family. >> reporter: his thoughts in the white house. >> i don't want to see a narrow-minded leadership encourage a narrow-minded congress. >> reporte . >> his hollywood life. . >> his hollywood life. >> his hollywood life. it's my pleasure to sit down exclusively with the second l y lady, in california. jill biden joins me now. is the such an amazing place. tell me what you've been doing here? >> this morning, i went to a place, they took me to a village they had constructed, like an f afgh afghan village and did a live fire and showed me what the marines went through or are going through as they went to afghanistan. i went and looked at the place where they teach them how to handle bombs and ieds and talked to all the marines there in. it was a pretty intense morning. >> when you are that close and they're firing live ammunition, what's the difference between that and everything you've read or heard about it? >> i think it made me realize just what our servicemen and women are going through. i see them a lot before they go and see a lot of wounded warriors. to get the mindset of what it looks like and smells like and feels like is pretty incredible, to see what these men and women and courage they have and resilience to go into these villages and not knowing what they're going to encounter. it's pretty incredible. seeing -- i met with the women marines who go into the village s and so they meet with all the women in there and try to meet their needs. it was intense. >> you've had a personal interest. your son, bo, fought in iraq. what was that like for you as a warrant to exactly s warrant -- parent to see a son go to war? >> i think it was really tough for our family, to have bo deployed, that whole year was very tough. he has two small children and just like every other service member, i mean, he missed their birthdays and christmas and i like to -- the way i can relate it is, it was hard for our family, especially during the holidays, thanksgiving and christmas, we'd look down the table and bo was not there and we'd all try to pretend like, you know, we were having a great holiday, but it really does create an empty space in your heart. that's why i think when i go to visit the military families, a lot of times, i think i really connect with the military moms because i know what they've gone through. i know what it's like to have a child -- even though he's a grown man, he's still my child. >> how much harder is it that your husband is one of the decision-makers to go into war, to go into battle zones? >> actually, that's one of the best things about it for me. i knew joe truly wanted to get out of iraq and wants to get our soldiers out of afghanistan as soon as they can be pulled out. so i -- one of the reasons i wanted my husband to run for president in the first place, i wanted -- i knew joe would fight to get out of iraq. for me, when we joined with the administration with barack and michelle, i knew that, you know, it's a dream come true that now we're out of iraq and we're moving towards moving out of afghanistan. >> as a mother, in the position of having a son out there, what did you find were the most difficult things to deal with, when you're talking to all the other families? what are the things you most relate to, in terms of problems or issues that arise when you have a loved one who's at battle? >> i think -- well, with the wounded warriors, my son was not wounded, but when they come back, the mothers sort of pull me aside and talk to me privately about, you know, i never thought my son would come back like this and, you know, make these comments to me. i feel like, you know, i just hug them and that's what i thought about, too. what if my son comes back and he's been in battle and he's been wounded? and to be raising children and be by yourself. i know when my daughter in law was by herself and we had a big snowstorm and one of the neighbors came by and quietly shoveled the snow out, never said a word, never went to the door and said, look what i've done. that has the kind of thing -- >> it's so important, isn't it? >> so important. >> to understand, yes. >> i read something you said which really resonated with me, the families don't wear the uniforms. >> exactly. >> in most cases. they can be almost in visible as military families? yes. >> if they had a badge saying my husband or wife is at war, it would be so much easier for them, especially in america where there is such a pro military sentiment among most. without that, they're on their own. >> that's why michelle obama and i created "joining forces," because we felt all americans need to be aware of the sacrifices of the families and that's why we appeal to all americans to commit to an act of kindness, go to your strength, do whatever it is. if you're a baker, make something to take over for a family just like that neighbor did. that was such a kind gesture, to do it, not want any thanks out of the goodness of his heart. >> what was the day like when bo came home? >> that was a wonderful day. we were all so excited he was coming back. you can hear, you know, how uplifting it was. i think his children -- they wouldn't let go of his clothing. they were hanging on to his legs and hanging on. they just didn't want to let go of him. it was joyous. >> we're on the eve of the state of the union. what would you say the state of the union's mood is? what do you get an overall sense of the mood and atmosphere is among the people in the service is right now? >> i think they're uplifted because i think that they know that this administration truly has their back and they are a number one priority for this administration, to take care of them. the four of us are committed. me and joe and michelle and barack. we're all out there working hard for our military, whether that means getting job, improving education, working on wellness, all of us are taking a piece of it. i think -- i think the military know that we're behind them 100 100%. >> obviously, if the democrats win the next election, then joe could face a number of other big decisions, involving sending troops to war. describe for me what it's like to be with somebody that has to make decisions like that or have to live with the daily -- let me give an example. what was it like for your family when the raid on onlisama bin ln took place, because clearly, the upside was huge. the down side, as president carter was telling me the other night, equally huge. tell me what that experience was like. >> i knew something was going on, because joe was at the white house two days before. he