Bernanke: Unemployment Will Be High for Years

Ben Bernanke isn't exactly spreading good tidings in his semiannual report to Congress. Two of the lowlights, from the New York Times:

• Unemployment: Expect it to remain high, as in well above 7%, through the end of President Obama's first term. Bernanke said it will take "a significant amount of time" to restore the 8.5 million jobs lost in the recession.

• Economic outlook: It remains "unusually uncertain," two words never good to hear from a Fed chairman's mouth, as evidenced in the stock market's quick drop. Conditions here and overseas, he added, have “become less supportive of economic growth in recent months.”