Shining a spotlight on the Senate

>>> a senator can seem glamorous from the outside but the daily grind paints a very different picture. and while many americans struggle to name their u.s. senator , many wonder what a senator does all day. the wife of new jersey senator frank she made it her mission to name all of the senators in the senate with each senator there's an explanation of what each person, a man or woman, sees as their achievement. a former democratic senator, i disagree with mr. schultz about that sometimes. first of all, i know because you are very social, you know a lot of these senators and their spouses and you know them from a different perspective. you may not like, this but this is how we're going to do this, bonnie. you are going to tell us what it's really like and it's gotten really nasty up on the hill and people like olympia snow has left because they can't deal with their party. there are no friendships across the aisles like there used to be. let's talk about ted kennedy , the great ted kennedy who really is one of the great senators. tell me about ted as a person, why he posed like that, and what he saw as his greatest accomplishment.

>> when i walked into senator kennedy's office, there were photographs of his family, of martin luther king , his family, and it was so emotional. i knew he wanted to sit there. he said, where would you like to sit? and i said, sit right there because i wanted to get those foet of graphs behind them.

>> senator, you were up there. those senators were much, much friendlier when they went home every weekend?

>> absolutely. senator bumper was wonderful when i got here. he said, i know you're going to be great but i just wish you could know the senate that i knew. i'm a more liberal democrat than you are but some of my best friends were republicans bau we did things together, you know. back then their kids lived here, they went through football games together, suffered through band concerts together. they barbecued on the weekends. not every weekend but they got to know each other as friends. the fact is, when you are friends, you may disagree on a lot of stuff but you respect one another and you respect your differences.

>> let's talk about some of the big names in the senate. i want to -- i only have a little time here. hillary clinton . what is her greatest achievement? let's see the picture you took of her. i hear you had to cut through the staff to get to it. that's great photography.

>> thank you. i wanted to give it to her for the campaign.

>> she's had a rough time traveling the world every three minutes but she'll look like that again when she gets out of the office. but your thoughts about her as a person and public figure?

>> she's very gracious, she's very brilliant and we are so lucky to have her as our --

>> my feeling about hillary, i take it back again, i really do, because politics is rough and journalism and politics is tough but every time i'm with her, i just fall for her. there's a charm for that person that doesn't come across on tvs as well as it should. your thoughts, senator?

>> well, she is. she's brilliant. but she is also real. when i first got here in the house and then my husband and i married and i was expecting twins, you know, the president and secretary clinton invited us over for dinner. we went upstairs and had chicken in the residence quarters and she had on her shorts and a t-shirt and so did the president and, you know, chelsea came in from dance class. i mean, they are normal people and they know and understand what a normal --

>> what is this, razorback night? shorts on and no air conditioning ?

>> she is a real person and she knows and understands what real people go through.

>> do you both want her to run for president?

>> no.

>> yes.

>> oh, her, i thought you said us.

>> i supported her. yeah.

>> let me -- last word, joe biden is going to debate this week. how is he going to do?

>> he's going to do great.

>> bonnie lautenberg and senator blanche lincoln , thanks for coming on.