he has three words of advice today for the obama white house to try to salvage the party's chances of victory in 2012. those words, "fire, indict and fight." james carville is joining us now. james, you created quite a stir in this article you've written for cnn.com. let me read a couple of lines. among other things you say, "what should the white house do now? one word came to mind, panic. this is what i would say to president barack obama. the time has come to demand a plan of action that requires a complete change from the direction you are headed." what are you talking about? >> well, simply this. we lost two elections tuesday night. we lost 65 elections in november. it's sliding back. macroeconomics say there is 1/3 chance we are going into recession. you look how crazy the opposition party is cheering death. this is not working, not politically, economically or anything. bring in a new team and indicate to people you get it, they understand you were dealt a tough hand, but you keep playing the same hand over and over again. it's not working. >> you have two specific recommendations in your cnn.com article. fire somebody and indict people. let's talk about both. what do you mean fire somebody? who should be fired? >> when we lost all the seats in 1994, a lot of us got fired. i didn't have a consulting contract with the dnc. people, he made changes. that's what happens. that's what president reagan did in 1980. he fired john sears and other people in his campaign. he talks about lincoln. how many generals did lincoln fire? even rumsfeld lost his job. the republicans fired newt gingrich. when things are not going well, i'm sorry the coach, the manager, we are both sports fans, you've got to do something to try to change direction here. it looks like the same people doing the same thing over and over again. it's not working. what i said on cnn has been repeated to me by democrats all over the place. i feel guilty of plagiarism. many people like this president and want him to succeed feel. >> he is not going to fire himself or the vice president. he's got a new chief of staff. rahm emanuel is gone. who does he fire? >> he's got political advisors, cabinet members. i'm not privy on the inside to know. some people have got to go. it may be they've got to go unjustly or maybe they are doing the best they can under the circumstances. that doesn't matter. you've got to give people a signal out there that something's not working and you're trying something else. the president can't fire himself. he's not going to fire the vice president, but he's got to signal to people, i know what we are doing here is causing a lot of hardship. we keep losing elections and having the same people. >> you want to name names? >> i don't want to name names. for the simple reason is i'm not on the inside. i'm not privy to what's going on or who is giving what advice. something is not going right. >> what about timothy geithner, treasury secretary? he's been there from day one. >> certainly, you can't fire the fed chairman, but maybe there is a deputy secretary. i have no idea. that is not what i'm trying to say. i'm not trying to get into details. bill daley is a very good friend of mine, very nice guy. somebody, somewhere, more than somebody. i talked about the battle of stalingrad. they started shooting every tenth person. that is an extreme example. >> timothy geithner on the economic team has had a significant turnover over the past 2 1/2 years. >> people have left. i think the indication was that the policies would stay the same. turnover is one thing. he's got to stand up and say -- it's not just economic teams. it's other people, too. you have to show that you are displeased with the direction that things are going in. for whatever reason, the way do you that is you fire people. then everybody gets the message. >> what about indicting people? what do you mean by that he should start indicting people? >> we had the greatest -- we had a period of -- we are in a recession and now the experts are saying as a result of the overleverage, speculative, irresponsible nature of the american finance and housing industry, we are going to have no job growth for six years. somebody did something wrong here. i mean, this is not that hard to figure out. we have, i don't think we've been near aggressive enough. people around the country, they know barack obama didn't cause this. they are not blaming him for this. they know who caused this and they know what caused it. >> if you're going to indict someone, they've got to be doing something that's allegedly criminal, not just stupid. >> i'm not united states government. i'm not the attorney general. i'm not the united states attorney. i don't have the power to subpoena people. i don't have 100 wizard lawyers working in me. i'm not the securities and exchange commission. go watch charles ferguson movie "inside job." you're going to tell me somebody came in and wrecked an entire economy and no one is going to be held responsible for this? i don't buy that neither does anybody else. how would james carville deal with it? we have people in place that are able to investigate this and pursue these kinds of things. we haven't been very aggressive about this whole thing. people understand. look at the havoc that has been wreaked by this massive irresponsibility. it's unbelievable. >> james carville speaking his mind as he always does, this time more forcefully than usual. james, thanks very much. >> you bet. another strong shot of criticism aimed at the president today. this time from a more predictable source. we are talking about the house speaker john boehner. he gave an economic speech here in washington and drew a new line in the sand when it comes to tax hikes. let's bring in our congressional correspondent kate bolduan. >> coming one week to the day after president obama laid out his jobs plan, house speaker john boehner called the president's proposals a poor substitute. for the first time, he told the supercommittee what it should and should not take on. in