Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Senator Kennedy's Legislative Achievements and Their Affects on the American People

Aired August 29, 2009 - 13:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, I'm Fredricka Whitfield in Washington, DC. You have been watching the funeral mass for Senator Ted Kennedy out of Boston. Nearly 1,500 friends, family and colleagues packed Our Lady of Perpetual Help Basilica in Boston this morning for the farewell.

Former presidents and vice presidents were among them. And President Obama delivering the eulogy. The senator's sons, Ted and Patrick, also offered remembrances.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TED KENNEDY JR., SON OF SENATOR TED KENNEDY: When I was 12- years-old, I was diagnosed with bone cancer. A few months after I lost my leg, there was a heavy snowfall over my childhood home outside of Washington, D.C. And my father went to the garage to get the old Flexible Flyer, and asked me if I wanted to go sledding down the steep driveway.

And I was trying to get used to my new artificial leg. And the hill was covered with ice and snow. And it wasn't easy for me to walk. And the hill was very slick. And as I struggled to walk, I slipped and fell on the ice. And I started to cry.

And I said, I can't do this. I said, I'll never be able to climb up that hill.

And he lifted me up in his strong, gentle arms and said something I will never forget. He said, I know you can do it. There is nothing that you can't do. We're going to climb that hill together, even if it takes us all day.

Sure enough, he held me around my waist and we slowly made it to the top.

PATRICK KENNEDY, SON OF SENATOR TED KENNEDY: When we raced in foul weather, there was lots of salt water and lots of salty language. Those experiences not only broadened my vocabulary, sure, but they also built my self confidence.

I saw a lot of his political philosophy in those sailboat races. One thing I noticed was that on the boat, as in this country, there was a role for everybody, a place for everybody to contribute.

Second, in the race, as in life, it didn't matter how strong the forces against you were, so long as you kept driving forward. (END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The sons, Teddy and Patrick Kennedy, remembering their father in so many different ways. People remembering their friend, as well as the senator.

The senator's casket is being escorted from Boston to the nation's Capitol, where he will be buried steps from his slain's brother's. My colleague, Jessica Yellin, is at Arlington National Cemetery. He now, being one of many, the 153rd Congressman to be buried at Arlington National Cemetery. Jessica?

JESSICA YELLIN, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, yes. Senator Kennedy's motorcade will arrive here at Arlington at 5:30 this evening, accompanied by about 200 family members and friends, who will gather for a very private burial service.

The grave site has been closed since 8:00 this morning to prepare for this evening. But just to give you a sense of the kind of outpouring we have seen here, here is a woman who traveled overnight from Massachusetts just to pay her respects to Senator Kennedy here at his final resting place.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's because he did so much for Massachusetts. You have senators that will represent a state, but they -- they play politics with it or something. But he always had everybody in mind. He visited parents who had lost loved ones in the war, people who -- just ordinary people he had touched who were sick.

Very considerate, you know, of other people. And yet he had trials and tribulations of his own. And I just felt it was what I wanted to do. I wanted to come and pay my respects as best I could.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

YELLIN: Fredricka, here's a little of what we can expect. The coffin and the motorcade will first go to the U.S. Capitol, where some of the senator's staff will be gathered, current and former staff. There will be a prayer there.

And then it will head down Constitution Avenue, the very same route both of his brothers took on their way as they headed here to Arlington in their final resting place. He will be laid to rest near his brother John F. Kennedy Jr., and right next to his brother Robert Kennedy, in that famous site that we all know so well.

He will have a military funeral because he did serve in the Army. A chaplain will lead the way to the grave site. The former archbishop of Washington will lead the private service there. And there will be a gun salute and Taps will be played.

After it's complete, small wooden cross, two and a half feet high, will be placed at his grave site. It will be painted white. And the site is expected to be open, visitors welcome, beginning 8:00 tomorrow morning. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: Jessica, as you underscored, clearly this is a private ceremony taking place at Arlington National Cemetery. A number of people who have converged on Washington, however, to see that last public viewing as that procession is made through the nation's capital, and then eventually there at Arlington National Cemetery.

YELLIN: That's right. We expect to see people turning out to watch that motorcade pass, as it makes that historic route down here, and folks will be gathered. Of course, we will be able to watch and see the ceremony, because there will be a camera there. It's simply not open to the public. And they cannot gather there on foot.

But people will be able to watch it. And we do expect quite an outpouring here at Arlington. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: All right, Jessica Yellin, thanks so much, at Arlington National Cemetery. Pretty soggy out there. Nothing like what we saw earlier today in Boston, however. We do invite you to stay with us throughout the day here, as the nation says farewell to Senator Ted Kennedy.

