[Berman:] So remember what Barbara Bush said recently about having more Bushes in public office? That maybe it's time for other families to step up?
[Barbara Bush, Former First Lady:] And if we can't find more than two or three families to run for high office, that's silly. I think the Kennedys, Clintons, Bushes, there's just more family than that.
[Pereira:] Well, apparently, one of her grandson is not listening. George P. Bush, Jeb's son, is running for Texas land commissioner. He has own big bus and everything. Now, given how much land Texas has, winning that office could very well set the stage for another Bush, another George Bush, in fact, in national politics.
[Berman:] Allan Lichtman is an author and history professor, at American University. And Allan, of course there was that famous quote in the first race that Ted Kennedy ran for Senate when his brother was president. His opponent said, "If your name was Edward Moore, not Edward Kennedy, your candidacy would be a joke." Now, we're not saying that George P. Kennedy or Joe Kennedy III up in Massachusetts that they're not accomplished in their own right. But it's fair to say it's hard to imagine them being in the position they're in if they didn't have the names that they had.
[Allan Lichtman, History Professor:] You are absolutely right. Though, as we know, Edward Kennedy went on to become one of the greatest senators in the history of the country. So this can cut both ways. He wouldn't have been elected had he not been a Kennedy, but if that had been case, the country would have been greatly deprived. Look, we don't have an aristocracy in America. But we in fact do have an aristocracy in America, as you know. It's people who are well connected politically, who are wealthy, who have name recognition, who have the resources to run for office. You know, there's a quotation Joe Kennedy, the father, once said, "With the money I'm spending, I could elect my chauffeur."
[Pereira:] So Allan, let me ask you then, really though, given the name recognition factor, isn't that really our fault as much as it is theirs? Are we being lazy voters saying, "Oh, I recognize that Kennedy name on the ballot. I know they came from a political family. He'll do the job."
[Licthman:] I hate to dump on American voters, but I think you're absolutely right. Unfortunately, American voters are very lazy and, look, they tend to send the same kind of people back to office. Look at the Congress of the United States. It has approval ratings lower than Attila the Hun. And the American voter sends the same kind of people back to Congress. We need to be open to new kinds of people in politics, not just people from well-connected families or people with a lot of money. But where are the labor leaders? Where are the poets? Where are the artists? Where are the doctors? People who can enrich our politics, they're not there.
[Berman:] Where are the artists? That's what I want to see more of. I want to see more musicians in public office.
[Lichtman:] There you go.
[Berman:] Allan, one of the things about these families we talk about the Kennedys, we talk about the Bushes. There is a legacy of public service within these families. So these kids grow up talking about issues around the dinner table. They give or they grow up knowing that they want to give back. So there is that element of it there. I wonder though, if your goal is to get more families involved here, how do you do it? How do you get the musicians? Because really one of the only ways to break into politics is to have money.
[Lichtman:] That's right. There is only one answer to this, and unfortunately it will take either changing the Constitution or a very different Supreme Court, and that is complete public financing of campaigns and much tighter laws on lobbying and special interests. That's a pipe dream, of course, but that's the only way it is going to happen because our politics are now so money driven. To run even for a congressional seat in a competitive race, you need millions of dollars. To run state-wide races in even a medium-sized state, say, for U.S. Senate, you need tens of millions of dollars. Where do you get that? If you're a Bush, no problem.
[Pereira:] If you're a Clinton, no problem. But it's interesting, because we've both been going back and forth on this thing, when you see the fact that, you know, these people Chelsea Clinton, we just had her on screen a second ago. She was raised by these two bright people immersed in this, so there's obviously something that she could lend to it. But then on the flip side, if you don't, no fresh ideas. No fresh perspective. No artists in the White House.
[Berman:] I want that musician there.
[Pereira:] He does. He is looking for a rock star.
[Lichtman:] How about you two? How about you two?
[Berman:] Skeletons, man. Skeletons. Sorry. All right, Allan Lichtman, great to see you today. Thank you so much. You know, people used to ask me if my dad was Chris Berman at ESPN. And I'm like, no, my dad is Gary Berman. If my dad was Chris Berman, I might be anchoring at a different time slot.
[Pereira:] A totally different time slot. We're going to take a short break here at this hour. Ahead, though, first, we had of course NSA spying controversy. Now the Department Homeland Security, they want to keep a closer eye on your car. Is this smart law enforcement or is it government stalking?