>> gretchen: tomorrow, dr. keith ablow will be here, dave ramsey and a chef will be cooking up a thanksgiving feast. >> brian: thanks for the toys. >> thank you. >> steve: more in the after the show show. we'll see you back here tomorrow, everybody. bye-bye. bill: the super committee admits defeat and both sides play the blame game. house speaker john boehner laying the blame at the feet of the white house.

that's where we start. good morning mp. i'm barry white. martha: you do sounds like barry white. bill: once a year, it's all here. today is my recording day. martha: good morning, i'm martha maccallum. president obama and the democrats say it was the republicans who in the end were unwilling to budge. >> there are too many republicans in congress who refused to listen to the voices of reason and compromise coming from outside of washington. i'll vote tony effort to get rid of those spending cuts. domestic and defense spending. there will be no easy offramps on this one. bill: where to now, stuart?

>> reporter: it means we have another year of debt accumulation. 2012. then at the start of 2013 we have the promise of a $1.3 trillion debt reduction. what we do not have on the table is any reform of entitlements and that's what the rating agencies are looking at most closely. as of right now standard and poor's and moody's say no change in the current rating. but fitch says most likely to revise the outlook to negative. that means they say there is a 50% chance after downgrade from fitch in the future. bill: what would that mean? >> reporter: that's just another loss of our financial reputation. we lost our face. we are no longer king of the hill,. bill: what about the economy and growth? there were numbers out moments ago, what did they say?

>> reporter: gross domestic product. the economy did not grow as fast as we thought it was growing. a mere 2%, not the 2.5% originally reported. we are just bumping along the road nowhere near we should be coming out of a recession. march from feel like the failure of the super committee is bad enough, it's a deeper story in terms of how bad things are in congress right now. lawmakers have only approved 3 of 13 annual spending bills on their list of things to do for this year and we are at thanksgiving. a band-aid for the budget was approved last week but that only gives the government the ability to run through mid-december. is that the feeling you are getting? according to washington insider, they say the debt ceiling is just beginning of this.

>> the lack of progress in the super committee will spill over to everything else. it will affect the mood in congress, it will affect the schedule. success in cap till usually means there will be more success. failure means there will be more failure. martha: tough situation. now you have got this round much automatic across-the-board cuts that are supposed to take cuts -- and i emphasize supposed to take effect. they will be divided equally. none of those big carry big automatic cuts happen until 2013. now, all the nominees for the republican nomination. they are out in force. mitt romney slamming president obama saying the president was the one and sent from this national debate after this debt. >> he has been other things,

campaigning, blaming and traveling. it's almost like a trap has been set. a trap has been set to say, we can cuts the military even more. bill: romney raising concerns over automatic cuts calling it a doomsday scenario. martha: the debt committee could not come up with even a trillion dollars in experiencing cuts. the country during that time alone racked up an extra $40 billion in red ink. that increase, the $460 billion is four times bigger than the amount of the super committee was supposed to try to save per year. bill: so the mess that is our congress. this what else we find now. in a recent quinnipiac university poll 9% did not believe president obama and the super committee would agree to

reduce that deficit. only 24% said they would fail. martha: i think people are disgusted at the lack of their ability to get anything done. the big question right now is can the united states congress get anything done at all? we want to know what you think about this. log on to foxnews.com/americasnewsroom to answer that question of the day. can they do anything at all, folks? and are you concerned about how the no-debt deal will impact you? answer that question for us. you can also send treats to bill hemmer and martha maccallum. bill: newt gingrich cementing his role as front runner, leading the republican needle a new poll.

the former house speaker clocks in at 26%. beating mitt romney by 4 points. interestingly the don't know group takes third place at 19%. in a few moments larry sabato tells us about the most dangerous place for a candidate. that would be on top as we have seen time after time. martha: newt gingrich is doing a little bit to put the poll numbers to work for him. he's keeping up the heat on entitlement spending. he went to new hampshire and tried to sell his plan to fix social security. taking on the third rail in the middle of the campaign season. but he says what he would do is allow younger workers to invest their own money in social security. watch what he said. >> you make the whole thing voluntary. you don't want to do it, don't do it. if you prefer to get less money with less control, that's you are prerogative.

you are allowed to be dumb. martha: vintage newt gingrich. could that work is the big question. coming up another look at newt's plan to overhaul social security. let's go overseas. there are calls for a second revolution to take place in egypt. months after mass protests forced hosni mubarak from office there is a new wave of violence protesting the new military rule that's in place. the crowd on the streets of cairo in recent days. demonstrators are hurling stones, setting up barricades. 10s of thousands pouring into a require square demanding the country's military give up their power. reena ninan is live in our mideast bureau. there are reports that three americans have been arrested in

this melee in cairo. >> reporter: no confirmation they are americans. the u.s. embassy in cairo has given no confirmation. one of them, an i.d. from indiana. state t.v. claims these foreigners were handed over by the protesters to police, that's when they took them in. we are look at a disturbing video. what are we expecting the next few days as we head into the election there? >> reporter: the man who heads the ruling military council is expected to address the protesters any minute now, sometime this afternoon. what the protesters have been demanding, they want a date set for presidential elects no later than april of next year and they want the military council to

transfer power to civilians. we are hearing there is a chance they will announce they will transfer power to egypt's highest ruling judicious authority. but to confirmation of that, martha. bill: it goes on in cairo. those are just some of the stories we are watching. in a moment, a florida mother of three vanishes after an appearance on people's court * the tv show. where is michelle parker and what they are mother believes happened to her might be a bit surprising. martha: he joined the marines in 1971 and he is still on the battlefield. meet this 59-year-old man who says he's fighting so his 19-year-old son doesn't have to. >> i want to frame while they

are so different building off the super committee which i said was the single dumbest legislative idea i had seen. [ male announcer ] you love the taste of 2% milk. but think about your heart. 2% has over half the saturated fat of whole milk. want to cut back on fat and not compromisen taste? try smart balance fat free milk. it's what you'd expect from the folks at smart balance.

martha: a 4-year-old becomes a hero after his ohio home caught fire the middle of the night. he ran in and woke up his mom. he saw smoke coming out his toy truck. >> i saw there was smoke coming out of a cubbyhole door, a storage home. his little truck was sitting in fronts of it. martha: firefighters say the electrical wires inside the wall started that fire. but billy is a hero. bill: new questions on the crash and burn of the super committee. when you lock at our overall debt, that's just a drop in the

bucket. allen west live from his home state. welcome back. you are in a bit of a tricky spot is a see it because around tea party guy and you are also a military guy with a military background. what do you fight for? what else your priority? is it the cuts in spend or to save the mitt cuts that are now on the table? >> i don't see myself as being in a tricky spot. because i understand the primary role and responsibility of the federal government to protect the american people. therefore we need to make sure we do have a strong defense. you talked about the trouble and situation in egypt. when we look across the wowrmd we see more volatility. as a military man i lived through interesting times under the clinton administration where we tried to make the military the bill payer for the federal government. and we set our military up for

some very hard times. in 2003 we didn't have enough body harbor or uparmorred humvees, i had canvas doors. i think since we have already cut the defense department the next 10 years we don't need to make our military families and veterans the bill payers. bill: are you going to fight to make sure the cuts don't happen? >> absolutely. i already stead that. and i think it's interesting because we had a hearing in front of the house armed services committee where the secretary of defense leon panetta who came out strongly against these cuts. yet we hear something different from the president yesterday. bill: the president threatened to veto any effort that comes to

his desk. >> i think that's horrible. bill: what about your tea party supporters that say you have got to bring this stuff down somehow. >> we already looked at cuts in the department of defense by $466 billion the next 10 years. but we have to look at many different government agencies. fails duplicative programs. why do we have a department of commerce and a u.s. chamber of commerce. a department of energy that was created 40 years ago to make the united states of america energy dependent yet are dependent on foreign energy sources 66%. i think we can stop the growth of the bureaucratic nanny state. bill: what did you think about the president's involvement in this process. >> i think it was horrible. i think i know a little bit

about leadership and i'm not seeing it. the president should have come forward and said these are the things i'm willing to do as far as reducing the scope of the federal government. we just sit $15 trillion in less than three years of the obama administration we have seen a president add $4s -- $4.4 trillion to the debt of the united states. bill: are you hopeful or more pessimistic today than yesterday? >> when i look at what happened with this commission, when i look at the fact last friday we couldn't even pass a balanced budget amendment. we are struggling to get appropriations bills completed. i think it's time we get new visionary leadership in washington, d.c. that does not belong the status quo.

