PBS NewsHour; May 10, 2012 6:00pm-7:00pm PDT

Captioning sponsored by MacNEIL/LEHRER PRODUCTIONS

>> Woodruff: SUICIDE BOMBERS STRUCK THE HEART OF SYRIA'S CAPITAL TODAY KILLING DOZENS OF PEOPLE AND WOUNDING HUNDREDS MORE. GOOD EVENING, I'M JUDY WOODRUFF.

>> Brown: AND I'M JEFFREY BROWN. ON THE "NEWSHOUR" TONIGHT, WE HAVE THE LATEST ON THE ATTACK IN DAMASCUS. THE DEADLIEST IN THE 14 MONTH UPRISING.

>> Woodruff: THEN, WE ASSESS THE POLITICAL FALLOUT FROM PRESIDENT OBAMA'S COMING OUT ON SAME SEX MARRIAGE.

>> Brown: MILES O'BRIEN REPORTS ON THE MOVE TO CURB SCIENTIFIC TESTING ON CHIMPANZEES TO FIND CURES FOR HUMAN AILMENTS.

>> SO IS IT CRUEL OR NOT?

>> Woodruff: MARGARET WARNER EXAMINES NEW WARNINGS ABOUT THE LONG TERM USE OF OSTEOPOROSIS DRUGS AIMED AT REBUILDING BONES.

>> Brown: AND GWEN IFILL TALKS WITH BIOGRAPHER ROBERT CARO ABOUT HIS LATEST VOLUME ON LYNDON JOHNSON, AN EPIC STORY OF HISTORY, POLITICS AND HUMAN RIVALRIES.

>> YOU HATE TO USE WORDS LIKE HATRED AS A HISTORIAN BUT HATRED IS NOT TOO STRONG A WORD TO DESCRIBE THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ROBERT KENNEDY AND LYNDON JOHNSON. THEY HATED EACH OTHER.

>> Woodruff: THAT'S ALL AHEAD ON TONIGHT'S "NEWSHOUR." MAJOR FUNDING FOR THE PBS NEWSHOUR HAS BEEN PROVIDED BY:

>> CITI TURNS 200 THIS YEAR. IN THAT TIME, THERE HAVE BEEN SOME GOOD DAYS AND SOME DIFFICULT ONES. BUT THROUGH IT ALL, WE PERSEVERED. SUPPORTING SOME OF THE BIGGEST IDEAS IN MODERN HISTORY. SO WHY SHOULD OUR ANNIVERSARY MATTER TO YOU? BECAUSE FOR 200 YEARS, WE'VE BEEN HELPING IDEAS MOVE FROM AMBITION TO ACHIEVEMENT. AND THE NEXT GREAT IDEA COULD BE YOURS. AND THE WILLIAM AND FLORA HEWLETT FOUNDATION, WORKING TO SOLVE SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS AT HOME AND AROUND THE WORLD. AND WITH THE ONGOING SUPPORT OF THESE INSTITUTIONS AND FOUNDATIONS. THIS PROGRAM WAS MADE POSSIBLE BY THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING. AND BY CONTRIBUTIONS TO YOUR PBS STATION FROM VIEWERS LIKE YOU. THANK YOU.

>> Brown: THE TWIN BOMBINGS THAT TORE THROUGH DAMASCUS, SYRIA TODAY, LEFT A LONG LIST OF VICTIMS. STATE MEDIA REPORTED 55 PEOPLE WERE KILLED, AND MORE THAN 370 WERE WOUNDED. THAT SET OFF CLAIMS AND COUNTER- CLAIMS ABOUT WHO WAS TO BLAME. IT WAS THE DEADLIEST ATTACK IN SYRIA SINCE THE ANTI-GOVERNMENT UPRISING BEGAN 14 MONTHS AGO. THE INTERIOR MINISTRY SAID TWO SUICIDE CAR BOMBS-- PACKED WITH 2,200 POUNDS OF EXPLOSIVES-- DETONATED MOMENTS APART. WHEN PEOPLE RUSHED TO HELP VICTIMS OF THE FIRST BLAST, THE SECOND BOMB WENT OFF. THE APPARENT TARGET? SYRIA'S MILITARY INTELLIGENCE HEADQUARTERS, A HEAVILY GUARDED COMPOUND, SECURED BY FORCES LOYAL TO PRESIDENT BASHAR ASSAD. THE EXPLOSIONS RIPPED THE FRONT OFF THE NINE-STORY BUILDING, AND LEFT BEHIND A SCENE OF MANGLED VEHICLES AND DEBRIS. NEARBY, HOMES WERE DAMAGED AS WELL.

>> ( translated ): MAY GOD TAKE OUR REVENGE! BECAUSE WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO US IS UNBELIEVABLE! IT IS NOT A HUMAN ACT! WE HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS AND OUR HOUSES ARE BEING DESTROYED!

>> Brown: THE BOMBS ALSO GOUGED OUT TWO HUGE CRATERS AT THE GATE OF THE INTELLIGENCE COMPOUND. ONE MEASURED TEN FEET DEEP AND 20 FEET WIDE. THE GOVERNMENT BLAMED "TERRORISTS"-- A LABEL IT OFTEN APPLIES TO THE OPPOSITION. AND THE FOREIGN MINISTRY URGED THE U.N. TO TAKE MEASURES AGAINST COUNTRIES, GROUPS AND NEWS AGENCIES THAT ARE PRACTICING AND ENCOURAGING TERRORISM. IN RESPONSE, THE U.N. SECURITY COUNCIL CONDEMNED THE BOMBINGS, URGING ALL SIDES TO COMPLY WITH A CEASE-FIRE. U.N. ENVOY KOFI ANNAN, WHO NEGOTIATED THE SHAKY CEASEFIRE, CALLED FOR CALM, SAYING, "THE SYRIAN PEOPLE HAVE ALREADY SUFFERED TOO MUCH." AND THE HEAD OF THE U.N. OBSERVERS MISSION IN SYRIA-- NORWEGIAN MAJOR GENERAL ROBERT MOOD-- MADE HIS OWN APPEAL, AFTER TOURING THE BLAST SITE.

>> MY VERY CLEAR MESSAGE TO ANYONE THAT IS ENGAGING IN THIS KIND OF VIOLENCE IS THAT IT IS NOT GOING TO SOLVE ANY PROBLEMS. SO WE NEED EVERYONE INSIDE SYRIA, EVERYONE OUTSIDE SYRIA TO UNDERSTAND THAT THIS IS GOING ONLY TO CREATE MORE SUFFERING FOR WOMEN, CHILDREN, THE SYRIAN PEOPLE. ANYONE SUPPORTING THIS, ANYONE

>> Brown: JUST YESTERDAY, MOOD AND A CONVOY OF U.N. OBSERVERS HAD THEIR OWN BRUSH WITH DISASTER-- NARROWLY MISSING A ROADSIDE BOMBING, AS THEY TRAVELED SOUTH FROM DAMASCUS TO DARAA. IN WASHINGTON TODAY, STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESWOMAN VICTORIA NULAND DEPLORED THE BOMBINGS, BUT SUGGESTED THE SYRIAN GOVERNMENT IS AT LEAST PARTLY TO BLAME.

>> IF THE ASSAD REGIME WERE DOING WHAT IT WAS SUPPOSED TO DO, WHICH IS TO LEAD THE WAY IN DEMONSTRATING ITS COMMITMENT TO THE CEASEFIRE, THEN WE THINK THAT THAT WOULD SET THE TONE AND WE WOULD NOT BE SEEING THESE KINDS OF VIOLENT EPISODES.

>> Brown: SYRIAN OPPOSITION LEADERS CLAIMED AGAIN TODAY THAT THE GOVERNMENT IS BEHIND THE BOMBINGS, IN A BID TO PUT ANTI- ASSAD FORCES IN A BAD LIGHT. A SHORT TIME AGO I SPOKE TO NPR'S KELLY McEVERS IN BEIRUT. KELLY, THANKS FOR JOINING US. WHAT CAN YOU ADD TO THIS? THINK THAT'S TALK ABOUT A SHADOWY AL QAEDA CONNECTED GROUP THAT'S CLAIMED RESPONSIBILITY FOR SEVERAL PAST BOMBINGS.

>> IT'S SO DIFFICULT TO TELL IN SYRIA BUT YOU HAVE REBELS AND OPPOSITION GROUPS SAYING THAT THIS IS THE GOVERNMENT THAT DID THIS ATTACK. IT WAS THE GOVERNMENT THAT KILLED ITS OWN PEOPLE AS A WAY TO SORT OF THWART THE U.N. PEACE PROCESS GOING ON IN THE COUNTRY. THE GOVERNMENT HAS BEEN WILLING TO KILL ITS PEOPLE ALL ALONG, WHY WOULDN'T THEY DO AN ATTACK LIKE THIS? THEN YOU LOOK AT GOVERNMENT STATE MEDIA AND THE GOVERNMENT IN SYRIA IS BLAMING THIS ON TERRORISTS BUT NOT JUST ANY TERRORISTS, THE NARRATIVE OF THE SYRIAN GOVERNMENT IS THAT THIS IS... THESE ARE TERRORISTS BACKED BY THE UNITED STATES, BY ISRAEL, BY GULF COUNTRIES LIKE SAUDI ARABIA AND QATAR AND THAT ALL THESE COUNTRIES HAVE AN INTEREST IN BRINGING DOWN THE SYRIAN REGIME AND THAT THEY'RE USING TERRORISTS TO DO SO. THE SO THE GOVERNMENT'S NARRATIVE IS THAT THERE ISN'T A PROTEST MOVEMENT IN THE COUNTRY. THERE'S NO GRASS-ROOTS MOVEMENT OF PEOPLE SEEKING THEIR RIGHTS, SEEKING MORE FREEDOMS BUT IT'S TERRORISTS. AND THEN THERE'S THE THIRD POSSIBILITY, RIGHT? THAT THIS IS ACTUALLY... THIS IS ACTUALLY A JIHADIST GROUP THAT CARRIED OUT THIS ATTACK. THERE IS A GROUP THAT HAS SURFACED IN THE LAST COUPLE MONTHS THAT'S GOT ALL THE TYPICAL TRAPPINGS OF A JIHADIST ORGANIZATION. JIHADIST ICONOGRAPHY, JIHADIST IDEOLOGY ONLINE. THEY HAVE CLAIMED RESPONSIBILITY FOR SOME ATTACKS IN SYRIAENED N RECENT MONTHS. THEY HAVE NOT CLAIMED RESPONSIBILITY FOR THIS ATTACK BUT IT IS POSSIBLE THAT THEY ARE BEHIND TODAY'S ATTACK.

