>> the race for the white house and the politics of the economy. joining us, former democratic governor of michigan jennifer granholm. republican strategist alex castellanos. white house correspondent for "the new york times." helene cooper. senior political analyst for "time" magazine, mark halperin. good morning. after weeks of taking his case on the road and urging congress to pass his jobs bill tomorrow the president will lay out his plan to reduce the deficit. "the new york times" reporting this morning that president obama will call for a new minimum tax rate for millionaires and will dub the proposal the buffett rule in reference to billionaire warren buffett who has advocated that the superrich should pay their fair share taxes. what are the prospects among republicans? what sort of plan is realistic in the midst of this election cycle. here with us for two live interviews, the republican leader of the senate, mitch mcconnell, and former president of the united states, bill