martha: is social security in rough shape? newt gingrich laid out a plan that he said could save it to the abyss. could it actually work? we'll talk to one of president reagan's top economic advisors. bill: prince harry in arizona. have you seen this picture? we'll show it to you.

are you anxious to protect your family with life insurance ... but afraid you can't afford it? well, look how much insurance many people can get through selectquote for less than a dollar a day. selectquote found, rich, 37, a $500,000 policy for under $18 a month. even though dave, 43, takes meds to control his

blood pressure, selectquote got him a $500,000 policy for under $28 a month. ellen, 47, got a $250,000 policy for under $20 a month. all it takes is a phone call. your personal selectquote agent will answer all your questions ... and impartially shop the highly rated term life companies selectquote represents for your best rates. give your family the security it needs at a price you can afford. call this number or go to selectquote dot com. selectquote. we shop. you save.

bill: this was not just any old road trip. setting up a motorcycle for

prince harry. the prince in town for apache helicopter training. choosing a black 2012 harley davidson. rent at cost, $150. it appears he made quite the impression. >> he got a phone call from the british secret service. they said we have a special guest who would like a rent a motorcycle. he was very nice. very polite. i walked past him not being aware it was actually him. bill: reports said he rode through the desert for three nights of hang out there. he looked good on the bike, too. martha: william likes to go incognito through the streets of london on his motorcycling. this is a bizarre disappearance with a tv twist. a mother of 3 disappears the same day the episode she was in

on people's court aired. michelle parker was last seen after dropping off her children thursday. laura ingle, what do her family members think happened to her. >> reporter: there have been no signs of the missing mother since she vanished. her ex-fiance is the father of her 3-year-old twins was reportedly humiliated for that episode. the two battled it out over a $5,000 engagement ring that parker allegedly threw over a balcony after an argument. after picking up her twins and dropping them off at smith's house she allegedly disappeared. michelle's sister talked with fox and friend. >> who would want to hurt the mother of their children.

i don't see in any way that he would benefit from it. we are not look at just one direct thing. we are taking in all -- anything that's possible right now. in my opinion nobody is ruled out. >> reporter: shortly after parker droropped off her twins, her brother texted her for a ride. the answer was one short word, "waterford." her family doesn't believe she sent that text. it's been six days since she disappeared. >> every dumpster, baby i hope you are not in here. you crawl on top of stuff. okay, this hundred is eliminated, you are not here. >> reporter: that was her mother. if you have any information,

please call the orlando police department. bill: there are several big storms barreling across the country just in time for thanksgiving travel. martha: newt gingrich taking the lead in yet another poll this morning. can he make those numbers stick? let me tell you about a very important phone call i made.

when i got my medicare card, i realized i needed an aarp... medicare supplement insurance card, too. medicare is one of the great things about turning 65, but it doesn't cover everything. in fact, it only pays up to 80% of your part b expenses. if you're already on or eligible for medicare, call now to find out how an aarp... medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company,

helps cover some of the medical expenses... not paid by medicare part b. that can save you from paying up to thousands of dollars... out of your own pocket. these are the only medicare supplement insurance plans... exclusively endorsed by aarp. when you call now, you'll get this free information kit... with all you need to enroll. put their trust in aarp medicare supplement insurance. plus you'll get this free guide to understanding medicare. the prices are competitive. i can keep my own doctor. and i don't need a referral to see a specialist. call now to get a free information kit. plus you'll get this free guide to understanding medicare. and the advantages don't end there. choose from a range of medicare supplement plans... that are all competitively priced. we have a plan for almost everyone, so you can find one that fits your needs and budget. with all medicare supplement plans, there are virtually no claim forms to fill out. plus you can keep your own doctor and hospital that accepts medicare. and best of all, these plans are...

the only medicare supplement plans endorsed by aarp. when they told me these plans were endorsed by aarp... i had only one thing to say... sign me up. call the number on your screen now... and find out about an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan. you'll get this free information kit... and guide to understanding medicare, to help you choose the plan that's right for you. as with all medicare supplement plans, you can keep your own doctor and hospital that accepts medicare, get help paying for what medicare doesn't... and save up to thousands of dollars. call this toll-free number now. i've tried it. but nothing's helped me beat my back pain. then i tried this. it's salonpas. this is the relief i've been looking for. salonpas has 2 powerful pain fighting ingredients that work for up to 12 hours. and my pharmacist told me it's the only otc pain patch approved for sale using the same rigorous clinical testing that's required fo prescription pain medications. proven. powerful. safe. salonpas.

bill: a travel nightmare in time for one of the busiest travel days of the year. thunderstorms shutting down parts of interstate 30. that's a direct connection between memphis and dallas and drivers were not amused. meteorologist janice dean is live at the fox weather center. you warned me last week. last week you did. are you that good? >> reporter: sure, i'm that good. maybe your travel day might be thanksgiving morning. we'll definitely keep on this one and bring you the latest. also getle unsettled weather across the northwest. here is our big storm system back through the going and we

are seeing some of those severe thunderstorms erupting across eastern texas into louisiana and mississippi. there is your severe weather treat today. heavy downpours and the threat for isolated tornado. let's look at your future radar and time it out. as we head into wednesday morning, the big travel day, northeast, we'll see travel delays and snow and/or freezing rain up toward new england. so we'll be live in the fox weather center and bring you the latest for this possible travel storm. bill: thank you, janice. we'll talk to you later. martha: we have a whole new month and a front runner in the race for the republican nomination. this poll just came out this morning. newt gingrich, 2%.

