crowded at the top. cain, romney, and a rising gingrich battling for the lead heading into the next g.o.p. debate. jan crawford and john dickerson on the latest cbs news poll. the penn state child abuse scandal. armen keteyian on coach jerry sandusky's children's charity where prosecutors say he first met some of his alleged victims. with the wars winding down, elaine quijano tells us the unemployment rate for vets is soaring. and on the road with steve hartman where there is chaos he brings order. >> a ham, lettuce, mayonnaise and all the way. chill i cheese to go right. captioning sponsored by cbs this is the "cbs evening news" with scott pelley. >> pelley: good evening, from the site of the next republican presidential debate.

if there is any doubt about how important that debate storm evening will be, take a look at this brand new cbs news poll just out today. it shows that the race for the g.o.p. nomination has turned into a close three-man context. in this poll of republican primary voters, herman cain is holding on to the lead at 18% but he is down seven points in the two weeks since the allegations of sexual harassment surfaced. and have a look at this. newt gingrich is now tied with mitt romney for second at 15%. gingrich is up five points, romney down six. and rick perry, he is still in single digits. so it will all turn on the 17% who tell us they are undecided. we begin tonight with political correspondent jan crawford. jan? >> reporter: scott, our polls show just how unsettled this race is with just two months

before people start voting. but one thing is clear: it's not over for newt gingrich. counted out of the race just a few months ago, today newt newt has become a contender, moving into the top tear in the new cbs news poll, gingrich has stolen support from mitt romney and herman cain as the fight for the republican nomination remains as unsettled as ever, a point gingrich today made clear. >> it is a wide-open race. i think that the american people are looking, asking questions, thinking about it. and i think it will stay wide open until january. >> reporter: cain remains out front, but the allegations of sexual harassment have cost him support, especially among women voters. 38% of the women we surveyed say they now are less likely to vote for him. but mitt romney's support continues to hold relatively steady and he is the

overwhelming pick in the key category of electability. 40% in our poll said romney is most likely to beat president obama, up from 32% in september. cain is second at 20%, perry and gingrich are tied at fourth at 6%. romney was here in the key state of south carolina trying to strengthen his support. >> my responsibility is to go out and tell people why i think i should be the guy that leads the country. >> reporter: south korea congressman tray goudey has not endorsed any candidates but says electability is important. >> i can tell you the tea party is most assuredly factoring in whether or not a candidate can win next november. >> reporter: now, scott, despite this strong showing in our poll by gingrich, it's not all good news for him. 27% of the republican voters we surveyed said they have an unfavorable opinion of him. only rick perry and ron paul are viewed less favorably by voters. >> pelley: jan, thanks very

much. so what does all of this tell us? well, nearby we've set up the hall for tomorrow's republican debate and joining us there is cbs news political analyst john dickerson. john, cain is still the front-runner in our poll but give us some insight. what can you say about his support? >> reporter: well, voters like herman cain, but the real question is, do they see him as president? one of the questions we asked is who do you think is qualified to be commander-in-chief? herman cain came in a very distant third. that's a key question that will be at the center of the cbs news national security debate. and what herman cain has to do is help people imagine him in the oval office in a crisis. if he can't do that, he risks losing voters as they move from picking the person they like to picking the person they think can do the job. >> pelley: john, jan just mentioned that in newt gingrich's rise in the polls, he is taking something away from romney and cain. >> that's right. unlike other candidates who've taken from the tea party,

gingrich is taking from both. and a south carolina republican explained to me these are long-time gingrich fans. they thought he wasn't going to make it after his bad campaign start, now there's a bandwagon effect as they're coming back on board. why do they like gingrich? he's had strong debate performances and in our poll when you asked people who do you trust to handle a crisis, the top answer with 31%, newt gingrich. >> pelley: john, thanks very much. the republican debate is here tomorrow. a joint production of cbs news and nags all? journal. it's live tomorrow night at 8:00 eastern time here on cbs tell vision and on cbsnews.com and nationaljournal.com. another key member of the penn state coaching staff is out in the child sex abuse scandal that has already cost joe paterno and the university president their jobs. the university put mike mcqueary on indefinite leave today saying "he cannot function as assistant football coach under these circumstances." it was mcqueary who told paterno

