"We had a principle that was guiding us that every legal vote that was cast should be counted, and that was our goal," Brazile adds.

But the U.S. Supreme Court's deeply divided 5-4 decision in Bush v. Gore on Dec. 12 stopped the recount, effectively ending Gore's chances for the presidency.

Brazile herself lives near the U.S. Capitol, and says she had to drive home past the Supreme Court after the decision had been made.

"That was the toughest moment of my life," Brazile says. "For the first time I was so angry and so disillusioned with our government to not only stop the count, but to use the equal protection amendment to stop the count."

Even after losing the decision, as Gore prepared to deliver his nationally televised concession speech Dec. 13, Brazile wanted her candidate to simply withdraw from the election, and not concede defeat.

"I was bitter, I was angry, I was heartbroken, I was dispirited," Brazile says. "I couldn't sleep. I was very emotionally drained."

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