Bernanke: For Job Creation, It's a Long, Slow Slog

With the U.S. economic recovery seemingly stalled, many Americans -- including millions of unemployed -- are wondering what can be done to prod the economy into higher gear and get employers hiring again.

The biggest problem that Washington policymakers face is that there is little the Federal Reserve, the nation's central bank, can do to stimulate the economy. Interest rates -- at near-zero percent -- have been holding at historic lows for two years, and a recent $600 billion round of purchases in Treasury bonds by the Fed seems to have done little to spark a rebound.