Our live coverage of Senator Kennedy's funeral procession to Arlington National Cemetery resumes at 4:00 eastern time, with the burial service at Arlington set to begin at 5:00 Eastern.

And then tonight CNN will air HBO's documentary "Teddy In His Own Words," his remarkable life told by Senator Ted Kennedy himself. Watch that tonight at 8:00 Eastern, right here on CNN.

Of course, we've got much other news to cover over the next couple of hours, before those ceremonies resume later on this afternoon.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: We're going to have much more straight ahead in our continuing coverage of all news across the country, including, of course, the remembrance of Ted Kennedy.

Well, earlier, we mentioned to you -- let's resume a little more discussion now -- resume discussion now about the honor being paid to Ted Kennedy in Boston. At the Basilica this morning, an incredible display of who's who in attendance in remembrance of him.

Among them, civil rights leader Jesse Jackson, former presidential candidate as well. He's there, able to join us now. Give us an idea of what that ceremony was like. So many take away moments, including words being spoken by Teddy Kennedy and Patrick Kennedy and so many others, including President Obama, talking about the impression left on them as individuals.

REV. JESSE JACKSON, CIVIL RIGHTS LEADER: You notice the emphasis on the poor as a measure of character, how he treats the least of us. In the scriptures chosen, in his own works, and when Teddy spoke, so magnificent, with that tear-jerker, fighting against the odds, helping those who were sick and disabled to even the playing field.

So for me, it was a very fitting tribute today. You think about his life's work, he believed America was the land of rights for all, not privileges just for the few. So it was that marvelous sense that characterized his life's work and, therefore, would be his legacy.

WHITFIELD: Did it strike you the turnout that we saw there? Clearly, you have three former presidents who were there, a huge family and friends of all walks of life, who have poured out in this rain, as they're in Boston to pay tribute to them. Talk about these very personal stories about how he touched their lives, and how he reached out to the commoner, people that he didn't know, and made a huge impact on them.

JACKSON: The rain is liquid sunshine. It rains in life, so rain must fall. He sailed in the rain. People who are poor, homeless are in the rain today. The unemployed are in the rain today. Those who do not have health care. So he was not just a fair weather kind of guy.

When I look back at the '64 Public Accommodations Bill, ending Jim Crow conditions for Americans across lines of race, when we won that battle, it helped all of America. The Voting Rights Act of '65, blacks marched, but guess what, white woman couldn't serve on juries an so they got their vote certified. Farmers who couldn't pay poll taxes got the right to vote; 18-year-olds got the right to vote.

Bilingual voting, he helped to democratize democracy for all of us. The Americans With Disabilities Act, Title Nine for women. This idea of broadening the tent for all Americans is why all Americans are in his debt today. He didn't just serve the longest, he served with the most meaning.

Methuselah lived a long time, but made no sense. There are no schools named after Methuselah. But his work is not just the time, but the character and depth of his service.

WHITFIELD: You talked about '64, '65, Civil Rights Act, Voting Rights Act and then, much later, 1990 Disabilities Act. You're talking about colossal acts and laws that were cemented as a result of Senator Kennedy's efforts. And he was only -- he only became a senator in '62. So he made and covered a lot of ground in a very short amount of time.

Do you think he even expected that he would make the kind of impression, leave the kind of lasting impression that he did?

JACKSON: Well, he had a long time to do it. You know, his brothers died -- John died at 43. Dr. King at 39. He at 77. He served 43 years. The legacy of John and Robert Kennedy, and the legacy of Dr. King -- he served with his brothers, with Dr. King, with Chavez and the farm workers, the National Organization For Women, with physically differently able, with Nelson Mandela, with President Barack Obama.

There's a consistency in his line of service that one sees. When many would -- if a liberal kind of dips out the pond, the conservative pours more water in the pond. He carved the nail. America's water is flowing today in a different direction. He shifted the flow of America's waters.

We're a better nation because he came this way. He did not die from assassination. Last year, he preached his own eulogy. He made the tough decision to embrace President Barack Obama as moving a nation to be more expanded. He fought for the health care bill for those less able to afford it. He never gave up that fight.

He spent precious time with his family. He took pride of voting against a failed war in Iraq. He made his signature eulogy in the last year of his life. God let him down easy and with grace.

WHITFIELD: Jesse Jackson, thanks so much for your time. Senior political analyst and former presidential adviser David Gergen is also going to be joining us momentarily to talk about the life and legacy of Senator Ted Kennedy. Right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The nation says good-bye to Senator Ted Kennedy. Boy, did he leave a big, lasting impression on so many people, from the White House to Capitol Hill, and to neighborhoods across the country. CNN's senior political analyst and former presidential adviser David Gergen joining me now for more on the life and times of the senator we saw in the Basilica during mass today, an incredible who's who event.

