A bright spot?

You know the economy is doing poorly when a headline that reads "U.S. Economy Lost Only 11,000 Jobs in November" is cause for a slight celebration. According to the New York Times, the unemployment rate dipped to 10 percent in November, down from 10.2 percent a month earlier. While that number is still dismal, the unexpected uptick wasn't economists had been forecasting, who have been arguing that turnaround in the job market was likely until sometime in the spring of next year.

Meanwhile, President Barack Obama convened a jobs summit on Capital Hill yesterday, where he met with business leaders, economists, and others to discuss job creation. Obama faces tough critics on both sides of the political aisle as he tries to balance an ambitious domestic agenda with the $1 trillion budget deficit. While he solicited ideas from the people who attended the forum, he made clear that the government's resources are limited.

"I want to be clear: While I believe the government has a critical role in creating the conditions for economic growth, ultimately true economic recovery is only going to come from the private sector,” he said.

Many business leaders have argued that the healthcare legislation and the recent decision to send more than 30,000 troops to Afghanistan has distracted the president from the what some say is the most pressing issue facing the country - the economy. Republicans are blaming Democrats for pushing New Deal-esque legislation at a time when they say the government spending needs to be reigned in. Obama has already called for some small-step job growth proposals, such as "a program of weatherization incentives for homeowners and small businesses modeled on the popular “cash for clunkers” program," according to the article.