Oct. 14--PRESIDENTIAL ISSUES -- ECONOMY

First in a series

The economy tops the draw for many Americans' interest in the 2008 presidential campaign.

Tiffany Martinez, 42, had never worked for a candidate before, and instead of volunteering 10 hours a week, she says she probably should be finding paid work. But even with her husband's unemployment checks running out soon and house payments gnawing at savings for their 5-year-old son's education, working on the election lets Martinez feel she's doing something for her family's future.

"I've voted before and crossed my fingers and wished that my candidate won, and I can't afford to do that this year," said Martinez, who lives in Franklin and is campaigning for Barack Obama.

Likewise, Bobby Kraft got involved as a John McCain supporter after a campaign official heard him voicing his concerns as a small-business owner.

"It now gives me an opportunity to make sure at least that maybe the small-business guy and maybe the Main Street person is being heard a little bit," said Kraft, 30, who's president and chief executive officer of First Edge Solutions, a digital printing and document management company with 75 employees in Milwaukee's Walker's Point area.

Martinez considers Obama more attuned to workers. Kraft sees McCain letting entrepreneurs grow.

Economists say that based on their campaign rhetoric, their voting records and the background of their advisers, McCain and Obama have contrasting economic views generally, with McCain more prone to let free markets prevail and Obama more open to government intervention.

Among the issues that separate them, trade policies provide an example in an area important to Wisconsin.

McCain portrays himself as a champion of free trade, supportive of current and pending trade agreements, and an advocate for more. In April, he met with business executives in South Milwaukee and heard how trade deals help local companies compete globally.

Obama says he's for free trade but takes issue with past agreements, seeking stronger language for and enforcement of labor and environmental standards aimed at putting trading partners on more equal footing. At the General Motors plant in Janesville in February, Obama blamed trade policies for the loss of U.S. factory jobs.

Though not drawing as much attention as their tax policies or health care plans, the candidates' foreign trade stances matter more in Wisconsin than in most states because of a heavy reliance on manufacturing.