that he saw another assistant coach-- jerry sandusky-- rape a child on campus. but there is more to this story and we asked armen keteyian to look into a children's charity that sandusky ran for years. armen? >> reporter: good evening, scott. we talked to the attorney for one of the alleged victims today and he told us beyond the shame of the alleged abuse, the young man says he is now living with the guilt of bringing the penn state football program to its knees and he says the focus should really be on just one man-- jerry sandusky. >> there's jerry sandusky, one of the most respected... >> reporter: it was 1977, nine years into his illustrious coaching career at penn state that jerry sandusky founded the second mile. its mission: helping young people, especially at-risk kids, achieve their potential. >> there's an opportunity to throw out a rip to some kids. >> reporter: from the start, sandusky was the charity's

public face and primary fund-raiser. by 2010, the second mile was a $9 million operation. the its honorary board featuring the likes of hall of fame running back franco harris and golfing great arnold palmer. patti coble worked as a volunteer for ten years. >> and they all came back for the one reason: to help jerry sandusky, the second mile, and at risk children. and unfortunately we were feeding his habit. >> reporter: according to a 40-count indictment, the now 67-year-old sandusky befriended at least six of his alleged eight victims through the second mile beginning in 1994. p.a. pennsylvania attorney general linda kelly. >> this is a sexual predator accused of using his position in the community and university to prey on numerous young boys for more than a decade. >> reporter: the attorney general's office says reports of the alleged abuse were brought to the second mile's attention in 1998, 2002 and 2008.

in a charity they said "at no time was the second mile made aware of the serious allegations contained in the grand jury report. " still, in 2008 it made the decision to separate him-- sandusky-- from all of our program activities involving children. today a woman at their offices declined an on-camera interview. i was wondering if there was anybody i could speak to about... >> not at this time. >> reporter: joe paterno has now retained a criminal defense attorney and, scott, there will be a great deal of extra security at the game tomorrow. >> pelley: armen, thank you very much. president obama today visited arlington this veterans day, continuing solemn tradition, he placed a wreath at the tomb of the unknowns which was dedicated 80 years ago today. the president talked about the end of the war in iraq and said that the upcoming holidays will be a season of homecomings.

the president urged businesses to honor tens of thousands of returning vets by giving them jobs. the senate passed a measure yesterday that would give a tax credit to those businesses that do, welcome news to veterans already battling to get by on the home front. elaine quijano introduces us to one of them. >> reporter: 22-year-old army veteran graham prieb sends out 30 resumes a week. but four years of military service has not helped him find a job. do you think it would be this difficult? >> no, not at all. i mean, i knew that i'm not really set up for finding employment in new york, but four months, yeah, i didn't think it would take this long. >> reporter: prieb served in iraq as an army sniper. this week, he attended a jobs fair for veterans talking with plenty of potential employers. >> i would be interested in this. >> reporter: but leaving empty handed. what's the reaction you get from recruiters when you tell them about your military experience.

>> some are completely disinterested. they don't see any connection between what i did in the army and anything i could do for them. others do see that discipline, attention to detail. even though they seem receptive, at the end of the day i didn't get a job. >> reporter: the unemployment rate for veterans aged 18 to 24 is more than 30%. but some businesses have made recruiting veterans a priority. j.p. morgan chase and 14 other large companies have just pledged to hire 20,000 veterans by the end of next year. jeff klare runs a vet hiring program called "be a hero; hire a hero." >> we got 39,000 to 40,000 kids coming home over the next three to four months and we need to be prepared. our challenge to these corporations is hire them. >> reporter: veterans of iraq and afghanistan worry they will find themselves in the same position as vietnam veterans who had an unemployment rate of

