughter] - even the most liberal, even the most in this couny, even women and women leaders in this country, could not really wrap their hands around the thought that a woman, a black woman,

could actually be elected president. - among the half dozen democratic candidates george mcgovern came into the convention with a decided edge. the platform he favored was chosen and the nomination was his. - when we think about the end of 1972 with garnering 49 of the 50 states. ly we see that, unfortuna the democrats chose a candidate that just did not represent how they were feeling in-- in the best of ways. and it always makes me wonder if they had given chisholm a closer look what-- [chuckles] what could have been. - it's-- it's impossible. it's impossible to express what it means. she alwayshowed that you could be interested and involved

in politics and be true to yourself. and to really stand up for something and to fight for something. - gosh, in order to bri, what one doesn't have to go through to bring about change and to get pple thinking and moving in another direction. it's a real sacrifice that you have to pay. - but when you're ready to take on goliath, when you're ready to get out there and you only got a slingshot, when you can hold your own and it seems like the whole world is against you, i think that is when you grow to recognize the actual strength of a person. - you know she charted a new course. she cracked that glass ceiling. - and so i'm sure many people have heard the conversation there would beno bara8 without the successful runs to a certain extent of jesse jackson in '84 and especially in '88. but in many ways you can't look at the successful runs

jesse jackson in '84 and '88 without looking at shirley chisholm in '72. - shirley chisholm's example transcends her life. and when asked how she'd like to be remembered, she had an answer. "i'd like them to say that shirley chisholm has--had guts." and i'm proud to say it. shirley chisad guts. - i'm breaking the ice, though. e next time a black pers rs and they have the ability to guide this country and to lead this country, you will know that they're serious. debase the institution of government. - joain forged his own path. he wasn't easily held down by party labels. - he talked off the cuff, so i think that caused people some nervousss. [upbeat music] ♪ ♪

- i'm the luckiesterson you'll ever kn i'm a guy that crashed four airplanes. i'm the guy that got hit by a surface-to-r missile. ♪ - if i'd met you when you were 16 and said, "john, what are you gonna do in the future," would you havepolitics? - my grandfather was an aviator, my father was a submariner. th my ambition in life. - john mccain had an amazing story. he was born into a kind of famous american naval family. - his father was the commander-in-chief of the pacific, had responsibility for the execution of the war in vietnam when his son, john mccain, was shot down and taken seprisoner by the vietname he was considered by his fellow pows to be, you know, the most badly injured prisoner of war to survive those wounds, to survive his captivity. none of them thought that he would. - he's finally released,

along with the other american pows in january 1973. - then governor reagan and his wife nan took a very deep and abiding interest in the whole issue of pows and mias. and i think he was really the catalyst for lv wanting to be in politically. - he beganc service, as a member of the congress. and was ultimately elect to the united states senate in 1986. - on issue after issue, john mccain forged his own path. he wasn't easily held down by party labels. - you had to have some kind of thing like you have... - one of the things that mccain was always wilng to do was to reach across the party aisle. on the one hand that helped burnish his legacy in terms of legislation. on the other hand, he didn't seem quite like a party man. and so i think that caused people some nervousness. but ideologically, he was hard to fit. - and more recently in somalia.

towas working to try e a good senator, but people did come to me and sa"you ought to" - john mccain was an antidote to the insanity of the clinton years, particularly at the last term cowhere it was just lete battle between congress, yo know, the impeachment, the allegations, whitewater, all this stu that confounded the clinton administration. john mccain stepped into that as a, "i'll settle you down." - because i'regonna turn to al and i'm gonna point my finger and i'm going to say, "al, you and your buddy bill clinton debahe institutions of government." - i've got character. i'm a war hero, pow. and he really had a set of credentials that blew away tll of this sense clinton years as superficial, as erratic, as immoral.

- that the lincoln bedroom has become a motel 6 where the president of the united states serves as the bell hop. ink it was natural, you know, by 2000 that, you know, john mccain, who had been then in the senate for 14 years, would take a sho at the pr. - he just seemed to be the man for the moment to re-engage people's faith in american politics and run as a conservative, but a reformer. - it is because i owe america more than she has ever owed me that i am a candofate for presidenhe united states. [cheers and applause] [dramatic music] ♪ - i'm going to run a cpaign that is optimistic and hopeful and positive. - i'm proud of our son. i'm proud of our whole family and this boy, this son of ours, is not gonna let you down. he's gonna go all the way and serve with great honor all the way.

