By Yael T. Abouhalkah, Kansas City Star Editorial Page columnist

Barack Obama wins Round 1 on the economy.

He points out the protections he put in the bailout bill passed last week. Now Obama presses for a rescue plan for the middle class:

1. End tax breaks for companies shipping jobs overseas. Good idea; plays well with middle-class Americans.

2. Help families with tax cuts for people making less than $200,000 a year.

3. He points out the long-term challenges: energy and health care policies need to be improved. But doesn't point out ways to pay for it.

John McCain says he's "convinced" we have to keep Americans in their homes. He promotes his home-loan mortgage program, which experts say won't work. And will be very expensive.

McCain's "Joe the plumber" spiel doesn't go anywhere, and Obama gets off a good line about how McCain has been watching his own commercials to get his information.

Both candidates are for tax cuts, yada, yada.

But the real truth is that this country is going to need higher taxes to pay for all the debt it has accumulated.