>> Brown: WHAT ABOUT THE SEEMING TARGET HERE? THE MILITARY INTELLIGENCE HEADQUARTERS? IS THAT EVEN CLEAR ABOUT WHAT WAS THE TARGET?

>> THAT IS NOT CLEAR. THIS ATTACK DID HAPPEN NEAR A MILITARY INTELLIGENCE HEADQUARTERS. IN FACT, ONE OF THE MOST DREADED OF THE SECURITY BRANCHES, THE SO-CALLED PALESTINE BRANCH WHERE PEOPLE ARE DETAINED AND TORTURED AND HAVE BEEN MUCH SO DURING THIS UPRISING OVER THE PAST YEAR BUT THE ATTACK HAPPENED ON THE HIGHWAY OUTSIDE OF THIS MILITARY INTELLIGENCE COMPOUND AND IT FWOR HALLMARKS OF THE KIND OF ATTACKS YOU DO SEE IN PLACES LIKE IRAQ. YOU HAD A SMALL EXPLOSION THAT SORT OF DREW PEOPLE TO THE SCENE AND THEN A MUCH LARGER EXPLOSION HAPPENING AFTERWARDS, IT WAS DURING RUSH HOUR, IT WAS WHERE PEOPLE ARE WHERE GOING TO WORK, POSSIBLY GOING TO THE AIRPORT, IT WAS MANY T MAIN AIRPORT ROAD. AND WHAT REMAINED WAS A HUGE CRATER IN THE ROAD AND JUST ABSOLUTE CARNAGE.

>> NOW, KELLEY, THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY, THE VIOLENCE SEEMS TO HAVE EBBED SOMEWHAT IN RECENT WEEKS, ALTHOUGH IT CERTAINLY GOES ON EVEN BEFORE TODAY'S BOMBING. WHAT IS... WHERE DO THINGS STAND BROADLY?

>> WELL, YOU KNOW, THE UNITED NATIONS MISSION IS IN SYRIA NOW, THERE ARE DOZENS OF OBSERVERS THERE TRYING TO OBSERVE THIS PEACE PROCESS. THE PROCESS IS SUPPOSED TO START WITH A CEASE-FIRE ALMOST A MONTH AGO. THE GOVERNMENT AGREED TO IT, THE REBELS AGREED TO THE CEASE-FIRE, BUT SO FAR BASICALLY NEITHER SIDE HAS KEPT TO THE CEASE-FIRE. WHAT WE HAVE SEEN IS THAT IN THE PLACES WHERE THE OBSERVERS ARE BASED-- AND THESE ARE THE HOT SPOTS OF SYRIA, THE CITIES WHERE WE'VE SEEN THE MOST UNREST, PLACES LIKE HOMS, HAMA, WE HAVE SEEN A REDUCTION IN THE VIOLENCE WE HAVEN'T SEEN THE GOVERNMENT PULLING ITS TROOPS OUT OF THE TOWNS AND CITIES LIKE THEY SAID THEY WOULD AND WE HAVEN'T SEEN REBELS STOPPING THEIR ATTACKS AGAINST GOVERNMENT INSTALLMENTS, EITHER, BUT WE HAVE SEEN A REDUCTION. TODAY'S ATTACK WORRIES ANALYSTS IN THE REGION THAT THIS WILL GIVE THE GOVERNMENT OF SYRIA JUSTIFICATION TO GO ON THE OFFENSIVE AGAIN AND SAY THAT IT'S ROOTING OUT TERRORISTS.

>> Brown: YOU DO HAVE THE U.N... THE WESTERN POWERS, AT LEAST, STILL SUGGESTING THAT THE U.N. CEASE-FIRE PLAN IS STILL VIABLE, STILL CALLING FOR EVERYONE TO ABIDE BY IT. BUT YOU'RE SUGGESTING THAT NO ONE HAS AND IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE ANYONE WILL?

>> WELL, THIS U.N. PLAN I THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE IN THE WEST ACKNOWLEDGE THAT IT'S THE LEAST WORST OPTION. MOST PEOPLE ARE DUBIOUS THAT IT'S ACTUALLY GOING TO SUCCEED BUT THEY SORT OF THROW UP THEIR HANDS AND SAY WE DON'T REALLY HAVE ANY OTHER CHOICE AT THIS POINT. WE DON'T SEE ANY OTHER PLAN ON THE HORIZON, NOT A PLAN FROM THE UNITED STATES, NOT A PLAN FROM THE GULF COUNTRIES, NOT A PLAN FROM TURKEY, ALL OF THESE COUNTRIES STAND AGAINST THE SYRIAN REGIME THAT WILL RESOLVE THIS CRISIS.

>> Brown: KELLY McEVERS OF NPR JOINING US FROM BEIRUT. THANKS SO MUCH.

>> Woodruff: STILL TO COME ON THE NEWSHOUR, THE DAY OF THE PRESIDENT'S GAY MARRIAGE STANDS. STAND; THE DEBATE ABOUT USING CHIMPANZEES FOR SCIENCE; CAUTIONS OVER TAKING BONE- BUILDING DRUGS AND ROBERT CARO ON LYNDON JOHNSON. BUT FIRST, THE OTHER NEWS OF THE DAY. HERE'S HARI SREENIVASAN.

>> Sreenivasan: REPUBLICANS IN THE U.S. HOUSE PUSHED THROUGH A BILL TODAY TO PREVENT A 10% CUT IN THE DEFENSE BUDGET. IT'S SET TO TAKE PLACE AT YEAR'S END, BECAUSE CONGRESS FAILED TO AGREE LAST YEAR ON DEFICIT REDUCTION. THE REPUBLICAN BILL MAINTAINS MILITARY SPENDING BY CUTTING $300 BILLION IN FOOD STAMPS, HEALTH CARE AND FEDERAL PENSIONS, OVER TEN YEARS. THE DEBATE DIVIDED SHARPLY DOWN PARTY LINES.

>> I KNOW IT MAKES OUR REPUBLICAN COLLEAGUES FEEL BETTER WHEN THEY PRETEND THESE CUTS DON'T HURT REAL PEOPLE. THE REALITY IS IT WILL MEAN THAT 326,000 WOMEN WILL NOT GET BREAST CANCER SCREENINGS AND 284,000 WOMEN WILL NOT GET CERVICAL CANCER SCREENINGS. THAT'S WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU ZERO OUT THE PREVENTION FUND.

>> SHOULD WE MEASURE OUR POVERTY FIGHTING EFFORTS BASED ON HOW WE'RE SPENDING AND HOW MANY PROGRAMS WE'RE CREATING OR SHOULD WE THINK ABOUT HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE WE GETTING OUT OF POVERTY? HERE'S THE PROBLEM: THESE EFFORTS AREN'T WORKING.

>> Sreenivasan: DEMOCRATS AGREED ON THE NEED TO PREVENT THE MILITARY CUTS, BUT THEY WANTED TO DO IT MORE WITH TAX INCREASES. THE MEASURE NOW HEADS TO THE SENATE, BUT THE DEMOCRATIC MAJORITY THERE HAS ALREADY SAID IT'S A DEAD LETTER. THE STRUGGLE TO FORM A NEW GOVERNMENT IN GREECE ENTERED A THIRD ROUND TODAY, AS THE PROSPECT OF A NEW ELECTION LOOMED LARGER. THE SOCIALISTS TOOK THEIR TURN AT TRYING TO CREATE A MAJORITY COALITION. TWO OTHER PARTIES WHO CAME IN AHEAD OF THEM IN SUNDAY'S ELECTION HAVE ALREADY FAILED.

>> ( translated ): AS YOU KNOW, OUR PROPOSAL WAS AND IS TO FORM A GOVERNMENT OF NATIONAL UNITY, A GOVERNMENT OF WIDE COLLABORATION OF PRO-EUROPEAN POLITICAL FORCES, OF RESPONSIBILITY, SOLIDARITY AND DEVELOPMENT. THAT IS FEASIBLE EVEN THOUGH THE MANDATE OF THE GREEK PEOPLE HAS NOT BEEN CLEAR. WHAT IS CLEAR THAT PEOPLE WANT STABILITY AND THEY WANT TO AVOID THE ELECTIONS.

>> Sreenivasan: MOST OF THE VOTES IN SUNDAY'S ELECTION WENT TO ANTI-AUSTERITY PARTIES, STOKING FEARS THAT GREECE WILL NOT KEEP ITS BAILOUT COMMITMENTS TO THE EUROPEAN UNION. BUT IN BERLIN TODAY, GERMAN CHANCELLOR ANGELA MERKEL SAID AUSTERITY MEASURES ARE STILL THE ONLY WAY FOR EUROPEAN NATIONS COULD RECOVER. SHE DISMISSED CALLS TO ABANDON OR SCALE BACK THE PLANS. IN BRITAIN, THOUSANDS OF POLICE OFFICERS AND OTHER PUBLIC SECTOR WORKERS STAGED A ONE-DAY NATIONAL STRIKE, PROTESTING CHANGES IN THEIR PENSIONS. UNION LEADERS ESTIMATED MORE THAN 400,000 CIVIL SERVANTS JOINED A MARCH THAT SNAKED THROUGH LONDON. THE GOVERNMENT SAID IT WAS 150,000. WE HAVE A REPORT FROM TOM BRADBY OF "INDEPENDENT TELEVISION NEWS."

>> Reporter: IF YOU WERE AROUND IN THE '60s OR '70s OR '80s, THE WORD "STRIKE" WILL CARRY A RESONANCE THAT WAS NOT REFLECTED IN WHAT WE SAW TODAY. ONE HARDLY FELT AS IF THE COUNTRY WAS GRINDING TO A HALT. THAT DOESN'T MEAN PEOPLE WEREN'T ANGRY.

>> VERY ANGRY! BECAUSE I'VE WORKED ALL MY LIFE IN HER SERVICE AND WHAT'S MORE I HAD FREE HIGHER EDUCATION YEAR AFTER YEAR.

