Listen to Roberton Williams, an expert on federal tax and budget issues, discuss McCain and Obama's tax plans and break down their differences.

Listen to Roberton Williams, an expert on federal tax and budget issues, explain what the McCain and Obama tax plans mean for voters.

The declining economy has meant intensified election-season interest in the issues that affect family budgets, like housing and health care. Child care costs also put substantial pressure on family resources, with very limited public programs to ease the way for low-income workers and their children. At the same time, many states are showing signs they may expand their early education offerings. [03:12]

The violent crime rate, which had been declining for years, went up from 2004 to 2006 and is no longer on a downward trend. Among the explanations for the crime spike is that emphasizing terrorism prevention has left less money and manpower for community policing. The federal government, and the presidential candidates, can take the lead in providing states with innovative ways to combat crime.

As voters weigh candidates' positions on domestic issues, differing views about the government's role in helping children and families will come into play. What do members of the public believe about children and families? How do their beliefs overlap or conflict with the research and policy evidence and the demographic and economic trends that shape family life?

Whether they're running for a local office or for president, candidates on the hustings in recent weeks have turned to a new campaign issue: the rising cost of food. Voters are facing sticker shock in grocery aisles, communities are seeing food pantry stocks dwindle, and the presidential candidates are focusing on kitchen-table issues far more intensely than they might have expected when the campaign season started more than a year ago.

Our time has witnessed the unprecedented combination of tax reductions at home and war abroad. War and Taxes, released May 6 by the Urban Institute Press, chronicles the political arguments, economic conditions, and public opinions that made it possible for previous presidents and Congresses to raise taxes, sell bonds, and cut domestic spending to pay for wars.

The price for presidential campaign promises is adding up, but where will the money come from to pay for these plans? New spending or deep tax cuts could increase the federal deficit and add to the national debt, topics largely missing from election coverage. Fiscal discipline may not be as exciting as flubs and gaffes on the campaign trail, but it's crucial to our economic future and unwise to ignore.

The run-up to the Pennsylvania primary raised many questions about capital gains and the effects tax-rate changes have on revenues. How significant are the candidates' differences? And how will raising or lowering the tax rate affect middle-class Americans?

The presidential candidates have all called for simplifications to the tax code. The U.S. tax system does much more than raise revenue; it redistributes income and rewards certain choices, like having children, going to college, and saving for retirement. And even the simplest taxes need detailed rules and collection mechanisms.