It Gets Worse  —  I was at a Blanche Lincoln town hall meeting in Russellville, Arkansas, yesterday—and the number of people who believe that the President has larded the government with communists (!) was astonishing.  One woman said there were four known communists in the government and that she'd researched it on the internet.

Unbelievable: Van Jones says 9/11 petition didn't reflect his views; Update: Jones didn't “carefully review” petition  —  Note well: He doesn't deny that he signed it.  He denies that he agrees with it.  Which means, I guess, that he's asking us to create a new standard for public officials …

Fewer Job Losses Than Expected, but Rate Rises in August  —  Employers eliminated 216,000 jobs in August even as the larger economy showed signs of turning around, suggesting that while the pace of job losses continues to slow, American workers will still be among the last to benefit from a recovery.

Job Losses Moderate, but Unemployment Rate Hits 9.7%  —  WASHINGTON — U.S. job losses softened last month but the unemployment rate soared to its highest level since June 1983, proving that it will take some time for the ailing labor market to recover from the worst financial crisis in decades.

Unemployment jumps to 9.7 percent  —  August may be over, but it's causing one last headache for the Obama administration as the jobless rate jumped up to 9.7 percent, the highest point yet this recession and higher than what economists expected from the monthly report.

Obama speech to students draws conservative ire  —  DALLAS — President Barack Obama's back-to-school address next week was supposed to be a feel-good story for an administration battered over its health care agenda.  Now Republican critics are calling it an effort to foist a political agenda on children …

School Districts in Six States to Refrain from Showing Presidential Address Next Week  —  Jake Tapper and Karen Travers report:  —  White House officials seemed to be caught flat-footed by the response to what they say was a simple back to school address by President Obama to students across the nation …