>> Reporter: THE STRIKE TOOK IN A CROSS SECTION OF THE PUBLIC SECTOR, N.H.S. WORKERS IN WHALES POLICE OFFICERS, IMMIGRATION STAFF, PRISON OFFICERS AREN'T ALLOWED TO STRIKE BUT HERE IN WARRING ON THE THEY DID. THESE PENSION CHANGES AFFECT MORE THAN FIVE MILLION PUBLIC SECTOR WORKERS. THE NEW SCHEMES VARY SIGNIFICANTLY BUT TYPICALLY CONTRIBUTIONS WILL RISE BY 3.2% BY 2015. THE AMOUNT PAID OUT WILL BE BASED ON AVERAGE CAREER EARNINGS NOT THE HIGHER FINAL SALARY AND PENSIONS WILL ONLY RISE IN LINE WITH THE CONSUMER PRICES INDEX, NOT THE HIGHER RETAIL PRICES INDEX. PLUS THE STANDARD RETIREMENT AGE WILL EVENTUALLY RISE TO 68. MINISTERS ARGUED TODAY THAT THESE STRIKES ARE FIZZLING OUT. IF THAT ISN'T QUITE TRUE, THEY AREN'T BRINGING THE COUNTRY TO A HALT, EITHER.

>> Sreenivasan: THE HEAD OF BRITAIN'S LARGEST UNION WARNED THERE WOULD BE STRIKES DURING THE SUMMER OLYMPICS IN LONDON, STARTING IN JULY. THE U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT SUED ARIZONA SHERIFF JOE ARPAIO TODAY, OVER ALLEGATIONS OF RACIALLY PROFILING LATINOS. THE CIVIL SUIT ALLEGES THAT HIS DEPARTMENT-- ENCOMPASSING PHOENIX-- DISREGARDED BASIC CIVIL RIGHTS AND FEDERAL LAW. ARPAIO HAS MADE A NATIONAL NAME FOR HIMSELF, AGGRESSIVELY TARGETING ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS. HIS OFFICE SAYS THE FEDERAL CASE IS POLITICALLY MOTIVATED. WALL STREET STRUGGLED TO MAKE HEADWAY AGAIN TODAY. THE DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE GAINED NEARLY 20 POINTS TO CLOSE AT 12,855. THE NASDAQ FELL ONE POINT TO CLOSE AT 2,933. J.P. MORGAN CHASE ANNOUNCED IT SUFFERED $2 BILLION IN THE LAST SIX WEEKS. THE BANK SAID THE LOSSES CAME IN A PORTFOLIO OF INVESTMENTS KNOWN AS CREDIT DEFAULT SWAPS. REPORTS HAD SWIRLED THAT A J.P. MORGAN TRADER IN LONDON HAD LEFT THE BANK HEAVILY EXPOSED. CHIEF EXECUTIVE JAMIE DIMON SAID TODAY THESE WERE EGREGIOUS MISTAKES. HE WARNED THE LOSSES COULD GET WORSE BY THE TIME THE SECOND QUARTER ENDS. THOSE ARE SOME OF THE DAY'S MAJOR STORIES. NOW BACK TO JUDY.

>> Woodruff: POLITICAL AFTERSHOCKS FROM PRESIDENT OBAMA'S ANNOUNCEMENT THAT HE SUPPORTS SAME-SEX MARRIAGE REVERBERATED ACROSS THE COUNTRY TODAY.

>> I THINK IT'S FANTASTIC. YOU KNOW, IT'S ABOUT TIME. IT'S ABOUT TIME THE COUNTRY, YOU KNOW, COMES AROUND.

>> I'M TOTALLY AGAINST IT. IT'S NOT RIGHT.

>> Woodruff: THE NATION'S DIVISIONS WERE CLEARLY EVIDENT TODAY, AS AMERICANS DIGESTED THE PRESIDENT'S NEW SUPPORT FOR SAME-SEX MARRIAGE. HE ANNOUNCED IT WEDNESDAY, IN AN INTERVIEW WITH "GOOD MORNING AMERICA'S" ROBIN ROBERTS ON ABC. BUT HE INSISTED IT WAS NOT DESIGNED FOR POLITICAL GAIN.

>> I THINK IT WOULD BE HARD TO ARGUE THAT SOMEHOW THIS IS SOMETHING I'D BE DOING FOR POLITICAL ADVANTAGE. BECAUSE, FRANKLY, THE POLITICS, IT'S NOT CLEAR HOW THEY CUT. BUT I'M NOT GOING TO SPEND MOST OF MY TIME TALKING ABOUT THIS BECAUSE FRANKLY MY JOB AS PRESIDENT RIGHT NOW, MY BIGGEST PRIORITY IS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE GROWING THE ECONOMY, WE'RE PUTTING PEOPLE BACK TO WORK.

>> Woodruff: THE PRESIDENT'S RE- ELECTION CAMPAIGN WAS TALKING ABOUT IT IN A NEW ONLINE VIDEO, THAT CRITICIZED REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE MITT ROMNEY FOR OPPOSING GAY MARRIAGE. TODAY, ON MSNBC, ROMNEY'S SENIOR ADVISOR, ED GILLESPIE, SAID HE'LL CITE THE ISSUE AS ONE OF MANY DIFFERENCES WITH THE PRESIDENT.

>> I THINK IT'S AN IMPORTANT ISSUE FOR PEOPLE. IT ENGENDERS STRONG FEELINGS ON BOTH SIDES. I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO BE, YOU KNOW, RESPECTFUL IN HOW WE TALK ABOUT THE, HOW WE TALK ABOUT OUR DIFFERENCES. BUT THE FACT IS THAT'S A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN NOVEMBER.

>> Woodruff: ROMNEY HIMSELF SPENT PART OF THE DAY ADDRESSING ALLEGATIONS ABOUT HIS TEEN-AGE YEARS AT A PREP SCHOOL IN MICHIGAN. THE "WASHINGTON POST" REPORTED THAT IN ONE CASE, HE BULLIED A GAY CLASSMATE, JOHN LAUBER, BY HOLDING HIM DOWN AND CUTTING HIS HAIR. ROMNEY APOLOGIZED TODAY FOR WHAT HE CALLED "HIJINKS AND PRANKS", BUT HE DENIED SINGLING OUT ANYONE FOR BEING GAY. HE SPOKE IN AN INTERVIEW WITH FOX NEWS RADIO.

>> Woodruff: BACK TO TODAY, THERE WERE NEW QUESTIONS ABOUT HOW GAY POLITICS AND THE MARRIAGE ISSUE MIGHT PLAY IN TEN BATTLEGROUND STATES, COME NOVEMBER. SAME-SEX MARRIAGE HAS BEEN BANNED IN EIGHT OF THE STATES-- NEVADA, COLORADO, WISCONSIN, FLORIDA, VIRGINIA, OHIO, PENNSYLVANIA, AND JUST THIS WEEK, IN NORTH CAROLINA. TWO OTHER SWING STATES PERMIT IT: IOWA AND NEW HAMPSHIRE. TONIGHT AT LEAST, THE ISSUE WAS EXPECTED TO PLAY TO PRESIDENT OBAMA'S ADVANTAGE AT A HOLLYWOOD FUNDRAISER, HOSTED BY THE ACTOR GEORGE CLOONEY, AND EXPECTED TO BRING IN A RECORD $15 MILLION.

>> Woodruff: FOR MORE ON THE POTENTIAL POLITICAL CONSEQUENCES AND CALCULATIONS OF THE PRESIDENT'S MOVE WE ARE JOINED BY CHARLIE MAHTESIAN, NATIONAL POLITICS EDITOR FOR THE WEBSITE POLITICO. AND, PERRY BACON, POLITICAL EDITOR FOR NBC NEWS WEBSITE, THE GRIO. THANK YOU BOTH FOR BEING HERE, GOOD TO SEE YOU.

>> GOOD TO SEE YOU.

>> SO PERRY, FIRST OFF, THE PRESIDENT IS SUGGESTING, WE JUST HEARD, THAT THIS MAY HURT HIM POLITICALLY. IS THAT RIGHT?

>> I DON'T THINK IT WILL HURT HIM POLITICALLY IN THE FACT THAT HE'S SO... IT WOULD HAVE HURT HIM SO MORE TO HANG IT OUT THERE WITH THE VICE PRESIDENT AND PRESIDENT DISAGREEING. I DON'T KNOW THAT A IT'S GOING TO HURT HIM POLITICALLY BUT IT'S NOT CLEAR IT WILL HELP HIM POLITICALLY EITHER AND USUALLY PRESIDENTS DON'T DO THINGS THAT ARE DICEY IN THE POLITICAL SENSE.

>> Woodruff: ONE WOULDN'T THINK SO. CHARLIE, HOW DO YOU SEE THAT?

>> I THINK IT HURTS ANYMORE PARTICULAR STATES. WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE SWING STATE UNIVERSE, THERE ARE SOME STATES WITH THE ISSUE THAT RESONATES AND IF YOU LOOK AT THE MAP OF THE UNITED STATES AND EXPANDING BEYOND THE SWING STATES YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT OVER 30 STATES HAVE REJECTED IT, SOME STATES BY LARGE MARGINS, SOME BEING VERY IMPORTANT STATES IN THE 2012 ELECTORAL MAP. SO IN THE STATES WHERE THE ISSUE RESONATES IT'S A PROBLEM. ESPECIALLY IF IT WILL BE CLOSE IN NOVEMBER.

>> Woodruff: IN THE SENSE OF WHAT? DEPRESSING TURNOUT OR HOW DO YOU SEE THAT?

>> THERE ARE A COUPLE WAYS, ONE WOULD BE... THIS IS A POINT THAT SOME FOLKS TALKED ABOUT WHEN THINKING THROUGH THE PRESIDENT'S CALCULUS FOR A DECISION THE IDEA THAT THERE ARE COUNTIES WITH BIG UNIVERSITIES WILL IT WILL LEAD TO POSSIBLY AN UPTICK IN TURNOUT BUT THE OTHER SIDE OF THE COIN WOULD BE A STATE WHERE, FOR EXAMPLE, THEY WOULD HAVE HAD A GAY MARRIAGE INITIATIVE ON THE BALLOT AND IT WAS OVERWHELMINGLY DEFEATED. IN THOSE KINDS OF PLACES-- AND THERE ARE MANY OF THEM, THAT WILL GIN UP TURNOUT. NONE OF THE BIG STATES WILL HAVE THAT AS COMPARED TO 2004 BUT IN THOSE STATES THE ISSUE RARELY GENERATED TURNOUT, ESPECIALLY AMONG EVANGELICALS.

