Senator Barack Obama, the Democratic Party’s candidate for president, will do what I said (for days) John McCain should do: present a clear, concise economic package, present it to voters, defend it whenever the opportunity arrises and, by doing so, making an effort to ‘own’ the number one issue on the mind of voters.

Obama will unveil his “economic rescue plan for the middle class” today, during a speech in Ohio, a key battleground state.

Aides to McCain, meanwhile, have said their boss will not come up with any clear economic proposals in a speech he will give today.

However, according to those ‘in the know,’ McCain will do so later this week. Senator Lindsey Graham, one of McCain’s strongest supporters in the Senate and key ally, signalled McCain was thinking about cutting the capital gains tax, in order to boost spending and investing and, thus, the economy.

Obama plan will likely follow a different course. As of yet, however, details about the plan are unknown. Obama will have the podium all to himself today, and days afterwards. McCain will constantly have to play catch-up, for the initiative once again lies with Obama.

Having said that, presenting a clear economic plan also makes one vulnerable for criticism. The earlier you present your package, the less likely it is your aides, advisers and other experts had time enough to review the plan properly, to estimate its exact impact, to debate about it, and so forth. As such, McCain could learn from possible weaknesses in Obama’s plan, and use that to his advantage.

Whatever happens, it seems that the race will finally become about the issues. If both men present economic plans, they will articulate it constantly, and pundits and newspapers will have to give them a decent look, take them into consideration, and point out their strengths and weaknesses.

When everybody was waiting for an October surprise, Obama (and later this week McCain) surprised by making the campaign less personal, and more about the issues.

Lastly, this should enable voters and commentators to better distinct the two men from each other. Economic plans are, obviously, a tremendous way of differentiating one from one’s rival, and for voters to look at what an Obama resp. McCain presidency would look like.