his most detailed remarks yet, house speaker john boehner spelled out his prescription for the so-called supercommittee, tax reform. >> committee can develop principles for broad-based tax reform that will lower rates for individuals and corporations while closing deductions, credits and special carve-outs in our tax code. >> boehner called on the 12-member committee to tackle entitlement reform, laying the ground work for possible areas of compromise. just as quickly as he's done before, boehner ruled out any tax increases. >> tax increases, i think, are off the table. i don't think they are a viable option. tax increases destroy jobs. the joint committee is a jobs committee. >> a starting position that could prove challenging. house democratic leader nancy pelosi said as much shortly before boehner took to the podium. >> i don't think we should any of us go in there with any lines in the sand about taxes or entitlements. i think our only sacred cow has to be the creation of jobs for the american people. >>. >> reporter: with a target finding $1.5 trillion in deficit savings by thanksgiving to avoid across the board cuts, one democratic member warns everything, including revenue, must be in the mix. is it possible to hit the mark you all need to hit by taking tax increases off the table from the beginning? >> there is no doubt that the only way to get an overall solution to this problem is to take a balanced approach. every bipartisan group that's gotten together has taken a balanced approach where they say in order to reduce the deficit over a period of time, you've got to do a certain amount by cutting and look at the revenue side. >> in boehner's response to the president, while not offering a wide-ranging jobs plan of his own, he does set the stage and possibly the terms of debate for the ongoing battle between democrats, the white house and republicans for reducing the country's debt and creating jobs going forward. >> it's going to be a fascinating few weeks and months. thanks very much. a rogue trader cost a banking giant billions. how did it happen? stand by for that. and for my live interviews with republican presidential candidates mitt romney and john huntsman. starting my progresso soup for lunch plan, huh. nope, just having some tender chicken and some tasty noodles. let's see...south western vegetables...60 calories. ya' know those jeans look nice. they do? 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[ male announcer ] each of these photos was taken by someone on the first morning of their retirement. it's the first of more than 6,000 sunrises the average retiree will see. ♪ as we're living longer than ever before, prudential's challenge is to help everyone have the retirement income they'll need to enjoy every one of their days. ♪ prudential. bring your challenges. jack cafferty is here with "the fafrt file." >> here is what the president needs, another fire threatening to burn out of control. the democrat's loss this week could signal serious trouble to president obama and the jewish vote in 2012. congressional district number nine made up of parts of brooklyn and queens is probably the most jewish district in the country. certainly one of them. many think if the democrats lost there then president obama could be in trouble in key states like florida, ohio and pennsylvania. you cannot win the white house without those states. the problem is a lot of american jews feel neglected by this president and think he's been too tough on israel. in the new york race former mayor ed koch, quintessential new yorker, jewish democrat endorsed the republican. he cited israel as the main reason why. he said he likes this president, helped get him elected, but "obama threw israel under the bus." a recent poll shows other issues that trouble many voters, things like the economy, social security, medicare, are more important than israel among jewish voters. republicans smell blood in the water, they are likely to make this a wedge issue in the campaign next year. back in 1980, jimmy carter was the last democratic candidate to not get an overwhelming majority of the jewish vote. all mr. obama needs is another comparison to jimmy carter. president obama's approval rating currently is about 60% among jews nationally. in 2008, exit polls show nearly 80% of jews voted for him. this makes jews just another group to start deserting the president. he's lost support among other key voting blocks, blacks, women and independents. how can president obama save the jewish vote? go to cnn.com/cafferty file, post comment on my blog or go to our post on the situation room facebook page. >> i'm anxious to read what our viewers think. the gop is split right down the middle when it come to the blossoming tea party movement. according to the survey, 49% of those who lean republican neither support the movement or are active members. 51% feel indifferent or oppose it all together. the poll shows that demographically, tea party republicans are more likely to be male, older and college educated than their nontea party counterparts. i write about this on my blog today. the swiss banking giant ubs suffering what could be an unprecedented multibillion dollar loss at the hands of a rogue trader. we'll tell what you happened. plus, two people are dead, several others injured in a raging cruise ship fire. ♪ there's another way to minimize litter box odor: purina tidy cats. tidy cats premium line of litters now works harder to help neutralize odors in multiple-cat homes. and our improved formula also helps eliminate dust. so it's easier than ever to keep your house smelling just the way you want it. purina tidy cats. keep your home smelling like home. >>. >> we are getting news of another strike of what u.s. officials are calling a series of major blows against al qaeda. what's the latest? >> u.s. officials are reporting al qaeda's chief of operations in pakistan has been killed in the northwest tribal region. he's said to have helped coordinate anti-american plots in the region and worked closely