mitt romney on his heels with 22%, and third place goes to don't know. just can't figure it out. 19% say i'm just watching all this and i have not made up my mind. when you look at the real clear politics average, who better to ask about what all of this means than larry sabato, the director for politics at the university of virginia. good to see you. >> good morning, martha. martha: we watched these folks come and go over the course the last several months. does newt gingrich have staying power? >> the republicans have had between 5-7 frontrunners just in this calendar year. why would gingrich last any longer than the others center in his supporters would say it's because i's a great debater and

he's brilliant an has had long experience in politics. but his detractors would point out he's not very good at organization. he doesn't have as much money. he doesn't have as much focus as other candidates, man the end he has a lot of baggage and a lot of enemies. over time that tend to grind a candidate down. i'm convinced as we get into the new year with the could be test starting, republicans are going to get as serious as a heart attack. they are going to realize something that some of them don't seem to get. some of them think anybody is going to beat president obama. and they could not be more wrong. it's so difficult to defeat an incumbent president. martha: that's something we are hearing seep into the consciousness of relationship dance that this will be a tough race for them. when you look at newt gingrich, one thing people don't seem to

worry about is whether he will have the answers to the questions. tonight we have the foreign policy debate. you worry more about what he says than what he might not remember, right? >> he has a long history, obviously and people naturally forget. we all focus on the moment, the last two weeks or last two months. but this guy has been around since the 70s. so obviously there is a lot of material for his opponents to use. the question is will they use it and who will use it? i don't think romney is going to attack him particularly. the romney people are happy to have newt being the anti-romney because at the right moment they think they can take him down. but the other candidates on that stage have to do something about newt just as they had to do something about perry when he was the front runner and bachmann when she was the front runner and cain when he was the front runner. there will be i think at most

two anti-romney slots, maybe just one, and they all want to be one of those slots. martha: you talk about likability. when you look at the polls, newt gingrich hasn't fared that well on likability polls. he appears snarky, though everybody gives him chops for his intelligence and understanding. but only a couple times have we elected a president that people really didn't embrace and have a warm fuzzy feeling about. >> i can only think of two in modern american history. lyndon johnson and richard nixon. i don't think either one was known for warm and fuzzies. so we'll just have to see whether there is a third. but i think the swing independents want to like a candidate before they will vote for a candidate. you mentioned the q poll. in the q poll romney and obama

are statistically tied, but romney leads gingrich by 2 percentage points. martha: we have two interviews coming up that you don't want to miss. america's newsroom will be your election headquarters. we'll talk to two of the frontrunners including youth gingrich. also michele bachmann will join us live. if you didn't catch her, she is pretty fun are you on late-night tv. stick around for that as well. bill: how rich is donald trump. according to his new book he said he had an outside firm

evaluate his finances finding his net worth is a whopping $7 billion. half of that comes out of real estate the other half is estimated brand value. he has $270 million in cash and equities on hand. that would cover the interest for this hour on the national debt. martha: why do i want to run for president, right? you can get belt buckles that say truck temperature on them. bill: he has great golf courses, too. martha: this man speaks from experience. we are going to talk about newt gingrich again. his plan was specific on what he would do to overhaul social security. bill: black friday turning into black thursday. more and more stores saying they will be open for business on thanksgiving night. how the workers feel about that.

what they are doing is roll back the start of shopping mania is coming up. ♪

martha: the blue angels are known for their death-defying air stunts. jonathon what is the plan? >> reporter: the story is unfolding as we speak. a few minutes ago this large aircraft, a c130 nicknamed fat albert, it many the official support plane of the blue

angels. it landed at dobbins. as we pan over here you can see they will be loading several pallets of toys. they will be picking up and delivering toys to tornado victims in alabama. martha: what a great plan. i think you are also in their plans i'm hearing. >> reporter: my photographer and producer and i will climb onboard that aircraft. we'll fly to fort worth, texas, land there, another lockheed martin facility, they will load up the plane with additional toys. then we'll fly to birmingham, alabama, land there, there will and ceremony with the government in attendance and the u.s. marines will start distributing

those toys to tornado victims through their toys for tots program. >> i know one guy who will be freightful for all the help you are giving them. have fun. bill: is newt's plan to overhaul social security a good idea? allowing younger workers to invest their money >> if you are dumb enough and you want less money with less control and turn it over to politicians, that's power prerogative, we don't require you to be brilliant. but most people will talk to each other. my guess is we'll get between 95% to 99% of the country to join the program over time. bill: how you doing, art? >> very well, thank you, bill. you like this idea.

would it ever happen? >> i think it will happen. and i do like it have much. and i think newt is right on line with this one. if you look at the s & p500. those companies have been moving directly in this way. they have defined contribution plans. and it makes perfect sense that people be in control of their own finances if they want to be. bill: why does it make per expect sense. when you think of the lehman collapse. you don't know how people would have reacted if they saw their retirement savings decline by the great percent and we saw three years ago. this was looked at in the late 90s when the stock market was flying. people said there is your gold rush and you saw what happened. the tech boom, then bust happened. >> if you look at greece, france, italy, spain, portugal. governments can do badly, too. if you look at these numbers over any period of time, i think

you will fine that people will do a lot better by themselves doing a 401k. but if they don't want to do it, they can always opt into the government program. if they think that's better for them. i do just believe people should have a choice as long as there is a guarantee on the floor. i think newt has a minimum guarantee where you can't put all your money into this. bill: what is the gairn knee this case? >> i think newt has a guarantee even if you do opt out that you are guaranteed the minimum amount of benefits in social security, not the maximum, but the minimum amount. >> there would be a floor and that would be your safety nets. he said two things yesterday that caught my attention. i don't know if you agree or disagree. studies show given the opportunity, 9% of americans would opt in. is the number that high? >> if you look at private

companies the number is very high. it's very high. and the people in private companies that opt for 401ks and stocks and bonds necessity do tonight large numbers. i think it would be a very large number. i'm not sure newt is right on the exact number, but it's very large. bill: he said it would increase the size of the u.s. economy by as much as $20 trillion. >> again i'm not going on the size of the number. newt has a great staff. they are really competent economists. so i don't want to second guess them. but it would add a lot because people would be putting it into capital forenation this country. and that will increase output employment, production, productivity and that will lead to a lot larger economy and stronger production base for america bill: he says they are doing this in chile and they have had

remarkable results. >> they have. the man who developed it, jose pineta. his brother is president of chile. and they have a fully funded system in chile and it's working terrifically. if you look at the countries in south america chile is as good if not better than any of the others. pill * in the 80s bill: in the 80s you worked on this with reagan? >> there was the greenspan commission which we extended the age of retirement from 5 to 67. -- from 65 to 67. we grew the economy like mad so there were far more contributions than there had been under carter and a lot less withdrawals because we had the retirement test back then.

bill children upon got rid of that. and we brought it from a very large unfunded liability in social security to a much smaller unfunded liability. bill: we'll see how big of an issue it becomes on the trail. happy thanksgiving to you. enjoy the turkey there in tennessee. hemmer at foxnews.com. because you ask. you. martha: so i love word association it's always fun. how about a game of word association with a presidential hopeful. the one word michele bachmann had for each of her republican rivals. this got very entertaining. she also had one word to describe president obama. bill: a true american hero for decades. we'll introduce you to the oldest american soldier serving on the front lines in the war in afghanistan. >> reporter: why did you reenlist at your age and your

experience? >> who knows. as long as i'm able to do it, i'll do it. [ courier ] the amazing story of whether bovine heart tissue can make it from australia to a u.s. lab to a patient in time for surgery may seem like a trumped-up hollywood premise. ♪ but if you take away the dramatic score... take away the dizzying 360-degree camera move... [ tires screech ] ...and take away the over-the-top stunt, you're still left with a pretty remarkable tale. but, okay, maybe keep the indulgent supermodel cameo... thank you. [ male announcer ] innovative medical solutions. fedex. solutions that matter.

bill: some employees at target asking management to drop its plans to open at midnight. but it appears the retail giant is not budging. 200,000 signed scene online petition that's been handed to corporate headquarters. one employee says his job is at stake but it's a battle worth fighting. >> if i lose it and it happens i believe i'm standing for the greater good so i'm willing to make the sacrifice. >> our guests expressed they

would prefer to have their shopping experience after the holiday celebrations rather than getting up in the middle of the night. bill: retailers have opened their doors in the wee hours of black friday for a long time. employees who work thanksgiving will get time and a half their hourly rate. martha: can't we wait until morning to get these things started? if you mention the word retirement around this man you are seeing you may regret it. at 59 staff sergeant don nichols is the oldest soldier currently serving on the front lines of afghanistan. he reenlisted after 9/11. and has also served tours in afghanistan and iraq. an says he's not done yet. connor? >> reporter: our fox news crew is in kunar province.