>> Woodruff: AND ONE YOU SUGGESTED A MINUTE AGO CLEARLY THE WHITE HOUSE MUST HAVE THOUGHT THROUGH THIS AS PART OF THE PRESIDENT'S DECISION MAKING. BUT WHAT ABOUT THE PARTICULAR STATES? WHAT DO YOU SEE AS A STATE OR TWO OR THREE WHERE THIS COULD AFFECT THE OUTCOME?

>> OHIO AND PENNSYLVANIA HAVE WHITE SORT OF WORKING CLASS VOTERS WHO HAVE NOT LIKED THE PRESIDENT ON OTHER ISSUES AS WELL. PEOPLE WHO MAY BE ECONOMICALLY MORE LIBERAL WHO MIGHT SUPPORT TAX INCREASES ON THE WEALTHY THAT ROMNEY OPPOSED BUT MAYBE MORE SOCIALLY CONSERVATIVE, MAY NOT BE PRO CHOICE. I THINK THERE'S A LITTLE WORRY THERE. GAY MARRIAGE IS NOT SUPPORTED BY OLDER VOTERS SO IF YOU LOOK AT FLORIDA, FOR INSTANCE, WHERE THE ELECTORATE IS OLDER, THAT'S WHERE THE CHALLENGE WOULD BE. ON THE PLUS SIDE, YOU LOOK AT NEVADA, COLORADO, CERTAIN COLLEGE CAMPUSES IN OHIO YOU MIGHT GET A LITTLE MORE YOUTH TURNOUT IN THOSE STATES. OVERALL I'M NOT NECESSARILY SURE THERE'S A LOT OF VOTERS WHO WERE GOING TO VOTE FOR BARACK OBAMA TUESDAY BUT ARE NOT GOING TO ON WEDNESDAY BECAUSE OF THE GAY MARRIAGE DECISION ITSELF.

>> Woodruff: IS THIS SOMETHING, CHARLIE, THAT ONE CAN LITERALLY CALCULATE? CAN YOU LOOK AT THE COUNTRY COUNTY BY COUNTY AND SAY THERE ARE THIS MANY ELDERLY VOTERS HERE, YOUNG VOTERS THERE?

>> I THINK YOU CAN DO THAT TO A CERTAIN DEGREE. NOT WITH ANY REAL CERTAINTY ABOUT WHAT IT WILL BE BUT YOU CAN SEE THE PLACES WHERE IT TURNED OUT. LIKE, FOR EXAMPLE, IF YOU WERE TO LOOK AT COLORADO, WHEN COLORADO HAD A BALLOT INITIATIVE SEVERAL YEARS AGO YOU HAD A VERY BIG PERFORMANCE IN COLORADO SPRING AND THE SURROUNDING COUNTY, WHICH WOULD HAVE BEEN EL PASO COUNTY. THAT'S THE HEART OF THE EVANGELICAL COMMUNITY IN COLORADO AND IN MANY WAYS THE UNITED STATES AND THE WEST. IT'S A HUGE VERY BIG CITY THERE FOCUSED ON THE FAMILY IS LOCATED THERE AND IT'S... WHEN THE STATE PASSED THE MEASURE 54-544, EL PASO COUNTY CAME THROUGH IN A LAND SLARD MARGIN, 2-1, SO IT OUTPACED THE STATE. SO IN PLACES LIKE THAT THERE ARE SING COUNTIES THAT ARE GOING TO RESPOND TO THIS ISSUE.

>> Woodruff: A LOT OF CONVERSATION, PERRY, ABOUT THE AFRICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY WHERE THERE IS A HIGH DEGREE OF SUPPORT FOR THE PRESIDENT, AT THE SAME TIME, 55% OF AFRICAN AMERICANS BY POLLING SAY THEY DON'T AGREE GAY MARRIAGE. HOW IS THAT?

>> WE HAVEN'T SEEN A BIG SURVEY OF THIS YET. BUT THAT SAID, YOU KNOW, WE DID A STORY IN NORTH CAROLINA WHERE A LOT OF PEOPLE SAID, LOOK, I'M GOING TO VOTE FOR THIS GAY MARRIAGE AMENDMENT, I'M NOT SUPPORTING GAY MARRIAGE BUT I'M NOT GOING TO LEAVE THE PRESIDENT BECAUSE OF ONE ISSUE. IT'S HARD TO IMAGINE HIS OVERWHELMING SUPPORT IN THE BLACK COMMUNITY WILL SOMEHOW CHANGE BASED ON ONE ISSUE.

>> I WOULD AGREE. IT'S VERY HARD. YOU HAVE TO HAVE GAY MARRIAGE RANKED AS NUMBER ONE IN ALMOST EVERY CONSTITUENCY RANKS IT AS SOMETHING OTHER THAN NUMBER ONE, NO MATTER WHAT THAT CONSTITUENCY IS. HAVING SAID THAT, THE CONTRARIAN VIEW WOULD BE WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE PRESIDENT'S SUPPORT IN THE AFRICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY IT'S SO HIGH HE CAN ALMOST ONLY GO BELOW THAT. WHICH IS TO SAY HE'S STILL GOING TO WIN AND ANY CHANGE WILL BE MARGINAL BUT THERE'S NOT MUCH ROOM FOR HIM TO GROW. ALL THE ROOM IS TO DETERIORATE.

>> Woodruff: IS THERE MUCH INFORMATION AVAILABLE ABOUT THE LATINO COMMUNITY? AGAIN, ANOTHER COMMUNITY WHERE THE PRESIDENT ENJOYS HIGH SUPPORT-- NOT AS HIGH AS AMONG AFRICAN AMERICANS.

>> THE POLLING IS A LITTLE BIT MORE... BUT SORT OF MORE OPPOSITION IN LATINO VOTERS OVERALL ABOUT GAY MARRIAGE. WE DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH IS GOING TO MOTIVATE THEM, AS CHARLIE SAID, IT'S A LOW ISSUE IN TERMS OF VOTING... GAY MARRIAGE IS A LOW PRIORITY IN TERMS OF HOW THEY'RE GOING TO VOTE AS WELL.

>> WHAT ABOUT, CHARLIE, THE WHOLE QUESTION OF FUND-RAISING, IT'S ALREADY KNOWN IN THE GAY COMMUNITY THE PRESIDENT HAS MANY LARGE DONORS I SAW THE OTHER DAY THAT ONE OUT OF SIX SO CALLED BUNDLERS HAPPEN TO COME FROM THE GAY COMMUNITY. HOW DO YOU SEE THAT AFFECTING THE ELECTION?

>> I THINK IT HELPS TO A CERTAIN DEGREE. I THINK MARGINALLY. IT'S AN AFFLUENT COMMUNITY. A LOT OF MONEY THERE, A LOT OF MONEY TO BE TAPPED. HAVING SAID THAT, THOUGH, IT'S NOT AS THOUGH THERE ARE MANY GAY DONORS THAT ARE CLAMORING TO GIVE TO CONSERVATIVES. THEY CERTAINLY HAVE A BASE OF DONORS IN THE GAY COMMUNITY BUT MANY OF THEM ARE LOCKED INTO THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY AND THEY WERE AND WERE GOING TO BE REGARDLESS OF WHAT THE PRESIDENT DID AND MANY TIMES THE FUND-RAISERS IN THE DONOR COMMUNITY ARE FAIRLY POLITICALLY SOPHISTICATED. THEY FUND CONSTRAINTS ON THE PRESIDENT AND WHY HE COULDN'T COME OUT EVEN THOUGH THEY ALL SUSPECTED IN THEIR HEART OF HEARTS OR PROBABLY KNEW IN THEIR HEART OF HEARTS WHERE HE STOOD ON THE ISSUE.

>> Woodruff: WE ARE SIX MONTHS OUT FROM THE ELECTION, PERRY. SO THE TIMING OF THIS LESS, MORE OF AN EFFECT ON THE ELECTION? HOW DO YOU SEE?

>> I THINK BASED ON WHAT YOU'VE SEEN, ROMNEY AND OBAMA DO THE LAST COUPLE DAYS, WHICH IS NEITHER ONE OF THEM SEEKS EAGER TO TALK ABOUT THIS. OBAMA SAID "I'M READY TO TALK ABOUT THE ECONOMY NOW." ROMNEY SAID THE SAME THING. I THINK IT WILL HAVE VERY LITTLE IMPACT BECAUSE IT HAPPENED EARLY AND NEITHER CANDIDATE WANTS TO TALK ABOUT THIS VERY MUCH. BY JULY THEY WILL HAVE SAID NOTHING ABOUT THIS SINCE MAY UNLESS BEING PRESSED. I THINK IT WILL BE A LIMITED IMPACT BECAUSE THEY DON'T WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT THEMSELVES.

>> Woodruff: INTERESTING. WE WERE JUST SAYING ROMNEY IN AN INTERVIEW TODAY CHARLIE SAID HE IS IN FAVOR OF GAY COUPLES ADOPTING CHILDREN WHICH IS AN INTERESTING ASPECT.

>> EVERYBODY TIME HE WADES INTO THE ISSUE HE SEEMS TO GET INTO TROUBLE WHETHER HE'S REFERRING TO IT AS A STATES RIGHTS ISSUE OR FEDERAL ISSUE. THERE WOULD SEEM TO BE SOME TENSION IN HAVING A POSITION WHERE YOU DON'T BELIEVE GAY MARRIAGE BUT SUPPORT ADOPTION OF CHILDREN. EITHER WAY IT'S NOT A WINNER FOR REPUBLICANS AND WE SAW THAT YESTERDAY IN THE AFTERMATH OF THE ANNOUNCEMENT. THERE WAS CLOSE TO SILENCE WITH REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES ACROSS THE BOARD BECAUSE THEY DON'T WANT TO BE TAKEN OFF MESSAGE BECAUSE THEY KNOW THEY'RE FIGHTING A CULTURE WAR IN AN ECONOMY ELECTION IS A HUGE LOSER FOR THEM.

>> Woodruff: FASCINATING SUBJECT AND WE THANK YOU BOTH. AND ON OUR WEB SITE PATCHWORK NATION BREAKS DOWN THE TYPES OF COMMUNITY, WHERE THE SAME-SEX MARRIAGE ISSUE RESONATES THE MOST. "NEWSHOUR" SCIENCE CORRESPONDENT MILES O'BRIEN HAS OUR STORY.