- george w. had been a successful governor of texas. he talked about a new kind of optimistic conservatism. and it--it had a certareson. it was a powerful message. - there is a contest... - but george w. bush had been running for a while and had consolidated the fundraisers and political leaders and governors and sortf the republican tablishment were all behind bush. - i felt we had a clear route. we thoughtt hat we could sor weave our way past lamar alexander and elizabeth dole, and that we would have a challenge from steve forbes, wallet. but, of course, then along came john mccain. - senator mccain launched the "straight talkxpress" and started getting a lot of attention in new hampshire and started, you know, this freewheeling 24-hour-a-day press conference on his bus. - senator, how do you reconcile the fact that you were one of the most vocal critics on pork politics. and yet, while you were chairman of the commerce committee, that committee set a record for unauthorized appropriations?

i'm just kidding. no, i don't even know at that means. - he was sort of the one that was appealing to the frustrations of people who were only hearing from candidates w were scripted and who had talking points and, you know, who were of the establishment. and john mccain famously talked off the cuff. - and it is the beginning of the end for the truth twisting politics of bill clinton and al gore. [cheers] mc - in 2000, in was ahead of the curve. he wanted nothing to do with the republican leadership. mccain did not see eye to eye with the standard republican conservative leadership. and, he did things his own way. heand i think had a power base that he comonstrate would work

'cause people listened to him and respected him. he was feisty. he's kind of a classic-- if there was "scotch-irish feisty magazine," he'd be on the cover. - neither party should be defined by pandering to the outer reaches of american politics anthe agents of intoleranc whether they be louis farrakhan or al sharpton on the left or pat robertson or jerry falwell on the right. [applause] - but he ultimately emerged as governor bush's chief challenger. he made a rk. a candidate who gave access to the media. dodged no questions. he was irreverent. he was funny. - the republican party nationally have lost the last two presidential elections. they've lost the last two congressional elections. and that's because we've lost our way, my friends. we are a party of inclusion, not exclusion. - we thought if the country could get to know mccain, not only his story, but what he was talking about at theime in 2000, he could really catch on. we had rocket fuel. so we didn't know if the rocket was going to blow up on the pad

or get allay to jupiter, but none of us could resist the idea of lighting the match. - george w. bush, a compassionate conservative leader. a esh start for america. - we were outspent by the bush campaign in 2000 by a factor of a hundred, you know, they saturated the airwaves. - we had a pretty simple strategy. pick our spot to kind of ambush the frontrunner, george w. bush, which was new hampshire. beat him there, beat him in south carolina with veterans support and then run the table. - how you doing? - well, hanging in there. but, the people in new houpshire want to meet y. i would have as many as five town hall meetings in a day. thank you again. - lunching with you. - thank you. it's my honor to be with you. john mccain. nice to see you how are you? they expect that and that's how we did it. how are you, sir? good to see you. looking forward to seeing you tonight. - so mccain talking absst some processues that normall pdon't resonate insidential primary much, but talking about campaign finance reform and kind of replacing political bs with straight talk,

he hit a chord. he really hit a chord. and then we got that rocket fuel. he hit a chord. he really hit a chord. - gove bush called me. i was in my hotel room that afternoon, and said, "you need to comdown here," and i said, "well--" he said, "have you talked to karl?" and i said, "no." and he said, "well the polls have come baod and they're ." and i said, "how not good?" and he said, "rely not good." [cheers and applause] - a lot of us kinda thought, "well, mccain's kind of tilting "at windmills here, but, you know, he's a good guy, let him go." well, then he started winning primaries, particularly crushed bush in new hampshire,he started winning primaries, and it became a real race. [upbeat music] ♪ ♪ - how did you feel coming out of new hampshire down by 19? did you guys feel like we always assumed uere was going to be et? - well, we assumed there would be an upset, but we didn't assume there would be that upset, or that it would be that big. - we were feeling very confident, to be honest with you, because the size of our victory, which no one had expected.

i just remember being stunned. that was a huge setback to the front-runner, and so then we went to south carolina, and it was clear we had to win in south carolina or basically the campaign would be over. - the george bush campaign thought, "we gotta do something about this." and they went for the jugular. - south carolina has a history of rough politics and they lived up to t - south carolina has a history of roughin 2000.s - but i like my chances here in south carolina. my message... - it was very nasty. there were thousands--i don't know how many thsands, tens of thousands of phone calls made that said, "you know that the mccains have a black baby." - a spartanburg, south carolina woman, donna duren, describes how her son idealized the former navy pilot and pow until e 14-year-old boy scout took t allegedly from a bush pollster. - but he was so upset when he came upstairs. and he said, "mom, someone told me that senator mccain is cheat and a liar and a fraud."

