Editor’s note: This is the third in a series of questions posed by McClatchy Newspapers to encourage a thoughtful civic discussion about topics of national interest. We invite your participation.

Jobs are a major issue in the presidential race. New unemployment numbers released this week showed a decline to 7.8 percent, falling below 8 percent for the first time in nearly four years.

President Barack Obama’s backers view the drop in joblessness as a sign of continuing recovery, and a boost to his campaign.

GOP challenger Mitt Romney paints a bleaker picture, pointing to the severe drop in manufacturing jobs since Obama took office and growth in new jobs that doesn’t keep pace with new workers.

The two camps offer different approaches to improving the jobs outlook.

Obama wants to offer more job retraining, greater access to education to prepare future workers and funding for major infrastructure projects to repair highways and bridges and employ more workers. He would maintain current tax breaks for families earning less than $250,000 and raise taxes on the higher income families.

Romney favors reduced regulations on businesses and lowered tax rates for all by 20 percent, including on the wealthy, to help spur job growth.

Both sides propose lowering corporate tax rates to spur hiring.

Record your choice and discuss your opinions in the comments section. We encourage a civil conversation, focused on issues.