>> Reporter: THERE ARE NO OTHER ANIMALS QUITE LIKE THEM, EXCEPT US. THEY SHARE 99% OF OUR D.N.A. AND IT SHOWS. THEY SCHEME, PLOT AND FIGHT. THEY CARE FOR THEIR BABIES AND THEY GRIEVE THEIR DEAD. AND THEY LOVE A GOOD GAME OF CATCH, AS I DISCOVERED. QUEENIE HAD LITTLE PATIENCE FOR MY WILD PITCHES.

>> DID YOU SEE HER STOMP HER FOOT?

>> Reporter: SHE'S VERY MAD AT ME. THOSE VERY SIMILARITIES ARE AT THE CORE OF A HEATED DEBATE OVER WHETHER SCIENTISTS SHOULD KEEP USING CHIMPANZEES FOR SCIENTIFIC AND MEDICAL RESEARCH. DO WE OWE OUR COUSINS SOMETHING MORE? HERE, THEY SAY WE DO. WELCOME TO CHIMP HAVEN NEAR SHREVEPORT LOUISIANA-- A 200- ACRE OASIS OF TALL TREES AND HIDDEN DAILY TREATS FOR ABOUT 130 CHIMPANZEES. HAVEN CO-FOUNDER AMY FULTZ PUT ME TO WORK MAKING A CHIMP EASTER EGG HUNT OF SORTS. IT'S GOOD ROUGHAGE, ISN'T IT? I'M GOING TO PUT SOME UP HERE. YOU KNOW, IT'S NICE SOMETIMES TO EAT UP IN THE BALCONY AND JUST TAKE THE WORLD IN. THEY WOULD EAT TERMITES THIS WAY, RIGHT?

>> AND ANTS. AND ACTUALLY, CHIMPANZEES HERE AT CHIMP HAVEN HAVE BEEN FISHING FOR FIRE ANTS.

>> Reporter: IT'S KIND OF LIKE MEXICAN FOOD, RIGHT?

>> ( LAUGHS )

>> Reporter: IN SHORT ORDER, THE CHIMPS WERE LET LOOSE AND THE TREATS WERE CLEARLY A HIT! LINDA BRENT IS PRESIDENT AND DIRECTOR OF CHIMP HAVEN. SHE WILL NEVER FORGET WHEN THE FIRST CHIMPS ARRIVED HERE IN 2005.

>> THEY JUST POURED OUT OF THEIR INDOOR ENCLOSURE OUT INTO THE FOREST, ALL OF THEM. AND THEY RAN ALL THE WAY DOWN. AND SEVERAL OF THEM STOPPED A COUPLE TIMES AND JUST DID THIS WIDE-EYED WONDER THAT THEY WERE OUT HERE AND FREE, FINALLY FREE.

>> Reporter: THE CHIMPS HERE SURE HAVE EARNED IT. MOST OF THEM HAVE LIVED HARD LIVES AS TEST SUBJECTS IN SCIENTIFIC AND MEDICAL RESEARCH.

>> SOME OF THE CHIMPANZEES WHEN THEY FIRST ARRIVE ARE ACTUALLY AFRAID TO PUT THEIR FEET DOWN ON THE GRASS.

>> Reporter: REALLY?

>> YEAH. THEY HAVEN'T HAD THAT OPPORTUNITY AND SOME OF THEM WILL STICK CLOSE TO THE CEMENT AND THE WIRE MESH.

>> Reporter: TAKE A LOOK AT KRIS. THIS IS HOW SHE SPENDS HER TIME OUTSIDE: ALONE, CLINGING TO A 17-FOOT HIGH CONCRETE WALL APPARENTLY TRAUMATIZED. BUT IN RECENT YEARS, JAPAN, EUROPE AND THE U.K. HAVE ALL ENDED THE PRACTICE, LEAVING THE U.S. AND GABON THE ONLY TWO NATIONS THAT ALLOW SCIENTISTS TO CONDUCT TESTS ON CHIMPANZEES, BUT MAYBE NOT FOR LONG.

>> IF THIS COMMITTEE HAD BEEN TASKED TO DO WHAT IT WAS ASKED TO DO FIVE YEARS FROM NOW, WE PROBABLY WOULD HAVE SAID THERE IS NO LONGER ANY NEED FOR THE USE OF CHIMPANZEES.

>> Reporter: JEFFREY KAHN IS A PROFESSOR OF BIOETHICS AT JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY. HE CHAIRED A BLUE RIBBON COMMITTEE FOR THE INSTITUTE OF MEDICINE THAT TOOK A HARD LOOK CHIMPANZEE TESTING IN THE US AS THE OUTCRY FROM ANIMAL RIGHTS ACTIVISTS REACHED A CRESCENDO.

>> WE DID ACKNOWLEDGE THAT FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF THIS COMMITTEE, THE FACT THAT CHIMPANZEES ARE VERY CLOSE TO HUMANS GIVES THEM A DIFFERENT STATUS.

>> Reporter: IN LATE 2011, THE COMMITTEE LAID OUT STRICT GUIDELINES FOR CHIMP TESTING: THE RESEARCH MUST BE DONE ONLY WHEN IT'S LIFESAVING, IT CAN'T BE DONE ETHICALLY IN HUMANS, THERE ARE NO OTHER MODELS, AND THE ANIMALS ARE SOCIALLY AND HUMANELY HOUSED. WHEN THE REPORT ARRIVED HERE AT THE NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH, THEY EMBRACED THE NEW RULES ALMOST IMMEDIATELY AND FORMED A NEW WORKING GROUP TO EXAMINE ALL RESEARCH THAT RELIES ON CHIMP TESTING. JAMES ANDERSON OVERSEES THAT GROUP.

>> BUT THE FIRST TEST OF THIS WORKING GROUP IS TO REVIEW ALL OF THOSE ONE AT A TIME AND HOLD THEM UP AGAINST THE I.O.M. PRINCIPLES AND TELL US. THIS IS CONSISTENT OR THIS IS NOT CONSISTENT. AND IF THEY'RE NOT CONSISTENT, THEN WE'LL WORK WITH THE INVESTIGATORS TO CLOSE DOWN THE PROJECT.

>> Reporter: WHEN THE NEW RULES ARE APPLIED, THERE ARE VERY FEW RESEARCH PROJECTS THAT MAKE THE GRADE. AND MOST OF THEM HAVE SOMETHING TO DO WITH THE HUNT FOR A VACCINE FOR HEPATITIS "C." RIGHT NOW, CHIMPANZEES ARE THE ONLY LABORATORY ANIMAL THAT CAN BE INFECTED WITH THE VIRUS, ALTHOUGH IT DOES NOT MAKE THEM SICK.

>> I DO APPRECIATE THE SENTIMENT THAT GOES WITH CHIMPANZEES. I FEEL IT. I GO HOME AND SAY, ARE WE STILL ON THE RIGHT TRACK? ARE WE STILL DOING THE RIGHT RESEARCH AND IS IT ABSOLUTELY REQUIRED? AND I COME BACK AND I SAY, YES.

>> Reporter: ROBERT LANFORD IS A SCIENTIST AT THE TEXAS BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH INSTITUTE, WHERE THEY HOUSE ABOUT 3,000 PRIMATES THAT ARE USED FOR RESEARCH-- BABOONS, RHESUS MONKEYS-- AND ABOUT 150 CHIMPANZEES. SABRINA BOURGEOUS IS ONE OF THE PEOPLE HERE WHOSE SOLE JOB IS ENSURING THE CHIMPANZEES ARE HEALTHY AND HAPPY.

>> I WOULD SAY ABSOLUTELY SOME OF MY BEST FRIENDS ARE CHIMPANZEES. ON A BAD DAY, I COME AND SEEK OUT MY FRIENDS. OH, YOU DON'T WANT IT. YOU WANT SOMETHING DIFFERENT?

>> Reporter: THE ATTENTION, TOYS, PUSH POPS AND PRIMATE FRIENDS MAKE IT ALL SEEM LIKE CHIMP HAVEN. BUT THERE WAS AN AWFUL LOT THEY WOULD NOT LET US SEE HERE. NONE OF THESE CHIMPS WERE IN THE MIDST OF A SCIENTIFIC STUDY. WE DROVE BY THE COMPOUND WHERE THAT HAPPENS, BUT WERE NOT ALLOWED TO GO INSIDE, MUCH LESS RECORD VIDEO OF ANY ACTIVE RESEARCH OR MEDICAL PROCEDURES.

>> Reporter: IS THERE SOMETHING WE'RE NOT SEEING HERE THAT YOU'D RATHER US NOT SEE?

>> IT'S NOT THAT WE'RE TRYING TO HIDE SOMETHING. THAT WE HAVE A MISSION HERE, THAT IS TO PROVE IMPROVE HUMAN HEALTH CARE AND WE BELIEVE THAT WHEN PEOPLE SEE THAT PICTURE, THEY CAN'T LISTEN TO THE MISSION ANYMORE.

>> Reporter: MAYBE SO. OUR TRIP DID COME ON THE HEELS OF AN NBC NEWS REPORT, WHICH SHOWED THIS: ONE CHIMP GETTING SEDATED, BLACKING OUT AND CRASHING TO THE GROUND. AND ANOTHER GETTING BLOOD DRAWN WHILE UNCONSCIOUS ON A TABLE. AND TAKE A LOOK AT THIS DRAMATIC VIDEO OF A SEDATION AT ANOTHER RESEARCH FACILITY. THIS CAME FROM AN UNDERCOVER INVESTIGATION BY THE HUMANE SOCIETY.

>> THEY SEE THAT, AND THEIR EMPATHY AS A HUMAN AUTOMATICALLY GOES OUT TO THAT ANIMAL AND SAYS, THIS DOESN'T LOOK GOOD.

>> Reporter: SO IS IT CRUEL OR NOT? WELL THAT DEPENDS WHO YOU ASK. SABRINA BOURGEOIS IS UNEQUIVOCAL. SO THEY'RE NOT SUFFERING?

>> NO, I DON'T BELIEVE. I COULDN'T WORK HERE IF THEY WERE. I REALLY COULDN'T-- I GENUINELY CARE FOR AND LOVE THESE ANIMALS. I THINK A LOT OF US WOULDN'T BE HERE. THOSE WHO WORK WITH ANIMALS WOULDN'T BE HERE IF THEY SUFFERED.