and he was almt in tears. - you guys socked mccain in the jaw pretty hard. th e was some pretty toughcamp- - like what? - [laughing] i mean, u've heard the push polling. the--the whisper campaigns. - look, first of all then was an allegatiode that mccain had fathered a black child out of wedlock, and mccain blamed it on us. now, this was an important moment, though, because it angered mccain and caused him to strike out at bush in ways that caused people to say, "wait a minute, that's not fair; that's not true. - i'm calling onory good friend gege bush to stop this now. he comes from a better family. he knows better than this, and he should stop it. i'll pull down every negative ad that i have. let's treat the voters of somth carolina withrespect. - imagine what would've happened if john mccain, rather than being egged on by his advisors, to say this is george bush and i'm gonna hit him hard for saying and being behind this.

what if he had said, "you know what? "i'm glaatpeople brought thp. let me tell you about my daughter." ug - we have a daer that we're so blessed that mwife, cindy, got from mother teresa's orphanage in bangladesh. she's one of the joys of our life. - and my wife brought that child home. it was one of the best days of my life. i mean the american people would have said, "wow, we n know something about the mccains we didn't know before, and isn't that terrific?" - it's hard to describe the emotion i feel about that because there should not be a place for that in the political process. - it's impossible to know whether or not the bush campaign is totally responsible for that. - yes, of course. yes, i do thin did, and of course they're gonna deny it. that is typical of what these strategists who are brilliant at the dark arts, as we call them, that what they do. they put stuff out there and then they deny that it was them. but every campaign sm has some sort of mecha

that can do that if needed. and clearly they needed something to change the narrative. - i'll use the surplus money to fix social security, cut your taxes, and pay down the debt. governor bush uses all the surplus for tax cuts, but not one new penny for social security or the debt. his ad twists the truth like clinton. we're all pretty tired of at. as president, i'll be conservative tand always tell yotruth. - and we did a response ad where governor bush said, "call me anything you nt, but do not question my integrity." it was a really powerful response ad. so i tn that case, senator mccain made a mistake because the response ad was more powerful than his attack ad. - politics is tough. but when john mccain compared me to bill clinton and said i was untrustworthy, that's over the line. disagree with me, fine, but do not challenge my integrity. fought the education establishment for high standards and local control and won. while washington politicians deadlocked,

i delivered a patients' bill of rights. i challenged the status quo to reform welfare and cut taxes. i fight for what i believe in and i get results. - do you remember that 2000 primary debate on gop side that you med that had w. and mccain? - never forget that, as long as i live. columbia, south carolina, live. derated that, press in the next room mobbed, mccain had just won new hampshire, and it was dirty campaign. and right before we go out, we're standing, it's about two minutes to 9:00, the debate was at 9:00 and i'm standing-- bush here, mccain here. mccain said to bush, "george." like this, "george." "what, john, what?" he said, "is everything-- "you can do anything to win, george? is that it? you'd do anything to win?" bush says, "hey, it's politics. "we go to war, you went to war. this is going to war." edand suddenly they cas on stage. this is the south carolina republican debate.

- and i was beat up very badly by all of the surrogates. ecalled clinton, calinton, like, you've seen it. turn on the radio, turn on the television, and unfortunately now pick up the telephone and you'll hear a negative attack against john mccain. - let me say one thing about all this business, john. - i told i pulled them all down. - you didn't pull this ad. - yes, i did. - this had ended up in a man's windshield yesteay. it questions my-- this is an attack piece. - that is not by my campaign. - well, it says, "paid for by john mccain." - it is not by my campaign. - and you could feel the heat there. - oh, ho, the whole hour and a half. it was intense. the--you--these were two guys who didn't disagree with policy. they didn't like each other. - i guess it was bound to happen. gov. bush's esmpaign is gettingrate with a negative ad about me. - unfortunate results of these kinds of nasty smear campaigns, is that the person who is the receiving end of it has two choices.

either you respond, and if you're gonnaespond in kind, then you have the possibility to get as dirty as the person who is throwing the mud at you, or you don't respond. nd and if you don't res then the narrative sticks. - i-i will ne the low road to the highest office inhis land. [cheers and applause] i want the presidency in the best way, not the worst way. [cheers and applause] - we had a great comeback win in michigan right after south carolina, we really needed to break him early, break george w. bush politically early cause the resources-- like wrestling a huge gorilla. you know, if you dk 't kind of knm down fast. and it's an attrition war, the gorilla is bigger and stronger. and that's what happened. we didn't get our early knockouts. we gt two of them, bunot the third one. - in you go. there you go.

