Finally, some substance.

After weeks of campaign conversation about rogue pastors and bitter voters, it was a relief to see the presumptive presidential nominees turn last week to serious discussion about economic proposals.

The debate between Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain centers so far on relatively quick fixes for a troubled economy. More details about long-term strategies should emerge in coming weeks.

Voters want to know how the two candidates propose to lead the nation out of the choppy waters caused by rising energy costs and job losses, and falling home values and stock prices.

At the same time, Americans are counting on McCain and Obama to show real leadership in tackling deficit spending and the rising U.S. debt.

Short-term relief:

Both senators wisely say they will support legislation to extend unemployment benefits beyond the standard 26 weeks. The House approved an additional 13 weeks on Thursday.

McCain’s support of the bill is an indication of the political independence that has made him an effective senator. A vote in favor of the extension will put him at odds with President Bush and many Republicans, who say the plan is too generous.

But the extension would help out-of-work Americans cope with high prices of gasoline and food, and slow down economic stagnation. The candidates’ leadership should help convince the Senate to pass the bill by a veto-proof majority.

Tax reform:

For households earning more than $250,000 a year, Obama has fortunately pledged to repeal the tax cuts that the Bush administration pushed Congress to pass.

That would represent a substantial correction to a tax policy that has worsened the deficit and widened the income gap between the rich and everyone else.

McCain’s reversal on this issue is disappointing. He was one of a minority of Republican senators who opposed the Bush tax cuts in 2001 and 2003, accurately pointing out that they disproportionately favored the wealthy. But McCain voted for the cuts in 2006, and now wants to make them permanent.

Obama has proposed other measures to correct the imbalance created by unfair tax policies. He would increase the capital gains tax to as much as 28 percent, attempt to close some corporate tax loopholes and expand tax credits for very low-income workers.

McCain promotes his tax proposals — including corporate tax cuts, keeping the capital gains tax at 15 percent and phasing out the alternative minimum tax — as business-friendly measures that will get the economy moving.

But they are suspiciously close to Bush administration’s policies that have failed to prevent the current downturn.

The future:

Experts say both candidates’ economic proposals would increase the federal deficit. That’s unacceptable. The country is ready for a president who will model fiscal responsibility.

McCain proposes to close the budget gap by cracking down on pork-barrel spending. That’s a fine idea. The nonpartisan Tax Policy Center warns, however, that McCain will find it difficult to reduce spending enough to cover the revenue losses called for in his tax plan.

The same caution holds for Obama’s plans to close loopholes, the research group says.

Discussions about health care, Social Security and energy are needed to produce a big picture of how each candidate will manage the economy.

Based on proposals so far, however, Obama’s plans for reducing inequalities in tax policies and helping working families offer the better blueprint to move forward.