But I guess the take aways, the real memorable moments were those words expressed by his sons, particularly Teddy Kennedy, and really humanizing Senator Kennedy in a way nobody else has done over last three days of remembrance. Do you agree?

DAVID GERGEN, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: I think there have been a number of very successful speeches. Chris Dodd last night, Orrin Hatch -- there were others who did humanize him to a considerable degree. But I agree with you that Teddy Jr. was the one who really left the most memorable lines and story about having cancer and how his father encouraged him.

So that the overall impact, it seems to me, of the last three days is that this is not only etched in the public mind and probably in history books, that Teddy Kennedy was the greatest legislator of our times, as President Obama called him today, but that he also was a very fine human being, a man who befriended so many, who cared for so many.

He looked after that family, was the patriarch of that huge Kennedy family, and did it with such love. I thought that Teddy Jr. really captured that spirit of the family and what they thought of him.

WHITFIELD: You talked about how President Obama talked about him as a legislator. Teddy talking about the compassion as a father. Then you mentioned Senator Orrin Hatch last night, during that Irish wake, which was so incredibly humorous, talking about how Orrin Hatch went in thinking he was going to fight this guy, but it turned out to be one of his best friends there in the Senate and the House.

Senator Kennedy did kind of charm his way across the aisle in a very humorous way, as well.

GERGEN: He did. We have heard story after story about how he reached out and -- to others and brought them along. And it is a remarkable life that I think we've been -- a life of a man who not much was expected early on. He was a chubby little kid. His brothers were the stars. They seemed to be a lot brighter.

And he had a lot of personal failings, as he himself acknowledged. But it was a life of redemption, a life that he spent over 40 years in the Senate, building historic achievements on behalf of people he cared about so much. That was mostly people in the shadows, people who were not being well served.

I read one statistic a couple days ago in the "Los Angeles Times" that through his Meals on Wheels Program -- he really was the champion to get it done -- seniors in this country have received, because of Teddy Kennedy's legislation, six billion -- six billion meals in recent years. That's a real contribution to individual Americans.

WHITFIELD: Huge. When you look at it that way, it does seem like there was intent. There was intent on Senator Edward Kennedy's behalf to make a huge contribution as a public servant. But at the same time you talk about how he kind of stumbled into this. I mean, he was a young guy, barely 30, when his brother vacated that Senate seat to be president. But somehow this family kind of conditioned or helped lay the groundwork so that Teddy Kennedy could eventually be prepared, be ready for that huge responsibility.

GERGEN: Well, one of the, I think, achievements of his parents, Joe Kennedy and Rose Kennedy, was that they instilled in each of those children a desire for growth, for personal growth, a real commitment to that. So you saw in Jack Kennedy as president enormous growth of the period of time. He stumbled around when he first became president with Bay of Pigs. But by the time, a year and a half later, when the Cuban Missile Crisis came, he was masterful.

Bobby Kennedy experienced enormous growth in the final years of his life. Those are the memorable years people look back on now with continuing nostalgia. And I think saw the personal growth in Teddy Kennedy.

WHITFIELD: Was there a turning point, when you look back at his life as a lawmaker? He's a novice senator at the start. At some point, he kind of feels the burden, if not pressure from the family, to run for presidency as well. That didn't work out. But was there a turning point, do you suppose, in his life and his career, where he said, you know what, this is where I'm going to make the biggest impression; this is my calling?

GERGEN: Well, you know, I think there are several turning points or milestones in his life. When his two brothers were assassinated and he suddenly -- all three brothers were dead, older brothers. And he had to accept responsibility for the family. That was a major turning point.

I think Chappaquiddick, when he drove off a bridge and a young girl died, and he was so humiliated by that, was another turning point when he really had to start coming to grips with himself. His failed run for the presidency in 1980, and when he realized he had to give up his presidential dream, that seemed to liberate him.

And then finally, and very importantly, the coming of Vicki into his life. I think -- he had said publicly, I have a lot of failings. I need to come to grips with things. And a short time thereafter he met her. And as President Obama said today, she saved him. She gave him a core in his personal life. And so he steadied up.

And I think really his most mature years and his happiest years were the last dozen plus, when he's been with Vicki.

WHITFIELD: The president said that she saved him. So many other people have said that. And even Teddy Kennedy himself said it in an interview a few years back, how much she opened up his heart again. He actually thought he could never love, certainly would never be married again, until she entered his life.

GERGEN: Well, that's right, because, you know, he'd sort of had a playboy kind of reputation there for a long time. And he used to enjoy hitting the circuit pretty hard. And he was clearly a man who had a lot of stresses and burdens in life, and was struggling with his own personal character and behavior. And we've seen that in many public figures over the years.