>> Reporter: BUT THEY DO ENDURE REPEATED SEDATIONS AND BIOPSIES. MEDICAL FILES UNCOVERED BY THE PHYSICIANS COMMITTEE FOR RESPONSIBLE MEDICINE TELL SOME GRIM STORIES. TAKE ROSIE FOR EXAMPLE. AT 30 YEARS OLD, SHE HAS ENDURED 15 LIVER BIOPSIES, MULTIPLE BLOOD DRAWS AND 99 SEDATIONS, SEVERAL RESULTING IN SEIZURES. AND SHE IS STILL A TEST SUBJECT AT TEXAS BIOMED. ANDREW ROWAN IS CHIEF SCIENTIFIC OFFICER FOR THE HUMANE SOCIETY.

>> YES, THEY ARE SUFFERING. AND THEN THE OTHER THING ABOUT IT IS THE BIOPSIES ARE NOT BENIGN. I MEAN, THE CHIMPS THAT WERE RETIRED OUT OF THIS ONE LAB IN NEW YORK, THEY DIED AT 35. THEY CAN LIVE TO BE 55, 60 YEARS OF AGE.

>> Reporter: BUT DOES THE END EVER JUSTIFY THE MEANS? SCIENTISTS ARE USING CHIMPANZEES TO TRY AND STEM A RAGING EPIDEMIC OF HEPATITIS "C." FULLY 3% OF THE WORLD'S POPULATION-- APPROACHING 200 MILLION PEOPLE-- CARRY THE HEP-C VIRUS. THE DRUGS USED TO TREAT IT ARE NOT ALWAYS EFFECTIVE AND CARRY HORRIBLE SIDE EFFECTS AND THERE IS NO VACCINE.

>> ARTHUR, NICE TO SEE YOU.

>> HEY, YOU DR. SCHIFF! GOOD TO SEE YOU.

>> Reporter: ARTHUR, WHO ASKED US NOT TO USE HIS LAST NAME, BELIEVES HE CONTRACTED HEPATITIS "C" DURING HIS DAYS AS A PARAMEDIC. HE NOW HAS CHRONIC LIVER DISEASE AND HAS SUFFERED FATIGUE, NAUSEA, IRRITABILITY AND DEPRESSION FROM MULTIPLE DRUG TREATMENTS.

>> IT'S AN INSIDIOUS DISEASE. AND IT'S ONE THAT MULTIPLIES AND GROWS. ME FOR EXAMPLE, HAVING A VERY MILD CASE OF INFLAMMATION OF THE LIVER AND WITHIN A TEN-YEAR PERIOD, IT PROGRESSES TO CIRRHOSIS.

>> Reporter: EUGENE SCHIFF OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI, IS ARTHUR'S PHYSICIAN. HE HAS BEEN IN THE TRENCHES TREATING HEPATITIS PATIENTS AND RESEARCHING THE DISEASE FOR FOUR DECADES.

>> I THINK I'D BE A HYPOCRITE IF I SAID WE DON'T NEED THE CHIMPANZEE, AND I THINK I'D BE DOING A DISSERVICE TO MANKIND.

>> Reporter: ON HIS DESK, HE KEEPS A STATUE OF A FAMOUS RESEARCH CHIMP NAMED DAPHNE. TESTING ON HER HELPED SCIENTISTS DISCOVER THE PROTEASE INHIBITORS THAT MAKE LIFE A LITTLE EASIER FOR THE LIKES OF ARTHUR.

>> THERE ISN'T A DAY THAT I DON'T GIVE SOMEWHAT-- SOME THANKS TO DAPHNE FOR THE GIFT THAT SHE GAVE ME.

>> Reporter: SCIENTISTS SAY THEY ARE CLOSE TO A LESS MORALLY FRAUGHT ALTERNATIVE TO CHIMPANZEES. LABS IN NEW YORK AND MAINE ARE BREEDING SO CALLED HUMANIZED MICE WHICH HAVE LIVERS THAT CAN BE INFECTED WITH HEPATITIS "C." BUT THIS ALTERNATIVE WON'T BE A REALITY FOR AT LEAST FIVE YEARS. MEANWHILE, A MORATORIUM ON BREEDING LAB CHIMPS BEGAN IN 1995, SO EVENTUALLY THE TESTING WILL END OR WILL IT? SOME SAY WE SHOULD KEEP A COLONY AT THE READY FOR DISEASES WE CAN'T PRICT. THE GOVERNMENT IS EXPECTED TO DECIDE ON THAT LATER THIS YEAR. EVEN SO, WITH A THOUSAND CHIMPS STILL IN U.S. RESEARCH LABS RIGHT NOW, LINDA BRENT IS MAKING PLANS TO EXPAND CHIMP HAVEN.

>> Reporter: YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE A LOT OF POTENTIAL VISITORS HERE, RIGHT? EXCUSE ME, NOT VISITORS.

>> RESIDENTS.

>> Reporter: RESIDENTS. HOW'S THAT ALL ARE GOING TO WORK OUT FOR YOU?

>> WELL, WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT IT. I THINK IN THE VERY NEAR FUTURE, WE WILL BE ABLE TO PROBABLY SAY THAT WE HAVE TAKEN CARE OF THE CHIMPANZEES THAT HAVE SERVED IN MEDICAL RESEARCH BY GIVING THEM A FITTING RETIREMENT.

>> YOU READY? YOU READY?

>> Reporter: AND HOPEFULLY, AN OCCASIONAL PITCH IN THE STRIKE ZONE. OH, YES! YES!

>> Brown: IT'S SCIENCE THURSDAY ON OUR WEBSITE. THERE WE HAVE MORE ON CHIMP HAVEN, WHERE THERE'S SOMETHING OF A BABY BOOM UNDERWAY, THOUGHT TO BE DUE TO MALES WHOSE VASECTOMIES ACTUALLY REPAIRED THEMSELVES.

>> Woodruff: NEXT, NEW CAUTIONS

>> Woodruff: NEXT, NEW CAUTIONS ARE RAISED OVER DRUGS TO HELP YOUR BONES. MARGARET WARNER HAS OUR STORY.

>> Warner: MILLIONS OF WOMEN AS THEY AGE GRAPPLE WITH WHETHER TO TAKE BONE-DENSITY BUILDING DRUGS TO TREAT OR PREVENT OSTEOPOROSIS. THIS WEEK, THE FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION-- IN AN ARTICLE IN THE "NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE"-- URGED CAUTION ABOUT LONG-TERM USE OF SO-CALLED BISPHOSPHONATES, LIKE FOSAMAX, BONIVA AND ACTONEL. LONGTERM USE HAS BEEN LINKED TO RARE FRACTURES AND SIDE-EFFECTS. OSTEOPOROSIS AFFLICTS SOME EIGHT MILLION WOMEN AND TWO MILLION MEN IN THE U.S., AND ANOTHER 34 MILLION HAVE REDUCED BONE MASS THAT RAISES THEIR RISK FOR THE DISEASE. THE F.D.A. ANALYSIS, DRAWING ON TWO EARLIER INDUSTRY-FUNDED STUDIES, FOUND MANY OF THESE WOMEN DERIVED LITTLE OR NO BENEFIT FROM THE DRUGS AFTER THREE TO FIVE YEARS. FOR MORE, TO DR. CLIFFORD ROSEN, DIRECTOR OF CLINICAL RESEARCH AT MAINE MEDICAL CENTER'S RESEARCH INSTITUTE, AND A PROFESSOR AT TUFTS UNIVERSITY MEDICAL SCHOOL. HE CO-WROTE THE ARTICLE ACCOMPANYING THE F.D.A. STUDY. DR. ROSEN, THANKS FOR BEING WITH US. THERE'S BEEN...

>> THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME, MARGARET.

>> Warner: THERE'S BEEN AN ONGOING DEBATE ABOUT THESE DRUGS. WHAT NEW... WHAT IS NEW HERE IN THIS ANALYSIS THAT THE F.D.A. HAS JUST PROVIDED?

>> I THINK WHAT THEY DID IS THEY ASKED THE QUESTION ARE THESE DRUGS CONTINUALLY BEING BENEFICIAL IF THEY'RE ADMINISTERED OVER A LONG PERIOD OF TIME. WE KNOW THAT THE DRUGS WORK OVER THREE TO FIVE YEARS AND THE QUESTION THEY WERE ASKING IS ARE THEY STILL EFFECTIVE IF YOU CONTINUE TO TAKE THEM? THERE'S REALLY BEEN NO STATEMENT OR NO DATA ON WHAT... HOW LONG INDIVIDUALS SHOULD TAKE THESE DRUGS AND WITH SOME SIDE EFFECTS BEING REPORTED WITH INCREASING FREQUENCY STILL RARE BUT THERE ARE SOME SIDE EFFECTS, THE F.D.A. DECIDED TO GO BACK AND LOOK VERY CAREFULLY AT ALL THE TRIALS THAT WERE CONDUCTED THAT LOOKED AT LONG-TERM TREATMENT. THAT IS MORE THAN THREE TO FIVE YEARS.

>> Warner: AND WHO IS TAKING THESE DRUGS AND HOW WIDELY IS IT PRESCRIBED?

>> RIGHT. SO THAT'S BEEN THE PROBLEM. IS WHEN THESE DRUGS CAME OUT... THEY'RE GREAT DRUGS, THEY REDUCE FRACTURE RISKS AND PROTECT INDIVIDUALS AGAINST OSTEOPOROSIS. WE INITIALLY THOUGHT WE SHOULD GIVE THEM FOR A LIFETIME AND NOBODY WAS REALLY CLEAR SHOULD THERE BE A STOP TIME? SHOULD THEY COME OFF AND GO BACK ON? AND AS PEOPLE STARTED TAKING THEM FOR UP TO 15 YEARS NOW SINCE THE FIRST DRUG HAS APPROVED THERE WAS CONCERN ABOUT THE SIDE EFFECTS AND EVERYONE GOT CONCERNED AND ASKED WHAT IS THE OPTIMAL DURATION OF TREATMENT? AND I THINK THIS IS WHERE THE INVESTIGATION BEGAN.

>> Warner: WHEN YOU SAY "SIDE EFFECTS," WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? THE SERIOUS ONES.

>> INTERESTINGLY ENOUGH THERE WERE VERY SEVERE SIDE EFFECTS WHERE THERE WAS PROBLEM WITH THE JAW, WITH INFECTION. BUT THEN OVER THE LAST FIVE YEARS THERE HAVE BEEN REPORTS OF FRACTURES OCCURRING IN WOMEN WHO HAVE BEEN TAKING LONG-TERM THERAPY WITH THESE DRUGS WHICH WE CALL THE BISPHOSPHONATES. AND IT WAS THIS, I THINK, THAT ALARMED BOTH REGULATORS AND INVESTIGATORS AND CLINICIANS TO GO BACK AND LOOK AT THE LONG-TERM STUDIES.

