When he took office, the nation was in dire economic straits, with jobs evaporating and a financial crisis deepening by the day. Near the end of Obama's first year in office, the jobless rate hit a quarter-century high of 10 percent. He leaves the White House with unemployment at just 4.7 percent after 75 straight months of job growth, though it's come with sluggish rises in wages and as many older Americans simply gave up on finding work. It may be those persistent challenges that have fueled the perception that despite the economic recovery, things haven't improved enough.