was barely home. he couldn't tell me what was going on. but i remember -- and the kids were on the phone with me, like, mom, what's going on? they knew that something big was happening. you know, i was waiting for joe to come home that night, after they had announced it on tv. i saw it with everybody else. i put on my bathrobe and i went downstairs, 12:00 at night. i was waiting for him to come up. i opened the door and down by our gate, people had gathered and they were singing "god bless america." >> wow. >> that was one of the highlights of the last three years, that, you know, barack did what he said he was going to do and all -- i could see on the tv people cheering and you could hear it all over the neighborhoods. that was truly a highlight. >> what were joe's first words when he came in this door? >> gosh, i don't remember. i remember running out and hugging him and saying thank you. >> what a moment. >> truly a moment. >> for the administration and america and the world. i can only imagine. >> yeah. >> is it moments like that that make all the obvious hardships that come with your life now. lots of pluses but lots of minuses. is it for moments like that everything seems worth it? >> yes. for sure. >> let's take a little break. i want to come back and talk more about the vice president. >> okay. >> i'm very interested in how he wooed you. >> oh. >> through an advertisement he saw. >> well -- >> hold your fire. i want to hear about this. >> okay. you name it. i've tried it. but nothing helped me beat my back pain. then i tried salonpas. it's powerful relief that works at the site of pain and lasts up to 12 hours. salonpas. ♪ ( whirring and crackling sounds ) man: assembly lines that fix themselves. the most innovative companies are doing things they never could before, by building on the cisco intelligent network. what's he looking for? i think he's looking for savings. ♪ i can't watch this anymore. stop! there's an easier way! we compare your progressive direct rate to other top companies so you get a great price. no more running around. ha ha ha! wouldn't you love to see the world through his eyes? i bet i look like the strongest man in the world. the best place to find a great deal. now, that's progressive. call or click today. that is better than today. since 1894, ameriprise financial has been working hard for their clients' futures. never taking a bailout. helping generations achieve dreams. buy homes. put their kids through college. retire how they want to. ameriprise. the strength of america's largest financial planning company. the heart of 10,000 advisors working with you, one-to-one. together, for your future. ♪ back with the second lady, jill biden. tell me about your husband. i'm fascinated about this story, he basically got his eyes on you when he saw a picture of you in an advertisement. is this true? >> part of it is true. i had met him once before. we were in a crowd and it was at a fund-raiser. i guess he saw a picture of me somewhere and he said, that's a girl i would like to date. i knew his brother. he said, i know her. i was in college at the time and his brother was there. frank called me and got my number and joe called. said, this is joe biden. would you like to go out? >> where was your first date? >> we went to philadelphia to the movies. >> do you remember the film? >> no, i don't. >> was he so mesmerizing you didn't even -- didn't look at the screen? >> you know, i went out with him because -- i actually had another date that night that i canceled and just because i thought he would be interesting to go out with. i said, this is one time -- just once. but i went out with him and i was really charmed by him. at the door, he was -- you know how guys are usually trying to make their moves and he didn't. >> he was a gentleman. >> he was a gentleman. he shook my hand. i remember going upstairs and calling my mother at 1:00 in the morning, and i said, mom, i finally met a gentleman. >> did you really? >> yes, i did. >> do you think the guy you ditched that night has any idea you ditched him for the later vice president? >> no. >> what are the qualities about joe biden that you think make him fit to be vice president of this country? >> well, i think he has a strong character. i think he's passionate about helping people. i think he's decisive. and he's -- he's smart. >> people say probably the biggest compliment about you is that you've carried on working, unlike most people in your position in history, you've actually continued, and teaching is your great passion. >> right. >> tell me about that, when you decide to go on, many people wouldn't have done that. >> when we were elected, i said to joe, you know, i have to continue to teach. he said, i think you should. then we talked with barack and michelle. said to michelle, you know, i really want to teach, i want to keep at it. she said, you have to do what you love. so four days after the inauguration, i was in the classroom. >> really? >> yeah. >> is it strange teaching when you're the vice president's wife? do you get the same kind of treatment other people do, do you think? >> a lot of my students don't really realize i'm second lady. because they don't either expect it or maybe they haven't watched the news, i don't know, but i can go whole semesters when somebody will say to me, you know what, i saw you on the tv and you were with michelle obama and i screamed to my mom, look, there's my english teacher! my mother said, no, it isn't. so those things happen to me frequently. >> critics of america right now focus on education as one of the big problems. >> uh-huh? would you go along with that? do you think there is a lot more to be done now with education? >> i do. i think a lot more needs to be done. i knew when we joined this administration it was a focus of barack's and he would work hard to keep it better and he has. he's kept his promise. i feel very comfortable we're moving forward and things are getting better? what have been the best and worse things of being the vice president's wife in the last few years? >> the best things are, i think i have a platform and i can do so many things just like you mentioned, with one of the best nights was of course -- >> i tell you what. let me stop you. that is your husband landing. >> is it? it is. how funny is that! >> it's actually them landing. let's keep the camera rolling, actually. this interview has just been interrupted by vice president biden coming over our heads and wrecking his wife's interview. nice plane, though. >> yeah. it is a great plane. >> where