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NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Sarah Palin declared “America is ready for another revolution” and repeatedly assailed President Barack Obama on Saturday before adoring “tea party” activists. They make up a seemingly natural constituency should she run for president.

“This movement is about the people,” the 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee said as the crowd roared. “Government is supposed to be working for the people.”

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WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama renewed his pledge on Saturday to make job creation his top priority in 2010 but said it was also critical to rein in a record budget deficit that threatened an economic recovery.

Obama used his weekly radio and Internet address to remind Americans of the various proposals he put forward in the last week to spur job growth and tame a $1.4 trillion deficit.

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ALBANY, N.Y. – Using federal stimulus money to avoid layoffs at schools is going to create a shortfall even more difficult for states and schools to contend with when that money runs out, according to a first-of-its-kind study released Monday.

New York alone will see a $2 billion shortfall after stimulus money ends in 2011-12, and that could drive up some of the nation’s highest local property taxes another 8 percent, according to the analysis by state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.

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WASHINGTON – Fewer people are claiming unemployment benefits — but still too many to signal that the economy is close to gaining jobs.

First-time claims for jobless benefits dropped last week to a seasonally adjusted 502,000, the Labor Department said Thursday. That’s the fewest claims since the week ending Jan. 3, and below economists’ estimates.

Claims would have to fall to the high 400s to indicate the economy could soon produce even a slight gain in jobs, estimates Abiel Reinhart, an economist at JPMorgan Chase. That level of claims could be reached by January, he said, and the economy should start gaining jobs sometime in the first quarter of 2010.

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ASHINGTON – Former President Bill Clinton told anxious Senate Democrats on Tuesday to pass a health care bill soon because the U.S. economy can’t resist the toxic combination of exorbitant medical costs and nearly 50 million uninsured for much longer.

“My argument was that this is an economic imperative,” Clinton said after the closed-door meeting.

Addressing Democrats’ insecurities about the complex legislation, Clinton said he told the senators “there is no perfect bill — you’ll always have unintended consequences. There will be amendments to this next year. But the worst thing to do is nothing.”

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NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — After weeks of partisan debate, the Senate voted on Wednesday to lengthen unemployment benefits by up to 20 weeks and to extend the $8,000 homebuyer tax credit.

The closely watched legislation would extend jobless benefits in all states by 14 weeks. Those that live in states with unemployment greater than 8.5% would receive an additional six weeks. The proposal would be funded by extending a longstanding federal unemployment tax on employers through June 30, 2011.

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The House of Representatives will debate a bill next week increasing the ceiling on Small Business Administration loans from $2 million to $5 million. The bill, backed by President Obama, also would increase the maximum size of SBA-backed microloans from $35,000 to $50,000.

On Wednesday, Obama unveiled a separate measure designed to stimulate small business growth in part by making capital cheaper for community banks.

“Small business is the engine of job creation and capital creation in our country,” Pelosi told reporters Thursday. “The issue of jobs is [always] important to us.”

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And according to a preliminary report on stimulus funding for schools by the Department of Education and the Domestic Policy Council, the stimulus plan has created jobs.

State governments have created and saved at least 250,000 education jobs — and restored nearly all their projected education budget shortfalls for fiscal years 2009 and 2010 — according to preliminary findings released Monday by the White House.

But some states that used the funds to fill existing budget gaps could face a crisis when the money runs out after 2010. And the Department of Education has chastised certain states for their stimulus funding programs and warned them that they risk their chances at getting other DOE grants down the road.

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“I am one of 70 or 80 people putting in for just about every position,” Phillips told us during a visit this past week. “It’s been difficult.”

Phillips has been looking for work for more than eight months now, often using the computerized job listings at the state-run jobs center.

“I put in for probably 10, eight to 10 jobs a week. I’ve been interviewed for about four a week. And I’m still unemployed,” she said.

Brad Gillespie, the Anchorage, Alaska, regional manager for the job centers, says about 900 people a week visit the midtown facility. That’s up 20 percent to 30 percent from the same time a year ago.

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WASHINGTON – Job hunters will face long odds well into next year. As the unemployment rate inches closer to 10 percent, most businesses are nowhere close to hiring again.

Uncertain about prospects for recovery — the economy’s and their own — employers cut 263,000 jobs in September, the government said Friday. Unemployment crept up to 9.8 percent.

As the economy slowly turns around, sales are slowly growing and many companies are starting to make money again. But they’re doing it by cutting costs, squeezing more work out of fewer employees and relying on part-timers and cheap overseas labor.