WASHINGTON -- Four years ago, when she was considering becoming President Barack Obama's secretary of labor, Hilda Solis said many friends asked why she would possibly want the job. After all, the secretary's most visible responsibility is delivering the monthly jobs report, and the nation was then shedding more than 700,000 jobs per month. "My reaction was, I'm here to solve problems, and that's why the president has asked me to do this," Solis told HuffPost. Solis announced last week that she would be stepping down from her post and returning home to Los Angeles, where many political observers said they expect she'll run for public office again.