>> Warner: EXPLAIN, IF YOU WOULD HOW THESE DRUGS WORK IF THEY'RE WORKING RIGHT IN THE EARLY GOING.

>> SO THEY'RE VERY EFFECTIVE IN THE EARLY GOING. THEY BLOCK THE BODY'S ABILITY TO DISSOLVE THE BONE EVERY TEN YEARS WE GET A NEW SKELETON. IT'S SURPRISING WE DON'T NOTICE IT, BUT WE GET A NEW SKELETON AND PART OF THAT PROCESS IS THE REPAIR PROCESS. FIRST THE BONE IS DIGESTED AND THEN IT'S REPAIRED. IF THE DIGESTION IS TOO GREAT THEN THERE'S BONE LOSS. WHAT THESE DRUGS DO, WHERE THEY'RE VERY EFFECTIVE, IS STOPPING THIS BONE... WHAT WE CALL BONN REABSORPTION, OR DISILLUSION OF BONE. SO THEY BUILD BONE DENSITY BY KEEPING THE BONE THAT YOU ALREADY HAVE AND ENHANCING IT. SO THE THEORY IS GREAT AND THEY ACTUALLY WORK FOR THE FIRST THREE TO FIVE YEARS.

>> Warner: SO IF THEY DO INCREASE THE DENSITY OF YOUR BONES, WHAT IS IT ABOUT THEM THAT WOULD MAKE AFTER FIVE YEARS... SOME PEOPLE ARE AT GREATER RISK FOR A SERIOUS FRACTURE.

>> RIGHT. SO WE DON'T THINK THERE'S A GREATER RISK OF FRACTURE BUT WE DON'T THINK THERE'S ANY ADDITION BENEFIT SO FOR REASONS WE DON'T UNDERSTAND WE KNOW THAT THE DENSITY WILL CONTINUE TO INCREASE BUT WHEN YOU LOOK AT PRESIDENT RATE OF FRACTURES THAT BEGINS TO PLATEAU. SO THE PROTECTION WHICH WAS 50% TO 70% REDUCTION IN FRACTURES WE SAW IN THE FIRST THREE TO FIVE YEARS THEN GRADUALLY DISAPPEARS EVEN THOUGH THE BONE DENSITY IS GOING UP. SO THAT MEANS THERE'S PROBABLY OTHER FACTORS GOING ON. SO WHAT THE F.D.A. FOUND WAS THAT IF YOU CONTINUE THE DRUGS BEYOND FIVE YEARS THERE'S NO ADDITIONAL BENEFIT. NOW, WE DON'T KNOW THE TRUE RISK OF THESE RARE SIDE EFFECTS AND THAT'S ONE OF THE ISSUE THAT HAS TO BE RESOLVED. BUT THE FACT THAT THERE'S NO CONTINUED BENEFIT MADE THEM COME OUT WITH THE FINDINGS IN REVIEW OF THE DAY THAT THAT WAS AVAILABLE.

>> Warner: SO WHAT'S THE TAKEAWAY MESSAGE FOR WOMEN WHO MAY HAVE BEEN TOLD THEY EITHER HAVE OSTEOPOROSIS OR IN THE BROADER CATEGORY, I THINK IT'S CALLED OSTEOPENIA WHERE THEY HAVE SOME BONE DENSITY LOSS. WHAT SHOULD THEY DO?

>> THE BOTTOM LINE MESSAGE IS IF YOU HAVE VERY LOW BONE DENSITY AND/OR YOU'VE HAD A FRACTURE OF YOUR SPINE AND YOUR BONE DENSITY IS VERY LOW YOU ARE STILL AT VERY HIGH RISK OF FRACTURE. THOSE INDIVIDUALS-- AND WE TRIED TO POINT THAT OUT IN OUR ARTICLE-- THOSE INDIVIDUALS SHOULD BE MAINTAINED ON THE CURRENT DRUGS WE HAVE. BUT IF YOUR BONE DENSITY HAS GOTTEN BETTER OR IF YOU'RE IN THE OSTEOPENIAC RANGE, WE FOUND THAT CONTINUING THERAPY IS NOT NECESSARILY NEEDED BECAUSE THE DRUGS STAY IN THE SYSTEM FOR A FAIR AMOUNT OF TIME AND THERE'S NO ADDITIONAL PROTECTION.

>> Warner: DR. CLIFFORD ROSEN, THANK YOU SO MUCH.

>> Woodruff: FINALLY TONIGHT, THE UNFOLDING DRAMA OF A POLITICAL FIGURE AT A KEY TURNING POINT IN AMERICAN HISTORY. GWEN IFILL HAS OUR CONVERSATION.

>> Ifill: HISTORIAN ROBERT CARO HAS SPENT NEARLY FOUR DECADES TELLING THE STORY OF A SINGLE MAN-- FORMER PRESIDENT LYNDON BAINES JOHNSON. THE FOURTH HEFTY VOLUME IN HIS SERIES OF BIOGRAPHIES IS "THE PASSAGE OF POWER." IT COVERS THE PIVOTAL FOUR YEARS BETWEEN 1960 TO 1964 AS HE ROSE FROM SENATOR TO VICE PRESIDENT THEN THROUGH THE STUNNING TRAGEDY OF THE KENNEDY ASSASSINATION TO PRESIDENT. AND THERE IS YET A FIFTH VOLUME TO COME. ROBERT CARO JOINS ME NOW.

>> NICE TO BE HERE.

>> Ifill: SEEMS LIKE THIS IS A BOOK ABOUT TRANSFORMATION.

>> YES, THE TRANSFORMATION AT THE LYNDON JOHNSON AS THE MIGHTY SENATE MAJORITY LEADER, THE MOST POWERFUL MAJORITY LEADER IN HISTORY. HE WAS SENTENCED TO THE PIT OF THE VICE PRESIDENCY AND THREE YEARS OF HUMILIATION AND IN THE SINGLE CRACK OF A GUNSHOT IT'S ALL REVERSED AND HE'S PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.

>> Pelley: YOU USE THAT TERM "CRACK OF A GUNSHOT" THROUGHOUT THE BOOK. SEEMS LIKE THAT IS THE RUNNING THEME. HE SAYS HE THOUGHT IT WAS A MOTORCYCLE... HE KNEW IT WAS THE CRACK OF A HUNTING RIFLE. SO DOES THE SECRET SERVICE AGENT IN JOHNSON'S CAR. AT THE MOMENT THE GUNSHOT SOUNDS HE SEES THE PRESIDENT... PRESIDENT KENNEDY START TO FALL TO THE LEFT. HE WHIRLS AROUND, HE GRABS LYNDON JOHNSON'S SHOULDER, THROWS HIM DOWN TO THE FLOOR OF THE CAR, LEAPS OVER THE BACKSEAT AND LAYS ON TOP OF HIM. JOHNSON WAS LATER TO SAY "I'LL NEVER FORGET HIS KNEES IN MY BACK AND HIS ELBOWS IN MY BACK." AND SHIELDS JOHNSON'S BODY WITH HIS OWN.

>> Pelley: THIS MOMENT...

>> Ifill: THIS HAPPENED AT THE TIME HE WAS MOST MISERABLE IN HIS PUBLIC CAREER AS VICE PRESIDENT.

>> HE WAS TELLING HIS AIDES TO FIND OTHER JOBS. HE SAID "I'M FINISHED.

>> Ifill: AND KENNEDY THOUGHT HE WAS FINISHED, TOO.

>> IT WAS CERTAINLY STARTING TO LOOK LIKE THAT MIGHT BE MORE OF A POSSIBILITY.

>> Ifill: LET'S TALK ABOUT HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH THE KENNEDYS. GARYS WILL WROTE ONE OF THE REVIEWS OF THE BOOK AND HE DESCRIBED THE BOOK AS A MORAL DISPOSITION ON THE NATURE OF HATRED.

>> WELL THERE ARE THREE STRONG PERSONALITIES. LYNDON JOHNSON, JACK KENNEDY AND BOBBY KENNEDY. LYNDON JOHNSON DESPISES JACK KENNEDY. BUT HE'S THE SENATE MAJORITY LEADER, KENNEDY IS A YOUNG SENATOR. JOHNSON SAID OF HIM "HE'S PATHETIC. HE WAS PATHETIC AS A SENATOR, HE DIDN'T EVEN KNOW HOW TO ADDRESS THE CHAIR." HE USED TO MOCK HIM, HE USED TO LITERALLY CALL HIM NOT A MAN'S MAN. HE SAID HE USED TO SAY TO PEOPLE "YOU KNOW HOW SKINNY HIS ANKLES ARE?" AND HE'D HOLD UP HIS FINGERS LIKE THIS. HE DOESN'T REALIZE... HE THINKS HE'S GOING TO HAVE THE DEMOCRATIC NOMINATION IN 1960. HE DOESN'T REALIZE THAT THIS YOUNG SENATOR FOR WHOM HE HAS NO RESPECT REALLY IS A GREAT POLITICIAN AND IS RACING AROUND THE COUNTRY CORRALING DELEGATES AND PRESSING PEOPLE AND TAKING THE NOMINATION AWAY FROM HIM. BY THE TIME JOHNSON WAKES UP IT'S TOO LATE.

>> Ifill: AND HIS LITTLE BROTHER WHO WAS CONSIDERED THE REAL NUMBER TWO WHEN PRESIDENT KENNEDY WAS PRESIDENT, ATTORNEY GENERAL, HE WOULD BE UNDERCUTTING HIM AT EVERY TURN, AT LEAST THAT'S THE WAY JOHNSON SAW IT.

>> BOBBY KENNEDY, YOU HATE TO USE WORDS AS A HISTORIAN LIKE HATRED, BUT HATRED ISN'T TOO STRONG A WORD TO DESCRIBE THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ROBERT KENNEDY AND LYNDON JOHNSON. THEY HATED EACH OTHER. ROBERT KENNEDY SAID OF LYNDON JOHNSON AFTER HIS BROTHER WAS KILLED, HE SAID... HE NEVER WOULD CALL JOHNSON PRESIDENT. SO WHEN HE USES THE WORD PRESIDENT, THAT'S HIS BROTHER. HE SAID MY PRESIDENT WAS A GENTLEMAN AND A HUMAN BEING. THIS MAN IS NOT. HE'S MEAN, BITTER, VICIOUS, AN ANIMAL IN MANY WAYS.