we are streaming from inside a tent because this is an area that sees attacks nearly daily and we don't want our bright lights making the troops a target. keeping in mind how violent this area is, it makes staff sergeant don nichols story all the more impressive. another day, another patrol. sergeant don nicholas is just like any other soldier except he's one of if not the oldest soldier serving on the front lines. at 59 years old he's anything but ordinary. >> why did you reenlist at your age and your experience? >> i don't know, it was -- >> reporter: back home in his native ohio, he was a

podiatrist. oh was hoping to be sent 0 a war zone an was. first to afghanistan, then iraq, then again to afghanistan. >> i didn't want everyone else out there doing things i think i should be doing. >> reporter: his enthusiasm and dedication inspires his fellow soldiers. after three wars and 63 months in combat zones the pentagon says sergeants nick must retire next summer when he returns 60. >> as long as i'm able to do it, i'll do it. >> reporter: because he is a trained doctor he's hoping to join the medical corps so they can stay in longer. they have a higher age limit for when you have to leave the military. he will find out later this spring. martha: what a story.

conor powell live from kunar province. bill: he's 59, going to be 60 and he's hanging out with those guys in eastern afghanistan? martha: that's what he wants to do. bill: great for him, he's a superman for doing that. job well done. so much dedication. the big question of the day, can congress get anything done after the failure of the super committee? martha: teargas fired off during a heated debate between lawmakers where this dramatic scene -- look at that. looking good! you lost some weight. you noticed! these clothes are too big, so i'm donating them.

how'd you do it? eating right, whole grain. [ female announcer ] people who choose more whole grain tend to weigh less than those who don't. multigrain cheerios... five whole grains, 110 calories. >> announcer: if you think identity theft is scary, just wait till you try to fix it. >> 58 different individuals are using... absolutely using my old social security number. >> announcer: identity theft has topped the federal government's list of consumer complaints for the last 11 years. it's a serious problem with

anyone with a social security number, and it continues to get worse. fact is, on your own there are many things you can do to deter identity theft. protect your social security number. be internet savvy. use intricate passwords. safeguard your purse and wallet. shred and destroy. seriously, are you really going to do all that? or do you want someone to help protect you from identity theft? at lifelock-- the gold standard in identity theft protection-- we're here to help. we take proactive steps to deter identity theft, to help stop it before it happens. get the protection you need right now. try lifelock risk-free for a full 60 days. >> someone was trying to open up a consumer account under my social security number, and lifelock contacted me, and we were able to stop that account from being opened. >> announcer: so why get lifelock? you're nearly four times more likely to have your identity stolen than to have your home burglarized. at lifelock, we believe you have the right to live life without having to think twice every time you fill out a form, make a

purchase, or throw out your mail. call today and we'll send you this free, comprehensive identity theft protection kit with enrollment. don't wait until you become the next victim. lifelock your identity today for 60 days, risk-free. order now and also get this document shredder to keep your documents out of the wrong hands-- a $29 value, free. call or go online now. [♪...] [lock clicks] martha: well, he is a leading gop white house hopeful. mitt romney comes out swinging now at president obama in his first official tv ad which was just released. he says the president has failed

the economy, and he vows that he will repeal the overhaul of health care. so let the battle begin, folks, on the tv airwaves. that's how we start a brand new hour of "america's newsroom," i'm martha maccallum. bill: and i'm bill hemmer. you were feeling rotten, and we flipped. the former governor of massachusetts, mitt romney, targeting voters in new hampshire with that ad, and it features footage of obama as a senator in '08 at a rally in new hampshire, that same state. [cheers and applause] >> thank you! i am confident that we can steer ourselves out of this crisis. who's been in charge of the economy? we need a rescue plan for the middle class. we need to provide relief for homeowners. if we keep talking about the economy, we're going to lose. martha: so that is what folks will be looking at coming from

mitt romney's camp. joined now by steven hayes, senior writer for the weekly standard. steve, good morning. what do you think? >> morning, martha. well, it's a very tough ad. i think the controversy that's surrounding the ad right now concerns the section where president obama says if we keep talking about the economy, we're going to lose. martha: right. >> what obama was doing was actually quoting john mccain or, actually, not quoting john mccain, but quoting an aide to john mccain who was quoted in "the new york times" as saying something along those lines. so the obama campaign was mischaracterizing something john mccain supposedly said but actually didn't, and now the romney people are using this in their ad, and it's getting cries of foul from democrats. martha: yeah x. that has gotten some attention as to whether or not that quote should be attributed to president obama because he was campaigning and quoting mccain's folks, as you say. >> right. martha: in terms of mitt romney and his strategy, you can almost

look at what will be written about this in time because from the very beginning he has sort of kind of hung back and put his focus on president obama. he hasn't engaged in really any of the back and forth between these candidates, and it remains to be seen if it will work for him. >> it does. i mean, but one thing he has done early, and i think they deserve credit for this, is they have focused on the jobs issue. they have talked about president obama from the beginning, and in this ad i think we see romney beginning to do something that i'm surprised other republican candidates vice president done more, and that's go back to the final six weeks of the 2008 campaign where president obama laid out his plan with great detail of how he was going to rescue the economy. remember, he gave a speech in new hampshire, he gave one subsequently in toledo, ohio n which he even, in effect, laid out the stimulus plan that was passed by the democratic congress once he was inaugurated and, frankly, didn't work. i've been surprised that republicans vice president done more to show that -- haven't done more to show that, to make the connection between the words

he used on the campaign back in 2008 and the results we have seen or in this case haven't seen over the past two and a half years. martha: right now this thing changes every couple of weeks, but right now it looks like newt gingrich and mitt romney, and everybody's going to be watching these two this evening. when you look at iowa and new hampshire, and i think we have a new hampshire poll we can pull up, it's looking like a scenario, you can see mitt romney's well ahead in new hampshire. you could see gingrich take iowa and romney take new hampshire. >> yeah. that's entirely possible. iowa, it seems to me, a total freefall. new hampshire there was one poll that showed gingrich close to romney, but most of the other polls have shown romney with a commanding lead, as this one does. what was interesting being with newt gingrich in south carolina not this weekend, but the weekend before, was that he's talking about south carolina as the decisive state. he, in effect, says i need to win in south carolina if i'm

going to win the nomination, and this will essentially be the deciding state because of the chaos coming out of iowa and the likely mitt romney success in new hampshire. he's talking openly about what he sees his strategy is to win the nomination. martha: he may be right about that in terms of south carolina's role. steve hayes, thank you so much. always good to chat about you -- we don't talk about you, with you. bill: if you only knew, steve. [laughter] the republican field jumping on the white house for the failure of the supercommittee, almost in unison slamming the president for his inaction on the debt. first, rick perry on "special report" center seat last night. >> we know what the problem is. we're spending too much money, we're taxing way too much, and it's one of the reasons i laid out that 20% flat tax, to get americans back working again. and that's what this was always about. how are we going to get americans back working again? and this president has, i mean,