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>> pelley: back now from spartanburg in the food hills of the blue ridge mountains. in our cbs news poll out today, the job approval for congress remains at an all-time low of 9%. that number might improve if members of the supercommittee agree on a plan to reduce the federal deficit, but they just have 12 more days to do it to avoid across-the-board spending cuts. we asked nancy cordes to check in on their progress. >> reporter: even as most of congress cleared out for the holiday, members of the supercommittee kept working in search of an elusive compromise. >> we'll see what happens. >> reporter: months of face-to-face meetings between the six republicans and six democrats have produced some breakthroughs. >> the republicans have made a major concession here. >> reporter: the republicans dropped their opposition to new tax revenue. their most recent proposal would raise $300 billion by eliminating some tax deductions. but it would also make the bush

tax cuts permanent, a move democrats say would add $4 trillion to the debt. >> i think if you look at their proposal on its face, it's a far cry from what anybody would consider fair and balanced. >> reporter: the democratic members have let go of their opposition to entitlement reform. their newest proposal would cut $400 billion from medicare and medicaid but raise a trillion dollars in new tax revenue which republicans call excessive. >> what we still haven't seen from the democrats is a plan that deals with our structural debt crisis. >> reporter: the committee is trying to avoid the discord that infected this summer's debt negotiations. >> this process has become a joke. >> reporter: but as the pressure mounts, so does their frustration with one another. do you think you're at an impasse right now >> um, we're... um... >> reporter: still, xavier becerra, a democrat from california, says the two sides can close the gap. >> two weeks to go, we can still

make the deal. i am an optimist that we'll do the right thing. >> reporter: he and his colleagues know the job goes beyond cutting the debt. they need to convince the public that congress can still get things done. nancy cordes, cbs news, capitol hill. >> pelley: fighting high unemployment with a plan to create high-tech jobs. that story when the "cbs evening news" continues from spartanburg. caring touch. you learn to get a feel for the trouble spots. to know its wants... its needs...its dreams. ♪call 1-800-steemer. yum. that's good. you've always loved the taste of classic campbell's soups. well, guess what? we're just getting warmed up. introducing campbell's slow kettle style soups. extraordinary taste sensations, crafted from delicious combinations of premium ingredients. you'll savor every last spoonful.

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>> pelley: south carolina was hit hard by the great recession. the 11% unemployment rate here is two points higher than the national rate. but anna werner tells us this state is doing something about it. it's investing in public universities to turn south carolina into a center for high tech. >> reporter: at the proterra bus assembly plant in greenville, south carolina, one of the newest employees is niraq chimulay. he's an automotive engineer 8 miles from home. and you like it? >> i love it. >> reporter: love it? >> yes. >> reporter: chimulay landed this job designing electric buses after he graduated from an engineering program at clemson university. it's attracting some of the best minds from around the world. >> this almost nearly guaranteed employment when you graduate. so what can be more attractive than that? >> reporter: the high tech program at clemson is being

funded through a south carolina initiative called "smart state." since 2003, the state has spent $200 million in lottery funds to bankroll research centers at public universities like clemson creating technology hubs that they hope will attract new industries and create jobs. more than 200 companies have invested in smart state, the largest? b.m.w. gave $11 million. the state estimate it is 7,000 jobs have already been created statewide. imtiaz haque runs the clemson program. >> one of the most critical thinks in the u.s. that we're facing right now is not just a shortage of jobs but a shortage of technical people that can actually fill those jobs. so what we're trying to do is close that particular gap. >> reporter: the supply of talent clemson produces is what convinced proterra and founder dayle hill to locate the plant in greenville. >> for us to maintain a two to three year lead on the industry, we need access to that talent. i want us to have access to the

very brightest of the brightest. >> reporter: and you think they're going to be here. >> i think they're going to be here. >> reporter: this bus is headed to san antonio, texas. one of three cities to order buses so far. but proterra is in talks with cities across the country from los angeles to new york about producing buses for their transit system. to do that, proterra expects to higher another 1,200 people over the next several years. julie shepherd is a quality technician. prior to getting the job here, she worried about providing for her daughter. >> now actually we can put money back for her college and not have to worry about, you know, if i get laid off or... it's a college fund not a "oh my god" fund. >> reporter: south carolina says smart state has brought in $1.2 billion in business investment to a state that's badly needing it. anna werner, cbs news, greenville, south carolina.