- welcome to the celebration of victory for george w. bush's campaign on this super tuesday night. [cheers and applause] - after super tuesday, i withdrew and met with george w. bush in pittsburgh and agreed to support him. - john mccain and i just had a very good meeting. se- you can't be a sore lo in this business. i congratulate governor bush and wish him and his family well. he may very well become the next president of the united states. it's just like in a football game. you lose, and you've got to get daready for the next s [dramatic music] ♪ - in 2008,tae ran as a more ishment candidate 'cause he'd had that credential of coming so close in 2000. and he had to do what we did not do in 2000, which was brinhein parts of tarty thate more establishment to build a bigger coalition th he had. and, you know, he had competition there. he had mitt romney, who in 2008 had a lot of support

st in the regularlishment. - in the 2000 election, john mccain had been a supporter of immigration reform. it was an issue that he knew, aslarizona had a rge immigrant community. and had a large border shared with mexico. and so this was an issue that he cared about. - we should build no walls a futile attempt to keep the world at bay. walls are for cowa - some of his consultants had told him that, "part of the reason you didn't beat george w. bush in 2000 is that peidn't think you were conservative enough." and so in 2008, as the immigration issue was really picking up steam because they had had these two failed bills, mccain shifted and decided to become a border security firstandidate. - and by july of 2007, john mccain was bankrupt. he everybody onampaign had quit. he was in last place in the polls. and the press that had gathered to greet him up in new hampshire

had only one question in their mind, "when are you going to drop out of the race?" but john mccain doesn't quit, doesn't give up. one foot in front of the oth clawed his way back and became the republican nominee. - i went over to iraq, and i saw the surge. and i sait working and i did norawant to lose in i after althe expenditure of american blood and treasure. so i said at the time, we cannot surrender. it was called the no surrender tour. - for while-while senn was turning his sights to iraq just days after 9/11, i stood up and opposed this war, knowing t at it would distr from the real threats that we face. - i th tk he had counted fact that this would be an election about the military. about america turning the corner in these wars. and what it became about was a black president possibly.

- there wasn't a strategy to outshine barack obama. barack obama was a celebrity politician without parallel. he was on the cover of every news magazine in the world. ot and he also had r powerful force working for him, e which was thtion of generational change. john mccain was 72 years old. barack obama was in his mid-4. - i think what happened in 2008 was when it was clear that barack obama-- well, if it had been barack o it would have been a game-changer, either the first woman or the first african-american minee of a major party. so i think mccaln felt, as a white m that he had to show that he was, you know, just as open and diverse as anybody else. - you go to the dnc in denver, and it is epic. epic, right. they build basically the white house

right in invesco field outside. and turns out that all the hillary supporters come right along. the'd been all that anxiet that the hillary supporters wouldn't come. everyone in the world is focused on denver and obama-biden foey32 minutes until nnounce... - the next vice president of the united states, governor sarah palin of the great state of alaska. [cheers and applause] - sarah palin is the vice presidential candidate for john mccain and the world goes, "who?" i was in denver and i watched every light, camera, and all the action... [inhales sharply] pack up la and head to wasilla,a. it was the wildest thing! i was like, "where did everybody go?" - senator, i am honored to be chosen as your running mate. [cheers and applause]

- what drove you to choose governoralin? 'cause as you're saying, you had several good choices. - well, she was a very successful governor. she was a very conrvative voice. i thought she was suitable for the position of vice president. the most important thing, obviously, en is if something happto me, would she fill in as president? - sarah palin's capacity to capture the space that was left open for those who needed an obama on the other side, who ne something to feel excited about. something vigorous, something new. ms- i love those hockey . you know they say theifference between hockey mom and a pit bull? lipstick. [cheers and applause] was pitch perfect. it's just that it couldn't hold. - vening. this is an extraordinary period for america's economy. over the past few weeks, many americans have felt anxiety