you think about it, he was looking for somebody to blame. bill: governor perry says the president and congress should work through the thanksgiving holiday and the weekend to undo the budget mess but, apparently, that's not going to happen. martha: so michele bachmann with a similar message likening our ballooning debt to the european crisis. she's saying that our failure to work out a deal is a tragedy. watch this. >> we look at greece, and it's obvious to all of us what has to be done. they've got to cut back on spending, the welfare state isn't working. well, pick up a mirror and look into it. that's the united states. we're spending too much money too. we can't afford a welfare state, and so don't do it anymore. martha: so what would she have done differently as president? michele bachmann will be here tomorrow, and we'll ask her that question. bill: a lot of questions on the line there. in the meantime, the supercommittee's failure means billions of dollars in if automatic spending cuts are supposed to kick in, creating an

entirely new battle and a deadline for lawmakers. chief congressional correspondent mike emanuel on that. good morning, mike. >> reporter: good morning. bill: what are they saying about the automatic cuts at the moment, mike? >> reporter: well, for a lot of republicans and those strong on national security, there's grave concern about the impact on defense spending. we've heard leon panetta come out and say these cuts could have a devastating impact on our military, the pentagon is already cutting some $450 billion out of the budget. they say another 5 to there are 600 billion would really have an impact of hollowing out the military. so buck mckeon says he will craft legislation in the coming days to try to avert those cuts, to try to get around them. we've heard some others saying they'll look to try to modify the cuts to, you know, perhaps in a smart way cut spending as opposed to just across the board slashing the defense budget and then the domestic spending budget. and so that is the challenge ahead, bill. bill: all right. so they will fight on that

front, but the white house, the president says, you know, if you want to try and avoid these cuts, forget about it, because i'll veto anything that comes to my december, -- desk, right? >> the president said he was not going to give congress an easy offramp from the cuts that are facing the country. his aides have made clear they are concerned about the cuts. look, they realize that cuts are going to cause pay. but, essentially, the president said, you know, unless you come to me with a balanced plan to deal with our deficit problem, i am not going to allow you to get around the cuts. there's no easy way out for congress. he's going to keep the pressure on congress to try to get something done, bill. bill: so they will simmer over turkey, then get back at it. >> reporter: that's right. bill: thank you from the hill there. martha: we want to hear from you, let us know what you're thinking. can congress get anything accomplished? right now almost everybody on this poll is saying, no.

94.47% say, nope. and then you've got the optimistic folks at 5.53 saying, yeah, they think they can get something done. go to foxnews.com/"america's newsroom," weigh in our question of the day, and you can kind of see what other people are thinking about this. bill: i'm thinking your three kids could get more done. [laughter] martha: i know they can. especially with me behind them. [laughter] bill: that's right. we're going to ask leaders offense the hill that -- on the hill that very question. texas senator john cornyn is here live on whether or not congress can move the ball forward, we'll talk to him. martha: she was featured on an episode of "people's court," and there were barbs flying back and forth, and then right after it aired, she vanished. what happened to michelle parker? bill: that's a mystery today. nine of its players charged with viciously beating two students from a rival high school, but

this football coach had their suspensions lifted, and today there is outrage from a small town the state capitol. >> what's on trial here is the whole town being separated into two, and i am not hearing any remorse, gee, i'm sorry we got into a fight. welcome idaho,

where they grow america's favorite potoes. everyone knows idaho potatoes taste great. but did you know they'reood for you too? they're high in vitamins and potassium. and idaho potatoes are now certified to carry the heart checkmark from the american heart assoction for foods low in saturated fat and cholesterol. so they're good for my family, and for yours. heart smart idaho potatoes. always look for the grown in idaho seal.

bill: we have incredible video this morning of a massive warehouse fire in virginia. flames burning so high, they could be seen from at least 12 miles away. there are reports the warehouse stored everything from food to furniture for nonprofits. no word yet on how it started, but look at those flames trickle off into the night. luckily, no one was hurt. martha: all right. so back to the big story of the day. hours after the supercommittee's failure on the u.s. debt crisis, top lawmakers blamed it all on party politics. congressman hensarling said this:

martha: house speaker john boehner came in, and he said: martha: and then you have the senate majority leader, harry reid, weighing in as well: martha: so i am joined now by texas republican john cornyn, he is both on the senate budget committee and on the senate finance committee, so he deals with dollars all the time. senator cornyn, what is an american to think when they look at this situation in washington? >> well, i think they are getting awfully tired, as am i, with the blame game. what they'd like to do is see their elected officials working together to solve our nation's problems, and one of our biggest problems is, obviously, a lot of people out of work, but also our huge debt. and the president understands this very clearly as really, i

think, most people do, and it's disappointing to see that the failure of the supercommittee. but, martha, i want to tell you, i think the way people ought to look at this, and jeb hensarling nailed it in "the wall street journal" this morning, he said this is really a big debate about the role and the size of the government and its relationship to us as individuals, how much of our individual freedom we want the give up to the government, how much we're going to become dependent on the government as opposed to growing opportunities for every american to reach their potential. martha: all right. so that says, you know, if you sit back and you say, look, we have different philosophies on the way to fix things, that tells me that nothing will happen in terms of congress getting anything done, even a budget, you know, put through which we haven't seen in something like 900 days. until there's a presidential election change? until there's 60 senate seats? is that what we're supposed to sit back and accept? >> no. people shouldn't accept it.

but what we got in 2010 after two years following 2008 the president and his party could jam through anything they wanted to, and they did. obamacare, a failed stimulus package, wall street reform that hit main street as collateral damage. but the problem is now for america is we have divided government, and we have competing philosophies over the role and the size of government. and whether we can just tax our way into prosperity or whether we need to facilitate the growth of small businesses that are the primary engine of job creation. so this debate is very -- martha: understood. i understand. and, you know, there's a couple of things here. you know, a lot of people are saying that the president did not show leadership on this issue, and that he never rolled up his sleeves and sat down and got everyone together and said, look, here's what i would encourage you guys to do specifically. now folks are talking about erskine-bowles again, about going back to the bowles-simpson model and putting that on the

table again and saying this is something we can do. do you have any hope for that kind of route, or will that go the same way? >> one of my biggest disappointments in the president is after his own fiscal commission reported back, this bipartisan commission, december 2010, he walked away from it. and i think it would be very constructive to tee that up. it does have some bipartisan support, and i think offers constructive ideas about how to solve our fiscal problems. i don't like everything in it, but no one's going to like everything in a final grand bargain. but at least if president would take some ownership and show some leadership, it would get political cover to people in his own party, and i think we could actually get something constructive done. martha: when you look at polls, there's a lot of support for tax reform in this country, you know, for throwing out this ridiculously huge tax code we have and making some serious changes there, and i think a lot of people scratch their heads and say isn't that something you folks on capitol hill can at least get together on and begin

the process for in earnest and not say, oh, a year from now, 2013, we're going to start doing that kind of thing, or means testing or raising the age for medicare or social security, not for people who get et now, but for people who get it down the road? why do these ideas have no traction in the halls of congress? >> well, republicans on the select committee made the proposal to do exactly what you describe can, do pro-growth tax reform which would lower marginal rates which would eliminate a lot of the subsidies and, actually, income test for some of the most wealthy and affluent in our society. martha: right. >> we're not demonizing people who are successful. we're saying they don't need as much help. and, unfortunately, democrats couldn't agree on a response, and we couldn't get it done. this debate's going to continue, and we're going to have a decision in november 201. martha: are we greece? are we heading into a situation, you know, where we look like

greece? >> well, if we don't deal with the problem. but i'm confident we will deal with the problem. it's just kind of messy right now. but we've overcome huge problems in the past. we're americans, we're in charge of our own destiny, and we can deal with this. unfortunately, we may need to get some new leadership to help us do it. martha: all right. senator cornyn, thank you. good to have your input on all in this morning. i think folks are so discouraged, so we appreciate you being here. bill: a big hangover from the supercommittee. in a moment we're going to bring in bob and andrea. she says she told you so, he says she's wrong. shocker. their debate only moments away. martha: and, boy, there is new fallout from this disturbing video. look at this. i mean, that is disturbing. an officer pepper spraying dozens of students at an apparently peaceful demonstration. what really happened there? when we come back. >> one of the worst, most

painful experiences of my life. it was excruciatingly painful. i couldn't see, i was disoriented, it was -- i can't describe it, it was awful. [ male announcer ] how are we going to make this season better than the last?

