Zachary Roth, author-The Great Suppression, Voting Rights, Corporate Cash, and the Conservative Assault on Democracy/MSNBC, joins Thom. We on the left have become accustomed to thinking of the Republican war on democracy as something that just involves voter suppression. But as your book points out, it’s actually much bigger than that.

For more information on the stories we've covered visit our websites at thomhartmann.com - freespeech.org - and RT.com. You can also watch tonight's show on Hulu - at Hulu.com/THE BIG PICTURE and over at The Big Picture YouTube page. And - be sure to check us out on Facebook and Twitter!

As the number of people living on planet earth grows by the minute - we are sitting on a ticking time bomb - all 7 billion of us. So does overpopulation actually pose a bigger threat than climate change? I'll ask activist and author Karen Shragg in tonight's Conversations with Great Minds.

For more information on the stories we've covered visit our websites at thomhartmann.com - freespeech.org - and RT.com. You can also watch tonight's show on Hulu - at Hulu.com/THE BIG PICTURE and over at The Big Picture YouTube page. And - be sure to check us out on Facebook and Twitter!

Wendell Potter, Nation On the Take: How Big Money Corrupts Our Democracy and What We Can Do About It (w/Nick Penniman)/Center for Public Integrity/Center for Media and Democracy, joins Thom. The United States of America is now - for lack of a better word - the best democracy money can buy. Billionaire oligarchs like the Koch Brothers now outspend political parties - members of congress spend most of their day begging for donations instead of writing new laws - and lobbyists make millions and billions selling access to the commons. Needless to say - this is not the world our founding fathers envisioned when the declared a government "of the people, by the people, and for the people." We are now - as my guest for tonight's Conversations with Great Minds has titled his new book - A "Nation on the Take." So how did we get to this point? And how can we reform our campaign finance system to reclaim the democratic institutions our founders created?

For more information on the stories we've covered visit our websites at thomhartmann.com - freespeech.org - and RT.com. You can also watch tonight's show on Hulu - at Hulu.com/THE BIG PICTURE and over at The Big Picture YouTube page. And - be sure to check us out on Facebook and Twitter!

Dennis Henigan, "Guns Don't Kill People, People Kill People" And Other Myths About Guns and Gun Control/(former) Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence joins Thom. Dennis Henigan, "Guns Don't Kill People, People Kill People" And Other Myths About Guns and Gun Control/(former) Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence joins Thom. Despite what the NRA and right-wing media might say - the United States has a serious gun violence problem. According one recent study - the gun murder rate in America is actually 25 times that of the other 22 richest nations - combined. The reason for this level of violence is simple :there are too many guns in the hands of too many people. And yet - whenever the calls for reform reach critical mass - the gun lobby and its cronies trot out the same old tired talking points - such as..."If we pass gun control, only the bad guys will have the guns.” They're part of a calculated strategy on the part of the gun lobby to confuse the public and keep it in the dark about just how serious a problem gun violence really is.

For more information on the stories we've covered visit our websites at thomhartmann.com - freespeech.org - and RT.com. You can also watch tonight's show on Hulu - at Hulu.com/THE BIG PICTURE and over at The Big Picture YouTube page. And - be sure to check us out on Facebook and Twitter!

David Daley, RATF**KED: The True Story Behind the Secret Plan to Steal America's Democracy/Salon joins Thom. The Gerrymandering of electoral districts has given Republicans massive majorities at both the federal and state levels. But has it also left their party more vulnerable to being taken over by people like Donald Trump?

For more information on the stories we've covered visit our websites at thomhartmann.com - freespeech.org - and RT.com. You can also watch tonight's show on Hulu - at Hulu.com/THE BIG PICTURE and over at The Big Picture YouTube page. And - be sure to check us out on Facebook and Twitter!

Wenonah Hauter, Food and Water Watch/Frackopoly: The Battle for the Future of Energy and the Environment joins Thom. President Obama has done more to fight global warming than any other president in history. So why does he still support fracking? Fracking supporters - like President Obama - say it's a bridge fuel to a clean energy future. But is that really the case? And is the natural gas boom actually just making it harder to us to make the transition to renewables?

For more information on the stories we've covered visit our websites at thomhartmann.com - freespeech.org - and RT.com. You can also watch tonight's show on Hulu - at Hulu.com/THE BIG PICTURE and over at The Big Picture YouTube page. And - be sure to check us out on Facebook and Twitter!

For tonight's Conversations with Great Minds - I'm joined by one of the progressive movement's highest profile rising stars. Nina Turner is a former Cleveland City Councilperson, an Ohio State Senator representing that state's 25th district, and served as the minority whip in the Ohio senate. Right now, she travels the country as a spokesperson for the Bernie Sanders campaign for president. Even if he doesn't win the nomination - Bernie Sanders has still revolutionized American politics and inspired millions of young people to join the progressive movement. So why are so many people high-up in the Democratic Party so against what he wants to do?

For more information on the stories we've covered visit our websites at thomhartmann.com - freespeech.org - and RT.com. You can also watch tonight's show on Hulu - at Hulu.com/THE BIG PICTURE and over at The Big Picture YouTube page. And - be sure to check us out on Facebook and Twitter!

For tonight's Conversations with Great Minds - we're going to take a closer look at the modern Republican Party and where it's going with one of the foremost experts on the topic. John Kenneth White is a Professor of Politics at the Catholic University of America here in Washington, D.C. - where he specializes in political parties and the U.S. presidency. Professor White is also the author of numerous books - including his latest - "What Happened to the Republican Party?: And What It Means for American Presidential Politics."

For more information on the stories we've covered visit our websites at thomhartmann.com - freespeech.org - and RT.com. You can also watch tonight's show on Hulu - at Hulu.com/THE BIG PICTURE and over at The Big Picture YouTube page. And - be sure to check us out on Facebook and Twitter!

For tonight's Conversations with Great Minds - I'm joined by award-winning journalist Sebastian Junger. Currently a contributing editor at Vanity Fair - Sebastian is also a filmmaker and the co-director of the academy-award nominated film Restrepo - which won the Grand Jury Award at the Sundance Film Festival. He's also the author a number of books - including the bestelling Perfect Storm - which was made into the film starring George Clooney - and his latest - "Tribe: On Homecoming and Belonging" - a fascinating look at the breakdown of community in America - and what it means for returning veterans.

For more information on the stories we've covered visit our websites at thomhartmann.com - freespeech.org - and RT.com. You can also watch tonight's show on Hulu - at Hulu.com/THE BIG PICTURE and over at The Big Picture YouTube page. And - be sure to check us out on Facebook and Twitter!

Jim Hightower, Swim Against The Current: Even A Dead Fish Can Go With The Flow, joins Thom. The media has dubbed this presidential election the "populist moment." But what does it actually mean to be populist?

For more information on the stories we've covered visit our websites at thomhartmann.com - freespeech.org - and RT.com. You can also watch tonight's show on Hulu - at Hulu.com/THE BIG PICTURE and over at The Big Picture YouTube page. And - be sure to check us out on Facebook and Twitter!