about their financesd. i understand their worry and their frustration. we've seen triple digit swings in the stock market. financial institutions have teetered on edge of collapse and some have failed. - america this week faces an historic crisis in our financial system and we are running out of me. tomoow morning, i'll suspend my campaign and return to washington. i've spoken with senator obaf and informed him decision and i've aed him to join me." - your recommendation that you guys suspended campaigning for a bit and really focus on that, that some people felt like that was a turning point, in your case, perhaps a negative turning point. - look, the country was in crisis. i was a united states senator. whether t u think it was the riing to do or not, how could i be out campaigning when the congress is expected to, along with the president, to act in a worst financial crisis

since the great depression. hadn't happened in the economy, i think the mccain-palin might have beeable to beat the obama-biden ticket. - my friends, we have come to the end of a lo journey. the american people have spoken and they have spoken clearly. a little while ago, had the honor of calling sa to congratulate him-- [audience booing] please-- to congratulate him on being elected the next president of the country that we both love. - i was with him when he lost the '08 election. and he said, "i'misappointed but, you kno "this is--losing the election is nothing compared to what i've been through." but he is a man of great integrity, and he encourages other. and he got a long way toward winning the white house with that integrity and that commitment

and willpower to win. - this is an historic election, and i recognize the special significance it has for african-americans. and for the special pride that must be theirs tonight. occasionomeone comes to me and says, "senator mccain, "why don't you get back in there? we need you." and i am remindeheof the great sout philosopher who once said that there's no education in the second kick of a mule. i'm proud of our campaign. i'm proud of the people around me. you can't look.ack in anger and you gotta move forward ac and appreciate the ft hthat a guy that stood fi from the bottom of his class at the naval academy won the nomination of the republican party for president of the united states. - god bless america. thank you all very much. [cheers and applau]

- i just more and more people were getting excited. and i remember the spirit coming over me i said, "i don't want to listen to the fundamentalist preachers anymore." - he had all the answers until he didn't and then, boy, he didn't. - abortion on rmand, homosexualights. it's not the kind of change we can abide in a nation we still call "god's country." - buchanan's orthodoxy was attractive to the base, but was frightening to the general population. female announcer: "the contenders: 16 for '16" is made possible in part by the ford foundation, working with visionaries on t front lines of social change worldwide; the william and flora onwlett founda helping people build measurably better lives; the corporation for public broadcasting, and by conr ibutions to ys station from viewers like you. thank you. election 2016 on pbs

trump: she lacks the confidence to lead our country. clinton: this isn't reality television, this is actual reality. narrator: before america votes, a 2 hour special report that's less t what they say and more about who they are. tuesday september 27th, 9/8 central the faces you know the news you rely on, anytime you want anywhere you are. man: i really value pbs's news coverage because i think it's very rigorous journalism woman: clear and concise reportg man: both thoughtful and thought provoking woman: mind blowingly honest and open woman: information that will help me make a good decision with so much at stake, this election year one place has the news you need to decide pbs

judy woodruff: at a time like this we are called on to be reasoned, to listen and to cut through the noise so that people can understand what's reay at stake in this election. hari sreenivtyan: we have a pr good relationship with our audience in that ohey are the kindf intelligent group of people that can say'o kay, this isn't exactly how i think but i'm better for hearing this point of view.' man: what you get on pbs what you gn frontline is in-depth, long-form coverage that you don't g anywhere else. h charlie rose: weave a unique opportunity to have in-depth conversation with peoo understand and know how to assess the political process. judy woodruff: if we can understand what voters want to know and then distill that into coverage that people can count on then we're doing our job. gwen ifill: news and public affairs is still at the heart of our mission and pbs is the place toome for that.

[laughter] donald trump: the confidence to lead our country... hillary clinton: this isn't reality television... el lin-manuel miranda: i ike hamilton reached out of history and wouldn't let me go until told his story. rossapoldark: i make no ogies for my actions, i would do the same again! henry louis gates jr.: how have we come so far, and yet have so far to go? ♪ man on boat: right there, coming out. [stampede of hooves] ross poldark: [laughing] ♪ your favorite pbs shows readto watch, when you are anytime, any place find more ways to explore than ever before bs.org slash anywhere

election 2016 on pbs - one.wh at's wrong with my running for president of this country? - i almost resent, vice president bush, your patronizing attitude that you have to teach me about foreign policy. - ahh! - i'm doing this because i love you. - tomorrow night my name will go ination for presidency. - i will beat al gore - tomorrow night my name will go ination folike a drum.. [cheers and applause] - i want my country back. [cheers anplause] - mr. president, you were elected to lead. you chose to follow. and now it's time for you to get out of the way. female announcer: "the contenders: 16 for '16"