how about making it brighter. more colorful. ♪ and putting all our helpers to work? so we can build on our favorite traditions by adding a few new ones. we've all got garlands and budgets to stretch. and this year, we can keep them both evergreen. more saving. more doing. that's the power of the home depot. make your season even brighter with 300-count icicle lights for just $7.48.

martha: let's get you a quick check of the headlines right now. the son of moammar gadhafi set to face trial inside libya. the international criminal court will monitor the trial as libya's transitional government sets up a new court system. and a follow-up to a story we brought you back in september, at least a dozen more new york students have now been implicated in that s.a.t. cheating ring on long island, some students may face felony charges in that case. and here's the good news of the day, folks, no tax on jack. bill hemmer's very happy about

this. tennessee stopping their proposal to slap a $5 million annual tax on barrels of jack daniel's whiskey. one lawmaker saying that issue, it is dead, bill. bill: i can't do the jack daniel's. it's out of my league, out of my ability. new fallout following a pepper spray incident at the university of california davis. this video shows a police officer pepper spraying dozens of protesters. the schools chancellors apologized, the students say that's not enough, and they want her out. claudia cowan's live on this? san francisco. what's the latest now? >> reporter: or shu sheer is. -- she sure is. most of the outrage directed squarely at the chancellor of uc davis. meantime, the head of the system says he is appalled by these images of police dousing those seated students with pepper spray, video that has now gone viral. witnesses tell fox news the protesters were warned beforehand, but now he is

ordering new use of force guidelines which many protesters say are long overdue. defiant students have once again put up tents in the same location just hours after the campus police chief was put on administrative leaf, and the chancellor was shouted down at a demonstration while trying to apologize for the incident. >> i'm here to apologize. [cheers and applause] i really feel horrible for what happened on friday. >> the video, it's a human rights violation, what happened was disgusting. i don't think that it was necessary at all. >> reporter: yesterday thousands of students, faculty and community members chanted slogans against police and called on the chancellor to resign, and they're planning another day of action, bill, a general campus strike on monday when regents will meet and possibly vote on higher tuition fees, one of the protesters' biggest complaints. bill: we will keep an eye on that. what's with the camp in san

francisco? what's happening there? >> reporter: well, the big tent city across there the ferry building at the foot of san francisco's market street might be seeing its last days. last week city officials declared it a health and safety risk. now there is word that all police holidays today have been canceled. the feeling there is that a police crackdown is iminnocent but, bill, no one appears to be living on their own. we'll keep an eye on things. bill: that we will. 25 minutes past the hour now, martha? martha: trillions of dollars now on the chopping block, but we barely heard a word from the white house while the supercommittee was struggling in there. now after the inevitable failure some might say, how much blame does the oval office deserve in all of this? plus this. bill: you thought our congress was dysfunctional. try being a lawmaker in seoul, south korea. good luck.

ok, people. show me the best way to design a vacation on a budget with expedia. make it work. booking a flight by itself is an uh-oh. see if we can "stitch" together a better deal. that's a hint, antoine. ooh! see what anandra did? booking your flight and hotel at the same time gets you prices hotels and airlines won't let expedia show separately. book it. major wow factor! where you book matters. expedia. [ male announcer ] fellas know that when you don't get your shave right, the irritation can be a problem. [ record scratches, crowd boos ] so get your grooming game right with gillette fusion proglide razor... which has thinner, finer blades for less tug and pull along with the gillette irritation defense shave gel. together they help defend against 5 signs of shaving irritation -- leaving your skin looking smooth and feeling fresh.

help defend your skin. ♪ time is running out to select your medicare coverage. the annual enrollment period ends wednesday, december 7th. so call now to enroll in a plan that could give you the benefits and stability you're looking for, an aarp medicarecomplete plan insured through unitedhealthcare. what makes it complete? this plan combines medicare parts a and b which is your hospital and doctor coverage with part d prescription drug coverage, and more, all in one simple plan starting at a zero dollar monthly premium, beyond what you pay for medicare part b. this plan offers you benefits like an annual physical, preventive screenings, and immunizations for a $0 copay. you'll also have the flexibility to change doctors from a network of providers dedicated to helping you stay healthy. there's more.

when you enroll in an aarp medicarecomplete plan insured through unitedhealthcare, your benefits could also include vision and hearing coverage, and prescription drug coverage that's accepted at pharmacies nationwide. the pharmacy saver program makes prescriptions available for as little at $2 at thousands of pharmacies. unitedhealthcare has worked with these pharmacies to get low costs for our members. enroll today and enjoy advantages like these for as low as a zero dollar monthly premium, beyond what you pay for medicare part b. now is the time to look at your options and enroll. start getting the benefits of an aarp medicarecomplete plan insured through unitedhealthcare. but you need to act now. annual enrollment ends wednesday, december 7th. call unitedhealthcare today about an aarp medicarecomplete plan. you can even enroll right over the phone. or visit us on the web. don't wait. call now.

martha: a fox news alert for you now, we take you back to the scene in cairo where it is the early hours of the evening, and there has been so much violence there. the second uprising, the first overthrew hosni mubarak, and this second sun with to get -- one is to get rid of the military power.

three american students have now been detained in cairo. fox can now confirm that, and i believe we have video of these three students, this is the video that purports to show one of them out there in the crowd, and we have pictures of the three of them after they were detained. there you go. there are the identifications of these three students, one from indiana, and here is the shot of the three of them standing there looking a bit scared, i would say, in this situation. we're going to work on more details for you. we'll get you more -- bill: it's just been heating up every day, hasn't it? okay, critics asking where was america's chief executive while hope of a supercommittee deal withered away on capitol hill? it was, essentially, radio silence out of the white house. while this group of six republicans and six democrats butting heads on reducing the deficit. now some prominent politicians saying the president failed to lead. new york city mayor michael bloomberg, quote, the executive branch must do more than submit a plan to a committee and then step aside and hope the members

take action. tough problems require determined, forceful and bold leadership and real action, end quote. bob beckel, former democratic campaign manager, andrea tantaros, they are co-hosts of "the five" and friends of ours here at "america's newsroom." good morning to both of you. >> good morning. bill: i do not see that leadership happening from a guy who's largely supported this white house. now, bob, andrea said she told us all along this was the way it was going to work out, you disagreed. and i don't know, my head's spinning because i'm trying to remember the conversation. >> well, i can't remember that either but -- >> oh. will: andrea, are you sticking by your claim? >> i am. bill: make your point. >> i'll concede it. she was right, i was wrong. and never again are they going to have the powers vested in 12 people to do the things they could have done. never again. look, these guys were able to go past the committee bowls, straight to the floor, no