with pakistani operatives to carry out attacks. he may have been a possible successor to al qaeda's skekd in command who was killed last month. firefighters and other crews are struggling to stabilize a norwegian cruise ship after a fire in the engine room killed two crew members. the fire is under control, but the ship is said to be taking on water. two other members were seriously burned. all 207 passengers have been evacuated. the ship was operating on a popular route along norway's coast. despite a judge's order telling striking teachers to return to work in takoma, washington, many teachers there are returning to the picket line instead. the school district canceled classes when many teachers failed to show up this morning. the judge says the strike must end because it's harming students. an attorney for the union says missed class time can be made up later. a man is in police custody after the ubs reported he cost the company an estimated $2 billion with unauthorized trades. that would be the third largest rogue trading loss in banking history. experts say the bank is big enough to take the hit, but ubs shares closed down around 10% in u.s. trading. $2 billion. that's quite a sum of money. >> it's billions, thanks very much for that. republican john huntsman says his opponent said scary things during our cnn tea party presidential debate monday. i'll ask if he is willing to take sides. critics fear the fbi training of counterterrorism agents may be increasing the terror threat. ♪ [ dr. ling ] i need to get the results from the m.r.i. see if the blood work is ready. review ms. cooper's history. and i want to see katie before she goes home. 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[ crunching, sipping ] be happy. be healthy. can i try yours? ♪ [ male announcer ] what is the future of fuel? the debate is over. ♪ lexus hybrid drive technology is designed to optimize any fuel source on the planet. even those we don't use yet. because when you pursue perfection, you don't just engineer a future-proof hybrid system. you engineer amazing. ♪ the tragedy of september 11 united our country. this year, as we open the 9/11 memorial in new york city, we ask that you join us to honor, remember, and reunite. to learn more or to reserve your visit, go to 911memorial.org. i'm wolf blitzer. here are some of the stories we are working on. he's battling to reclaim the top spot in the republican race for the white house. stand by for my live indepth interview with the former massachusetts governor mitt romney in the next hour. a marine with a surprise medal of honor ahead. disturbing fallout from the deadly fire fight that earned him the decoration. a technology giant with ties to the white house with controversy over a service that could interfere with essential gps services around the country. right now, republican john huntsman is in new hampshire, a state that is certainly critical to his presidential campaign strategy. the former u.s. ambassador to china, former utah governor has his work cut out for him trying to make inroads with voters. the former ambassador is joining live from manchester. thanks for coming in. >> greetings, wolf. >> let's talk about social security first. if you were president, how would you make sure that our children and grandchildren would continue to get social security? >> well, i'd begin with a conversation like i had with a large group of seniors today in exeter. that is not to scare them with language that tends to turn off voters, but rather put forward ideas like the idea that we can look at the underlying assumptions for inflation and peg it more for the consumer price index like the idea that we can take social security now that we are living three decades longer than somebody born in 1900, and maybe take it out to the 85th percentile of the average length of life. there would be people who don't need social security and they would probably applaud if a politician said let's draw a line in the sand where people don't need it. they can afford to do otherwise. let's begin fixing the numbers to secure it for future generations. the fixes are there. we don't have the political leadership to move us forward. >> those are courageous positions you're taking. the cost of living, in effect that means less money for retirees. right? >> that's correct. >> on the issue of means testing, people pay into social security all their lives. if you earn a certain income, you wouldn't necessarily get social security. where would that cut-off point be? >> we'd have to work out those details. i would be willing to have that conversation with the american people. you can find the cut-off and it would be in the spirit of shared sacrifice. everyone has to recognize that given entitlements, where they are today, given the fact this economy is sucking wind, we have no choice. people have to stand up and hear the president say it's going to require shared sacrifice. we haven't started that conversation, but i believe part of it will be exactly what i outlined in broad strokes here. >> from 65 to 67, what age would be a good age, not necessarily for the current retirees, but for ten years down the road, 70? is that what you want to raise the age to? >> let's say we are living long were each passing year and benefits of science and health, all a very good thing. let's face it to the 85% percentile of the average length of life. that would be a good place to start this conversation. >> another sensitive issue came up during the debate we had monday night in tampa. the hpv vaccine that in texas the governor by executive order, rick perry, mandated that 11 and 12-year-old girls get this vaccine. it's to deal with sexually transmitted disease that could lead to cervical cancer. michele bachmann was critical of him on this. who is right, rick perry or michele bachmann? >> let me say whoever comes down against mandates, i think, is on the side of where the american public are. parents and guardians can make choices. mandates do not have a role predominantly in these kinds of is