President Obama touted the underlying numbers in today's unemployment report, noting that the rate of lost jobs is slowing considerably, but adding that "we still have a long way to go."

Speaking at a community college in Allentown, Pa., Obama stressed that while the nation lost 11,000 jobs in November, that was about 115,000 fewer than forecast. And the actual unemployment rate dropped, from 10.2 percent to 10 percent. (USA TODAY's Paul Davidson summarizes the report here.)

"Overall, this is the best jobs report we've seen since 2007," Obama said, though he added he wants to keep things "in perspective."

Joking that "good trends don't pay the rent," Obama said the nation still needs to figure out new ways to generate jobs.

"The direction is clear," Obama said. "When you think about how this year began ... today's report is a welcome sign that there are better days ahead."

Of course, the Republicans have a different take on the report that continued to put unemployment in double digits. House Republican Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, said anyone who celebrates today's report "is out of touch with the American people."

"I am confident our economy will ultimately recover," Boehner added, "but it will do so because of the hard work and entrepreneurship of the American people, not wasteful Washington spending."

During his appearance in Allentown, Obama also touted next Tuesday's big speech on the economy. "I'm going to speak in greater detail about the ideas I'll be sending to Congress to help jump start private sector hiring and get Americans back to work," he said.

(Posted by David Jackson)