amendments, no filibuster, they didn't do it. now, the question about obama, when this thing was formed they asked obama, both the democrats and republicans, to stay away from this. but he didn't stay away. he had, his office of management and budget, he was constantly putting stuff in there. and at the end when the democrats -- belatedly, by the way -- came through with their proposal on social security and medicare, i think it was too late -- bill: so you're making the argument that he was involved, and others are saying this was an awol ceo. andrea? >> no, that's right. and, look, it was designed to fail. you wouldn't have triggers in place, bill, if you didn't anticipate it failing. you wouldn't have put those into the deal. but, look, the president was ab sent from this. we've seen the president absent before, and the only reason we had to do this supercommittee is because the president has not put forth any cuts of his own. he's failed to pass a budget. when he did put one together,

his democratic senate voted it down overwhelmingly. we've seen him outsource the big boy decisions always to congress. he did this with the tax cut deal, remember, he left clinton hanging at a press conference because he had to prepare for a party, now he's busy campaigning. this is a pattern. but i will say this, he got everything he wanted -- bill: what do you mean? >> -- with this deal. well, look, he guts the military budget, and he weakens our military by gutting the defense budget something that even his own defense secretary didn't want, and he gets to expand and protect goth health care, so obama's smiling all the way. i'm actually astounded that the gop house let this happen. bill: so you're saying this is a win/win for the president. >> i think it is, yes. bill: bob? >> first of all, with all due respect, you must have been in greece during the debt service debate because the president was this that thing right up until the last early morning hours, and then he got a lot of heat for being in it, one. two, i think it's unfair to say the president of the united

states wants to weaken the defense of the united states. i don't believe that for a second, i know you probably don't. did he get something out of this? yes. it's so clear that the republicans are so whetted to no taxes, and the things they put forward was really a game. now obama does have, i think, a very good campaign issue. he's going to be able to campaign against a do-nothing congress, and if supreme court goes and hacks up the health care bill -- bill: let's not get too far down the line here. on the tax issue, that will be, now, a campaign issue in 2012. >> sure. >> it will be. bill: andrea, do we have a sense of how the american people are on that? >> well, they're torn. if you talk to scott rasmussen he says, yeah, they're in favor of a little bit of taxes, but they don't trust congress to pay down the deficit. so i think, you know, bob can say that republicans are whetted to not raising taxes, that's the smart thing to do, but democrats are whetted to big entitlements, and that's really the budget buster. >> wait a minute. >> hold on. and that's where obama is.

and i'll tell you a real just shirking leadership was when his own deficit committee, bob, his own deficit committee put together a plan, and he did nothing wit. that just shows he's not serious at all. bill: let me give bob the last word. i hear your mumbling, bob. >> i'm mumbling because the lights are too bright. [laughter] you talk about -- i agree with you, by the way, on the deficit committee. i think if they had taken the simpson-bowles, both sides, we wouldn't have this problem. but having said that, the idea that somehow there's been some negotiation here, when the republicans come and say it's all spending and, by the way, on entitlements it was obama who came up with the entitlement cuts. bill we're not going to settle in the now. >> we're never going to settle it. bill: it will be settled next november. >> that's exactly right. >> and hopefully i'll be right again. bill: see you guys at 5:00. you could be. >> she won't be. >> yeah, i will. martha: all right. here's a small town story with, perhaps, some big implications.

big controversy surrounding a high school football team, and it's raising new questions whether a school and a town have put their sports program above the law because they happen to have a team on their way to a championship game. so days before the penn state scandal rocked the headlines, nine new jersey football players left a party. but their night didn't end there. police say that the players stopped their car, got out and pummeled two kids from a rival school leaving one of them alone in the street unconscious. where the police found them. you would consider that these players perhaps would be, as they are, under criminal investigation for aggravated assault, would be suspended, and they were. until a last minute closed-door meeting the night before a big game. the team, along with their high-profile coach, marched into a school board meeting, jerseys on, got the suspension overturned, convinced them the night before the big game that they were perhaps -- some say -- that they were more important than the victims. here's the coach. >> the last ten days have been a

nightmare. i've actually got on the the point where i questioned myself, why do i do this? then i go to practice, and i see the kids, and i say, that's why you do it. martha: that's the coach of the team. pat is a yahoo! sports national columnist, and he joins me now as he has in the past on the penn state story. what do you make of this whole thing, pat? >> wow, martha. [laughter] i'm not sure the football coach has a very good interpretation of what a nightmare is. i think that would be best asked of the young men that were assault inside this case. if there's a police investigation for the coach to, whether he strong armed the board or whatever he did into letting these guys play, i think that we've got a complete subversion of the way things should be working and who should be making the call here. martha: you know, there's an opportunity here that would have been a lesson, perhaps, for all the boys. and everybody understands that not all the boys were involved, and there's a lot to to be determined still about exactly what went down there, but isn't

this an opportunity to say, look, you know, even if you with respect involved, we're part of a team, and the team is going to sit on the bench, we're going to sit this fame out even if it means -- and this is a team that has won seven state titles, and they're on their way to winning another one. and it just raises a lot of questions about where the priorities are. and as you say, these two kids got beaten practically to a pulp. >> yeah, i mean, absolutely. i'm not sure the whole team needs to sit out, but certainly anybody that is either under investigation or has been charge inside this case with aggravated assault needs to be sitting out a football game. and for the head coach to be able to go in and to convince the school board to over-- to, basically, thumb its nose at a police investigation and say we're going to do this our own way, to me, sets an incredibly bad precedent and a bad example for everybody at that high school. martha: you know, as you point out, everybody, you know, we all love high school sports, it's a great source of spirit for a school, but it's also an opportunity to sort of teach kids some life lessons, and

sometimes they learn them in a tough way. you wonder what the life lesson is when you walk away from this situation and what you learn, basically, it appears -- and we're waiting for more facts -- it appears that you learn the coach can get you off the hook. >> if coach has built up enough influence and power, and that's one of the problems i think we see a lot of times in sports is successful coaches get themselves bit up to a -- built up to a point where they answer to nobody, and that's, i think, a problem. when there are no checks and balances, no boss that can say, wait a minute, let's get some perspective involved here, that's where you run into problems in athletics whether it's high school or college. martha: pat, thank you for weighing in on this. we're keeping an eye on it as they head to the state championships. bill, i would also point out -- my thanks to pat for joining us -- new jersey has the toughest bullying laws in the country. every school has to write an 18-page document if a child is bullied.

you so much as call someone a name, you can be suspended. but apparently, if your team's on the way to the championships, you might be able to surpass those. bill: as you said, we'll keep an eye on it. so they chose the "people's court" to decide the fate of a $5,000 engagement ring. hours after that episode aired, michelle parker dropped off the face of the earth. and the only thing investigators know is who is not a suspect -- plus. martha: when lawmakers don't like a bill, they filibuster it. in some other countries, they have some sort of strange powder that needs to be vacuumed up after. we'll look at what that's all about. looking good! you lost some weight. you noticed! these clothes are too big, so i'm donating them. how'd you do it? eating right, whole grain. [ female announcer ] people who choose more whole grain tend to weigh less than those who don't. multigrain cheerios... five whole grains, 110 calories.

