Obama seeks answers to rising joblessness, sinking polls

WASHINGTON — With the jobless rate rising and his approval ratings sinking, President Barack Obama hosted academics and leaders of business and labor at a White House jobs summit Thursday, seeking advice on how to boost employment.

Down Pennsylvania Avenue, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., held a Capitol Hill news conference to announce new jobs legislation funded partly by unused taxpayer bailout money that had been designated for banks. She also vaguely discussed a possible tax on financial transactions, suggesting that it wouldn't be onerous.

Democrats want additional federal spending to create jobs and aid states, which are struggling to maintain social services after the deepest downturn since the Great Depression. Experts predict that state governments alone could slash about 900,000 more jobs because of falling tax revenues if they get no more help from Washington.

"There's no question that it is difficult out there right now," Obama told attendees at the close of the summit. "But we also heard some exciting ideas and proposals for how we can spur hiring today and lay the groundwork for sustainable economic growth in the future."

Republicans dismissed the summit as a public relations ploy.

The summit involved six breakout sessions to inform the White House on ways to create more jobs. Attendees called for everything from lower corporate taxes to trade protection to government loans for smaller firms.

"Given all the things that are swirling around, I thought it was important for the American people to see their president focused on jobs. And he really was engaged in the discussion," said attendee Alan Blinder, a Princeton University economist and former vice chairman of the Federal Reserve.

The event was held on the eve of a new government report expected to show that more than 120,000 jobs were lost in November, with unemployment still hovering above 10 percent.

Many mainstream economists fear that the jobless rate could peak at 11 percent or higher next year as the economy grows at a pace that's insufficient to reduce the disquieting jobless numbers significantly. Absent additional government spending, many fear that the economy could slide back into recession late next year.