were we? i remember. the best and worst moments. >> i've been give an platform and i said i would never waste one day of it. i've tried to hold true to that. look at me today. look where i am at the marines at camp pendleton and the things i have seen. i have been able go to the refugee camps in kenya and fight famine, help fight famine. i've been able to work on my love, education, and work for community colleges for all americans to look at what opportunities they can have. i think that's probably the best things -- everyday is like a best day. there are down times. >> what's been the worst day? >> the worst day, the worst day is a personal kind of thing. it was three weeks before we were elected. within a span of four days, my mother died, my son was deployed to iraq, i had to bury my mother, and then i sort of had to pick myself up and get out on the trail again. that was the worst time for me. >> you've got a pack of rottweiler republicans scrapping it out now -- >> that's your description. >> yeah. mine. scrapping it out to have the right to take on barack obama and your husband. are you guys ready for the fight that's coming? >> yeah. i think we're ready. it wasn't easy the last time. but i think we're ready. we're looking forward to going out and campaigning. i think this is my 13th campaign. i'm a veteran campaigner. as are the other three principals. we're going out, talking to americans, seeing what's on their minds. we're all looking forward to it? what does being an american mean to you? >> i think it means, you know, having traveled around to other countries and i think the aspect of freedom is really important. i've seen it in --you know, with the refugees, i've seen it going to iraq. i just -- and just hearing from so many military families. i think it's having that aspect of freedom. >> jill biden, thank you very much indeed. >> thank you. thank you. >> that was the second lady of the isunited states, jill biden. next, i'll sit down with sean penn and ask him for his take on the state of the union. 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[whoosh, clang] you need lifelock-- the only identity protection company that now monitors bank accounts for takeover fraud. lifelock-- relentlessly protecting your identity. call 1-800-lifelock or go to lifelock.com today. vacations are always wasn'ta good ideaa ♪ priceline negoti - - no time. out quickly. you're miles from your destination. you'll need a hotel tonight we don't have time to bid you don't have to bid. at priceline you can choose from thousands of hotels on sale every day. save yourself... some money sean penn is an actor making movies over 30 years, oscar nominated five times and won twice. he's just as well-known for his passion for politics and putting himself on the line for his causes. sean penn joins me again. welcome back, sean. i always like to talk to you after you had your coffee. feel like it refuse you vvrevvs. the state of the union is tomorrow. what are your thoughts on the state of the union and right now in america. >> it's interesting watching the political landscape, the media political landscape with the republican debates. what happened with newt gingrich, with all of that coming out almost had the effect of branding a seriousness to these candidates because the country had shown it is so fed up with not dealing with the issues of jobs, that in some kind of way that juxtaposition seemed to benefit a perception that is still rather empty. because the job issue is not a discussion on television, it's a life issue in the home. the country has been so invested in these wars a brobroad and re seems to have lost track about what a constitutional america is and what a unified america is. >> when you heard newt gingrich exploding with anger at the cnn debate about this apparent focus what he says is his private life, let me ask you, it's a complicated issue, the issue of a man's character or his private life in relation to his fitness to be president of the united states. do you care? do you care about any aspect of a politician's private life? >> t >> i think the only great skill he has is in responding to such thing and inflaming such things in attacks on others and really gone into his wheel house. but, again, it's this cheapening of it where the issues themselves, and we always hear it, let's stay on the issue, let's stay on the issue, i think that this country has always been that most poised to be the aspiration of any country. >> do you feel proud to be an american right now? >> well, yes, i do, because i have -- i always have had a great belief in the possibility here. i think the fact that we are in a country, whereas individuals, we can still dream, that we can still talk about it as a possibility, it is something to be proud of. in practice, i think that, you know -- that's one of the discussion points, you know, when people are -- somebody says, i'm not proud, someone answers it in the contrary way and i understand that, without considering that a lack of it a -- patriotism. if sometimes we're less than proud, those moments occur, we're just not thinking. >> things have happened as we sat here, troops coming out of iraq. you must have been pleased to see that? >> it was a complicated situation. i would have been much more pleased had we waited and seen the iraqis do as the egyptians are struggling to do, as the libyans have done and in t tunisia, i believe the arab spring would have gotten saddam hussein out of power by this time and saved a lot of american lives and a lot of american dollars and killed a lot less iraqi babies. >> the clear evidence that might have been the case, what happened in libya, where he was in power and in the end taken out by his own people and no loss to american life whatsoever. >> you have this great possibility in libya because it's only 6 million people, non-sectarian, you have foreign countries that have frozen libyan assets, not concerned about criticism of their constituents by releasing funds because it's libyan's people money stolen by gadhafi in the first place and have deep natural resources and great tourist sites and beaches and the oil. i think libya can be an epicenter for something. no doubt the united states support of the nato action there was a brilliant military success. >> very very different to how american military operations have been conducted in relation to des pots in the past. it may be paving a new way for american foreign policy, no longer the world's policeman but the country that goes around backing up people either to have their o