martha: here's the answer to the powder question: tear gas. filling the air in parliament when politicians clash in south korea. one opposition lawmaker throwing a powdered substance at a deputy

speaker. security guards dragged him out of the chamber kicking and screening. look at this. look at this guy, he's covered in it. dozen os -- dozens of people seen wiping their eyes. critics say that it favors american workers over south koreans, and that is what got them very upset. bill: that'll make -- [inaudible] a search is underway in florida for a young mother who disappeared the same day that her case aired on the tv show, the "people's court." michelle parker, mother of three, has not been seen since thursday. she and her ex-fiance appearing on that show over a $5,000 engaged ring. now her sister speaking on fox today. >> whether or not it's a coincidence, i don't know. i don't know if somebody saw her on tv and thought, hey, she's beautiful, and figured out where

she was at or something, i, i really don't know. bill: so there is this mystery. tamara holder's criminal defense attorney is works in the homicide division in new york, ladies, good morning to both of you. her mother has been talking out here, you say statistically it's unlikely that she had some sort of meltdown? >> yeah. bill: despite the fact, and i just want viewers to though this, that the mom said her daughter was humiliated after seeing herself on tv. >> i mean, there's several possibilities. one, was she so embarrassed over this public airing with her ex that she took off? it's possible, although unlikely. so then if she came to something more of an unfortunate end or at least some violet means, we -- violent means, we talk about a stranger, that's unlikely too. no one wants to think someone close to them could abduct someone and if you don't find someone in 24-48 hours, chances are you won't find them alive.

of course, we hope that's how we find her here, but, you know, it seems like the mom is guessing like everyone else, there's still so many unanswered questions that they still have a lot to learn. bill: and the mother was on the today show on nbc earlier today. i want to get to that, tamara, but first, is there a defense for the ex-fiance at the moment? >> well, sure. it's not just a defense, but that the facts don't really point to him. bill: how so? >> she drops the kids off at his house, and then she disappeared, so it's not like she disappeared and left, and the kids are now at home left alone. not only that, but there's no evidence that he's done anything. there are no -- he's not a suspect. there's no blood, there's no information whatsoever that there was ever even an abusive relationship between the two except for what she said on "people's court." but she'd never called the cops before, and it's just a little peculiar that she disappears after telling her family that she was humiliated and dropped

the kids off. bill: all very good points, and the mother told abc news that he's a great father who cares about her grandchildren, and i'm just -- the mother on nbc earlier today said she believes her daughter was abducted, picked off the street corner in broad daylight. >> well -- bill: i don't know if there's evidence to back that up, she certainly did not present that. i mean, is there just a possibility this was a woman who was ashamed by her own appearance on tv and said, i'm going to check out? >> yeah, sure. and things like that have happened before. and it's unfortunate because she has three children. but if so, probably they'll find her pretty quickly and, hopefully, everyone can move on from this. it just seems, again, so strange that she's gone. her car is found, all her belongings, it seems like she doesn't have any means of getting cash from what they're saying. so then you start to look at what happened. first thing, they're calling it a missing persons report because they've just speculating. same thing with the mom. she doesn't want to believe her daughter would just pick up and leave her children.

bill: desperate to find her. >> of course. bill: tamara, quick point. you think she could just be hiding out right now after having her meltdown? >> yeah. that's what i think, bill. you know, think about the runaway bride case. the girl just disappeared because she freaked out. i think that is a very similar case to what's going on here. there is absolutely no evidence whatsoever that anything happened to her. bill: right. >> in this day and age, there would have been something. bill: it's getting national attention because it happened on this high-profile show. and, you know, this woman has three young kids at home. and we hope for the best for her and that she shows up soon. tamara, thank you. and, anna, thanks to you as well, okay? here in new york and is chicago respectively. all right, what's up next, martha? martha: we'll go to jenna lee who's going to tell us about "happening now" coming up in the newsroom. hi, jenna. jenna: stocks are trading lower, we had a weaker than expected read on the nation's economy. also, of course, the implosion of the so-called supercommittee that ended up not being so

super. we're going to take a closer look at what happens now. the possibility of a smaller paycheck for all of us at the beginning of the year, and as always, we want to hear from our viewers. go to foxnews.com/happeningnow, click on the america's asking tab the weigh in. martha: shawler paycheck -- jenna: no one told us about that. martha: i don't like that. jenna lee, thank you. in the meantime, talking trump, turkey and rick perry. michele bachmann made an appearance on late night tv. what she said about her gop rivals that got the audience roaring. funny stuff. bill: also a bankrupt wall street firm looking more like a bernie madoff-sized scandal. more than a billion dollars missing from a company headed by former new jersey governor john corzine. how does so much cash get lost?

bill: michele bachmann, presidential candidate, appearing on late night with jimmy fallon. the two played some word association, and this was the back and forth result of that. >> romney. >> hair. [laughter] no, a minute. >> you can't say more than -- you have another one? >> vice president. >> obama. >> finished. >> whoa! [cheers and applause] >> perry. >> that's not one word. i've got to do three. governor, texas -- can't remember. [laughter] [applause] bill: that's pretty good. we're going the talk to michele bachmann tomorrow, 10:30 eastern time on "america's newsroom."

we'll ask her about that little back and forth. i don't think any of that was scripted, do you, martha? martha: it kind of felt a little bit. bill: anyway, she hit her lines. martha: she did. absolutely. good job. big developments on the bankruptcy of an investment fund that was run by former new jersey governor jon corzine. there are now estimates that more than $1.2 billion may be missing from mf global. the customer accounts there, that is double what was previously thought. fox business network's gerri willis joins me now, host of ""the willis report." " this is like a may dow situation it air peer -- madoff situation, it appears. >> the sums in question were 65 billion that he lost, this is $1.2 billion, double what we originally thought. it just shows to go you in what disarray customer accounts were in if they can't even figure out how much money is missing here. it's more than we originally anticipated. obviously, people are going to have an even harder time getting their money back.

martha: here you have the former head of goldman sachs, former governor of new jersey, always considered to be, you know, a financial whiz, but now we're learning that there are things that, you know, people said he tended to be very sloppy with trades, with documentation, with paperwork. now, i don't think he was, you know, the one going over all this work every day, but he was running the ship, and it looks like that's the big problem. they can't tell people which pockets the money are in, and they can't tell people whether or not they're going to be able to give them back their money. >> look, if you picked your financial adviser because he was well known in financial circles, forget about it, that's not the way to pick somebody. what's more, interestingly, corzine is an insider's insider. he ran goldman sachs, as you said, he was governor of new jersey. he once hired or employed the commodities futures trading commission chief gary gensler who had to recuse himself from this case of investigating because they had such a close relationship. he knows everyone. martha: big story. it's getting bigger every day.

gerri, thank you very much. bill: we have new developments on the controversial death of a hollywood legend. why some are questioning the evidence police claim to have on a 30-year-old mystery. [ male announcer ] are you considering a new medicare plan?

time is running out. you only have until wednesday, december 7th to enroll. don't wait another day, call now to find out how unitedhealthcare medicare solutions may have the coverage you're looking for. i'm looking for help paying for my prescriptions. [ male announcer ] that's a part d prescription drug plan. tell us about your prescriptions and we can help you select the right plan. like a stand-alone plan, or you can combine part d and medicare supplement plans for complete coverage. is there a single plan that combines medicare parts a & b with medical and drug coverage? [ male announcer ] absolutely. a medicare advantage plan can give you doctor, hospital and prescription drug coverage for nothing more than what you already pay for medicare part b. don't wait another day. you only have until december 7th to make sure you get the medicare coverage you need.

call unitedhealthcare to learn about medicare plans that may be right for you. with some plans, you can enroll right over the phone. don't wait. call now.

>> ♪ >> ♪ >> ♪ bill: so pretty. martha: pushing it a little! bill: want to show you one christmas tree that could easily compete with all the presents underneath it, tokyo jeweler unveiling a christmas tree made entirely of bowls. how much would you -- worth gold. how much would you say? how about $1.9 million, given the price per ounce for gold? if the right buyer comes along, and they haven't found him or her yet, the gold christmas tree will be on sale. martha: somehow it feels