For the current employment recession, employment peaked in December 2007, and this recession is by far the worst recession since WWII in percentage terms, and 2nd worst in terms of the unemployment rate (only early '80s recession with a peak of 10.8 percent was worse).
This is a very weak report, especially considering the downward revision to June. The participation rate declined again, and that is why the unemployment rate was steady - and that is bad news.
http://calculatedriskimages.blogspot.com/2010/08/employment-recessions-july-2010.html
Nasty nasty nasty. At this growth rate, it'll take over a decade to fully recover.
This is going to be a very long slog forward.
I seem to remember during the campaign Obama criticizing Bush's economic policies during the last recession as having caused lackluster jobs growth. How ironic is it that Obama's policies are having a similar result?
I'm not sure where she goes from here if she doesn't, she's basic research, private industry doesn't interest her. The public school system is really geting hammered in this.