‘What would you do if you lost your job right now?’

You’re 56 years old, working in an industry in decline. The realities of unemployment aren’t going to change depending on who wins in November because (a) you’re 56 years old and (b) you work in an industry in decline.

This latest in a series of short interviews with Americans by CBS pretty well peels through all the politics of a presidential campaign and gets right to the real issue facing millions of Americans: Nobody seems to have a good answer to one person’s question. And often, that question gets lost in the noise.

In Minnesota today, state officials said the number of job openings has increased in the state. But many of the openings are low-paying, temporary gigs. And the ones people are losing, are the kind that you could support a family on.

Also today, St. Jude Medical of Saint Paul announced a round of layoffs, including 80 in Minnesota.