>> pelley: america's pediatricians put out new guidelines today for testing children for high cholesterol. until now, screening was recommended only for children with a family history. but because of the obesity epidemic, doctors now say all kids nine to 11 should get tested. it's not just food, it's an experience. steve hartman sample's a legendary carolina eatery on the road next. [ male announcer ] tom's discovering that living healthy can be fun. see? he's taking his vitamins. new one a day vitacraves plus omega-3 dha is a complete multivitamin for adults. plus an excellent source of omega-3 dha in a great tasting gummy. one a day, gummies for grown-ups.

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if cialis for daily use is right for you. for a 30-tablet free trial offer, go to cialis.com. >> pelley: we're back at wofford college in spartanburg, south carolina. and we moved over to the benjamin johnson arena where the terriers play basketball but where tomorrow the republicans are gather for that critical debate. spartanburg is a city of 40,000 people and tonight we will meet the most famous of them all. "on the road" with steve hartman. >> reporter: the beacon diner will never get the american heart association seal of approval. but it does have the approval of most everyone else. >> love it. >> reporter: folks come here

from across the country and line up out the door-- partly for the food. and partly for how you order your food. >> bacon with fries! >> reporter: his name is j.c. stroble. he's 70, legally blind from glaucoma and has been working for 40 years. >> hi, you sweetheart! >> reporter: how do you have so much fun. >> you have to love people. which i do. have a blessed day. >> reporter: he is what they call here a caller. customers tell him their order and he calls it out to the cooks-- often using this bizarre language he invented. >> plenty, way to go. call it! >> people love it. >> reporter: general manager kenny church. >> they'll stand there watching him for 15 or 20 minutes and they're amazed. >> i like how he hollers out the order for you. >> i can't believe it! >> he's the man.

>> order! order! sweet potato tots! >> reporter: his popularity is something no fast food worker has ever attained. presidential candidates even stop by to see him. still, for j.c., in the end being all that is not the end all be all. what are you most proud of in your life. >> sitting right here by me. >> robey, his wife, says family has always trumped fame. >> he's a good father. that's where my kids are where they are and like they are now. >> i wanted my kids to get an education. >> reporter: three out of four listened and graduated from college but his oldest, kiki, she was a different story. >> i felt like i didn't need education. >> reporter: kiki was convinced, but her father-- the one who never quit on anything-- refused to give up on his daughter, either, and just kept telling her "go to college." >> everyday. >> reporter: everyday? never let up on her? >> the older she'd get, the more

i lean on her and the harder. (laughs) >> reporter: for nearly 30 years this went on-- until just a few months ago. guess who finally got her degree? what did you study in college? >> philanthropy. >> reporter: in the end, her motivation was to start the j.c. stroble glaucoma awareness foundation. her vision? to save other people's. and she'll no doubt be successful, as long as she keeps listening to her dad. >> put your heart and soul into it. heart and soul! >> reporter: steve hartman "on the road" in spartanburg, south carolina. >> pelley: and that's the "cbs evening news." i'm scott pelley in spartanburg. see you tomorrow with the

have more major developments in the child abuse scandal. we've now confirmed joe paterno has hired powerful d. c defense attorney. he is not charged with any crime in the case. but also today, receivers coach mike mcqueary has been placed on paid leave, that assistant had says he witnessed coach jerry sandusky raping a child in a locker room child in 2002. there's an internal investigation into what sex crimes he may have committed and why no one reported them until the police. now the school's new interim president promises a series of changes will be made to restore confidence in the university, including the appointment of an ethics officer. >> i want to say here very publicly that we would encourage anyone who has been abused in the context of this particular situation to not be afraid. >> san