>> Ifill: THERE WERE TWO EPISODES AROUND THE ASSASSINATION BETWEEN... WHEN LYNDON JOHNSON CALL ROBERT KENNEDY TO ASK IF IT WAS OKAY TO GET SWORN IN IN DALLAS AND THE OTHER WHEN BOBBY KENNEDY ARRIVED AT AIR FORCE ONE WHEN THE PLANE LANDED IN WASHINGTON.

>> THAT TELEPHONE CALL, YOU KNOW, IS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WHEN YOU LEARN ABOUT IT YOU'RE REALLY SAD. IT'S A MOMENT YOU CAN HARDLY UNDERSTAND. ROBERT KENNEDY IS SITTING BY THE SWIMMING POOL AT HICKORY HILL, HIS PLACE IN VIRGINIA. SUDDENLY HE SEES A WORKMAN PAINTING THE HOUSE CLAP A TRANSISTOR RADIO TO HIS EAR AND COME RUNNING DOWN TOWARD THE POOL AT THE SAME MOMENT THE TELEPHONE RINGS ON THE TABLE BY HIM ANDETTE THEY WILL, HIS WIFE, PICKS IT UP AND IT'S J. EDGAR HOOVER TO TELL ROBERT KENNEDY THAT HIS BROTHER HAS BEEN SHOT. LESS THAN AN HOUR LATER, THE MAN THAT ROBERT KENNEDY HATED IS ON THE PHONE TO HIM ASKING THE FORMALITIES OF HOW HE ASSUMES HIS BROTHER'S POWER. THE SECRETARY WHO TOOK DOWN THE OATH, JOHNSON ASKED ROBERT KENNEDY FOR THE WORDING OF THE OATH. KENNEDY... HE COULD HAVE ASKED ANY ONE OF A HUNDRED PEOPLE FOR THAT. AND THE SECRETARY... KENNEDY HAS HIS DEPUTY GIVE HIM THE OATH. I ASKED THE SECRETARY, A WOMAN NAME MAD REE FAMER WHO STILL LIVES IN WASHINGTON WHAT IT WAS LIKE AND SHE SAID HIS VOICE WAS LIKE STEEL, BOBBY WAS NOT, HE HAD STARTED. I THOUGHT "YOU SHOULDN'T BE DOING THIS."

>> Ifill: JACKIE KENNEDY WAS ALSO... YOU SEE HER IN THE PHOTOGRAPH. SHE GAVE GREAT LEGITIMACY TO THE PASSING OF POWER BY STANDING NEXT TO LYNDON JOHNSON BUT SHE HAD MIXED FEELINGS AS WELL ABOUT JOHNSON.

>> WELL, YOU KNOW, SHE ONCE WROTE TO TED SORN SON "YOU MUST KNOW HOW FRIGHTENED MY HUSBAND WAS THAT LYNDON JOHNSON MIGHT BECOME PRESIDENT." THIS IS REALLY AFTER THE CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS WHEN JOHNSON WAS SO HAWKISH IN THE MEETINGS OF THE...

>> Ifill: HE WAS HAWKISH AND PUSHED TO THE SIDE AS WELL DURING THAT PERIOD.

>> YES, YES.

>> Ifill: SO HE BECOMES PRESIDENT THROUGH NO ACTION OF HIS OWN, THERE'S A GRIEF THAT OVERCOMES ALL OF THE MEMBER OF THE KENNEDY INNER CIRCLE YET HERE COMES THE TEXAN TO TAKE OVER AND IN HIS FIRST SPEECH TO THE JOINT SESSION OF CONGRESS WHAT DOES HE DO? HE DECIDES TO TAKE ON CIVIL RIGHTS.

>> HE SAYS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING WE CAN DO IS PASS THE CIVIL RIGHTS BILL THAT JACK KENNEDY INTRODUCED AND FOUGHT FOR FOR SO LONG. AND HE PICKS UP THIS BILL. THAT THE TIME THAT KENNEDY WAS ASSASSINATED, AT THE MOMENT HE WAS ASSASSINATED HIS TWO TOP PRIORITY BILL-- CIVIL PROOGTS AND TAX CUTS-- ARE DEAD IN THE WATER. CONGRESS HAS STOPPED HIM THE SOUTHERNERS CONTROL NINE OF THE 16 GREAT STANDING COMMITTEES OF THE SENATE. THEY CONTROL THE SENATE ABSOLUTELY. THE CIVIL RIGHTS BILL HASN'T EVEN GOTTEN OVER TO THE SENATE. IT'S IN THE HOUSE RULES COMMITTEE WHICH IS RULED OVER BY JUDGE HOWARD. WITH SMITH OF VIRGINIA. HE HAS YET TO TELL ANYBODY WHEN THEY HAVE HEARINGS OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS BILL. JOHNSON WAS A GENIUS, A LEGISLATIVE GENIUS. HE REMEMBERS THAT A REPRESENTATIVE HAS INTRODUCED A DISCHARGE POSITION TO TAKE THE BILL AWAY FROM SMITH'S COMMITTEE. THESE PETITIONS SELDOM GO ANYWHERE AND THE PRESIDENT IS NEVER BEHIND THEM BECAUSE IT'S CHALLENGING THE HOUSE PREROGATIVE. JOHNSON MAKES A CALL AND YOU HAVE TO SAY THE FIRST HALF OF THE CALL IS JOHNSON SAYING "I'LL NEVER INTERFERE WITH THE HOUSE PREROGATIVES." THEN HE SAYS TO BOWLING DO YOU SEE ANY WAY TO GET THIS OUT OF COMMITTEE, BOWLING SAYS NO. AND I WROTE IN THE BOOK THERE WAS ONLY ONE LEVER LYNDON JOHNSON WAS GOING TO PUSH IT. AND TO WATCH HIM PUSH THAT DISCHARGE PETITION THROUGH AND GET THE CIVIL RIGHTS BILL IS LEGISLATIVE GENIUS.

>> Ifill: IT'S THE OLD LYNDON JOHNSON THAT WE KNOW FROM "MASTER OF THE SENATE" YOUR LAST BOOK. AND IT'S HIM COME BACK. IN IT HE ALSO SAYS... YOU QUOTE HIM AS SAYING TO DORIS KEARNS GOODWIN "I HAD TO TAKE THE DEAD MAN'S PROGRAM AND TURN IT INTO THE MARTYR'S CAUSE."

>> YES. AND HE USES THE SYMPATHY THAT PEOPLE HAD FROM KENNEDY. THAT HELPED HIM GET THE BILLS MOVING. HE ALSO USES HIS GREAT KNOWLEDGE OF LEGISLATIVE TECHNIQUES AND THE SECRETS OF THE SENATE TO GET THESE BILLS MOVING.

>> Ifill: IN THE NEXT BOOK WE WILL HEAR ABOUT WHAT BROUGHT HIM DOWN AND THAT'S THE WAR IN VIETNAM.

>> VERY DARK STORY. SAD STORY.

>> Ifill: WE LOOK FORWARD TO READING IT. ROBERT CARO, THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

>> Brown: YOU CAN FIND MORE OF GWEN'S INTERVIEW WITH ROBERT CARO. PLUS, PHOTOS FROM HIS BOOK ON OUR WEBSITE.

>> Woodruff: AGAIN, THE MAJOR DEVELOPMENTS OF THE DAY: SUICIDE BOMBERS STRUCK THE HEART OF SYRIA'S CAPITAL, KILLING 55 PEOPLE AND WOUNDING MORE THAN 370. AND REPUBLICANS IN THE U.S. HOUSE PUSHED THROUGH A BILL TO PREVENT AN AUTOMATIC 10% CUT IN THE DEFENSE BUDGET AT YEAR'S END. INSTEAD, IT CUTS FOOD STAMPS, HEALTH CARE AND FEDERAL PENSIONS. ONLINE, WE UPDATE ON THE DEBATE OVER CHANGING THE NAME OF POST- TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER. HARI SREENIVASAN EXPLAINS. HARI?

>> Sreenivasan: SOME EXPERTS PROPOSE CALLING IT POST- TRAUMATIC STRESS INJURY INSTEAD. FIND THE DETAILS ON OUR HEALTH PAGE. PLUS, REMEMBER THE SALE OF THE PAINTING "THE SCREAM" FOR NEARLY $120 MILLION LAST WEEK? PAUL SOLMAN LOOKS AT PRICE TAGS FOR OTHER MAJOR WORKS AND AT THE INVESTMENT VALUE OF ART ON HIS MAKING SENSE PAGE. ALL THAT AND MORE IS ON OUR WEB SITE: newshour.pbs.org. JUDY?

>> Woodruff: AND THAT'S THE "NEWSHOUR" FOR TONIGHT. I'M JUDY WOODRUFF.

>> Brown: AND I'M JEFFREY BROWN. WE'LL SEE YOU ONLINE AND AGAIN HERE TOMORROW EVENING WITH MARK SHIELDS AND DAVID BROOKS AMONG OTHERS. THANK YOU AND GOOD NIGHT. MAJOR FUNDING FOR THE PBS NEWSHOUR HAS BEEN PROVIDED BY:

>> GROWING UP IN ARCTIC NORWAY, EVERYBODY TOOK FISH OIL TO STAY HEALTHY. WHEN I MOVED TO THE UNITED STATES ALMOST 30 YEARS AGO, I COULD NOT FIND AN OMEGA-3 FISH OIL THAT WORKED FOR ME. I BECAME INSPIRED TO BRING A NEW DEFINITION OF FISH OIL QUALITY TO THE WORLD. TODAY, NORDIC NATURALS IS WORKING TO FULFILL OUR MISSION OF BRINGING OMEGA-3s TO EVERYONE, BECAUSE WE BELIEVE OMEGA-3s ARE ESSENTIAL TO LIFE. AND WITH THE ONGOING SUPPORT OF THESE INSTITUTIONS AND FOUNDATIONS. AND... THIS PROGRAM WAS MADE POSSIBLE BY THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING. AND BY CONTRIBUTIONS TO YOUR PBS STATION FROM VIEWERS LIKE YOU. THANK YOU. Captioning sponsored by MacNEIL/LEHRER PRODUCTIONS Captioned by Media Access Group at WGBH access.wgbh.org