Twenty years ago, middle class families with one parent working used to be able to buy a home and pay for higher education. But today, two incomes barely cover the necessities.

In the last three years, health care costs have soared by almost 50 percent, college tuition has gone up 35 percent and the price of gas has climbed to more than $2 per gallon. With all this pressure, if anything goes wrong at all – an illness or a temporary layoff – families can’t pay the bills and risk losing everything that they have built together.

In America, a rising tide is supposed to lift all boats – but today, the middle class boat is taking on water. I think that’s wrong. And I have a plan that builds up our great middle class, pulls our nation forward and honors hard work, responsibility and family.

First, we need to create an economy where Americans can have and keep a good job, earn more and get ahead. If a company is torn between creating jobs here or overseas, we now have a tax code that tells them to go overseas. That’s wrong. And when I am president, I’ll cut taxes for businesses that create jobs here in America.

My plan also invests in the jobs of the future. Today, businesses are harnessing new technology to manufacture new products. These businesses require higher-skilled workers to fill these jobs. To make sure those are American workers in American businesses, we need to provide the job training and start-up capital to make it happen. When I’m president, we will.

Second, we need to make sure that work pays for middle-class Americans and for all those aspiring to join the middle class. The middle-class share of the tax burden has gone up, while incomes have gone down. People are working on weekends. They’re working two jobs, three jobs and they still can’t get ahead.

That’s why I’ll cut middle-class taxes so middle-class incomes go up and our economy grows. I’ll roll back the Bush tax cuts for those making more than $200,000 a year. As president, I’ll extend the child tax credit, end the marriage penalty and keep the starting tax rate low at 10 percent.

My health care plan goes after the greed and waste to lower costs and will save families as much as $1,000 on their premiums.

And because a good education is still the best ticket to the future, I will give families a 60 percent tax credit for up to $4,000 of college tuition.

But we also need to make sure the leaders of our largest corporations act responsibly. Families today are facing bigger debts than ever. The institutions that lend to the middle class play an important role in our economy. But there are mortgage lenders and credit card companies that are imposing excessive fees, penalties and interest payments. That’s wrong. And I have a plan to stop it.

For too long, Washington has also walked away from its responsibilities, and our deficit has grown at an alarming rate. As a result, experts estimate that the deficit we already have will drive up interest rates by 1 percent and the typical mortgage will rise by more than $1,000. That’s why I have a plan to put America back on the path of fiscal discipline by cutting the deficit in half in four years.

Finally, we need to make sure that the middle class can balance work and family. Today, parents are juggling a lot. That means they need after-school and child care programs more than ever. But because basic costs have gone up, parents are left with little to pay for that help.

When school lets out, many kids go home to an empty house or get into trouble. After-school programs provide wonderful benefits – we see children learning more, and we see less teen pregnancy and less delinquency. As president, I will extend after-school opportunities to 3 million children within four years.

This is my plan to end the middle class squeeze. It’s time to invest in our economic engine, reward work and restore the best hopes of our people. It’s time to let America be America again.

Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., is running for president.

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