But one of the things about Teddy Kennedy was he seemed to overcome it. And that's the redemption that he struggled with, his own inner failings, his own insecurities, and struggled to become something better. And I think at the end of his life he had become something much, much better. He transformed himself. That's the reason you saw such a celebration here over the last few days, because people sort of loved this man. They really -- and they admired him for what he had become.

WHITFIELD: And a real celebration, David -- actually Vicki and he planned this funeral. They planned this day so that it would be a celebration when it seemed as though the treatments for his inoperable malignant cancer was indeed imminent, that his life was coming to an end. They together made sure this was going to be a celebration. She opened up Hyannisport, to make sure all friends would come by. There would be lots of laughter.

She really has shown incredible steely sense through this entire three days particularly, hasn't she?

GERGEN: Yes. I think son Teddy wins the honor for speaking. She wins the highest honor for her poise, her grace, her dignity, her warmth, greeting everyone, thanking them outside the library when the public came. This morning meeting with all the senators and Congressmen and former senators who came, greeting them, hugging them, knowing them by name. And she has just I think conducted herself with enormous grace.

You know, you think back upon Ethel Kennedy and Bobby's funeral, and you think back upon Jacqueline Kennedy and John Kennedy's funeral, these were remarkably strong women, women I think all Americans can watch and admire.

WHITFIELD: All right, David Gergen, thanks so much. Appreciate that.

GERGEN: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Let's take a look at some live pictures right now. We've been talking about the mass earlier this morning. It ended less than 30 minutes ago. And now the motorcade, in a very rainy Boston area there, will be making its way to an Air Force base, where the casket will then be taken to Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland, just outside of Washington, D.C., before it makes its procession through the streets of Washington. The last public display of Senator Ted Kennedy before being buried near his brothers at Arlington National Cemetery.

These live pictures right now we're bringing to you. We'll have much more on the celebration of the life of Senator Ted Kennedy. And we'll be looking into legislation, some indelible marks he made in America, profoundly touching so many people's lives.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Next time you take a walk and see a dip in the sidewalk to accommodate a wheelchair, or get on an elevator and see the Braille bumps next to the buttons, think Ted Kennedy. He was the force behind the Americans With Disabilities Act.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Senator Kennedy I think has emerged consistently as one of the true leaders. And so certainly the Education Act, the IDEA, and the Americans With Disabilities Act are two of the most major disability laws that I do not think would have happened without his leadership.

ERIC BUEHLMANN, FORMER SENATE STAFF MEMBER: I had a traumatic brain injury back in 1993. And Senator Kennedy's work has meant a variety of things, in terms of traumatic brain injury bill, making sure that there were services out there, rehabilitative services, but also his work on the Americans With Disabilities Act, ensuring that there's -- and his work on health care reform, to make sure my pre- existing condition isn't going to be taken into account for health care policies, employment discrimination, if I was ever going to encounter something like that, those kinds of things.

His work is very personal to me. Also having seen it on the hill, his love of the issue, and his belief in those kinds of things.

(END VIDEO CLIP) WHITFIELD: To someone who says both Senator Kennedy and that Disabilities Act directly impacted him, Andrew Imperato, who heads the American Association of People With Disabilities. He joins us now from Baltimore. Good to see you.

ANDREW IMPERATO, AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: This act was passed about the time you were graduating from law school. How did this directly impact or perhaps even help launch your career?

IMPERATO: Well, you know, the law is really about creating equal opportunity for people with all types of disabilities. I have bipolar disorder or manic depression myself. And because of the law, I was able to be open about my condition throughout the career. I have made a career in the disability field. But you would be surprised how many people even in the field of disability rights aren't always open about their own conditions.

Senator Kennedy created an opportunity for a generation of professionals to be out with our disabilities. I was so moved by both of his sons talking about their own experiences with disability as part of their tributes at the funeral. And Senator Kennedy understood disability probably as well as anyone in the United States Senate.

WHITFIELD: Had you heard those stories before? And, of course, we know his sister Rose also having her bout with disabilities. And that was something that the family was extremely conscientious about.

IMPERATO: No question. You know, it's interesting, Ted Kennedy Jr. serves on my board of directors at the American Association of People With Disabilities, and I have never heard him tell that story. So I was hearing it for the first time with so many viewers. And it was so moving. And the message of the story is the message of the disability movement, the idea that disability is a natural part of human experience, and we shouldn't let it stop us from achieving our dreams.

WHITFIELD: So without this law, without the Disabilities Act, how do you suppose your career would have been able to go forward or do you suppose your life, if you try to look back, might it gone a different route without this law?

IMPERATO: Well, you know, I think many of us who work in the disability field, we feel called to do it. We feel like this is what we were put on the planet to do. That would be true if this law had passed or hadn't passed.