My guest for tonight's Conversations with Great Minds is one of the world's leading political scientists. Currently the Malkin Professor of Public Policy at Harvard University - Robert D. Putnam, who has been called "the most influential academic in the world." He has advised three U.S. presidents - and has won a number of distinguished awards. Professor Putnam's 2000 book Bowling Alone is considered a classic of its kind - an was a national besteller. His new book - "Our Kids: The American Dream in Crisis" - is a fascinating and challenging look at our nation's deep crisis of opportunity.

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Thom's guest for tonight's Conversations with Great Minds is award-winning historian Steve Fraser. Currently an adjunct professor at Columbia University - Steve is one of America's leading labor historians and is the co-founder - along with Tom Engelhardt - of the American Empire Project books series. Steve is also the editor-at-large of the journal New Labor Forum and is the author of a number of critically acclaimed books - including his latest -"The Age of Acquiescence: The Life and Death of American Resistance to Organized Wealth and Power" - a fascinating look at America's new Gilded Age. From the Sons of Liberty to the Wobblies - America has always been a revolutionary country. So why with wealth inequality at record highs does it now seem like everyday Americans are terrified of taking on the powers that be?

For tonight's Conversations with Great Minds - Thom is joined by award-winning author David O. Stewart. Formerly a trial lawyer here in Washington, D.C. - David is also the president of the Washington Independent Review of Books. He's written a number of books about American history as well a mystery novel and won the 2013 History Prize from the Society of the Cincinnati. David Stewart's new book - "Madison's Gift: Five Partnerships that Built America" - is a fascinating look into the friendships that made James Madison into the revolutionary leader he was.

Thom's guest for tonight's Conversations with Great Minds is one of America's most influential thinkers on muliticulturalism and race - Professor Derald Wing Sue. Currently a Professor of Psychology and Education at the Teacher's College at Columbia University - Professor Sue has been at the forefront of some the most forward-thinking scholarship on race relations in America. His book "Microaggressions in Everyday Life" is now considered a classic of its kind - and it won the inaugural UnityFirst dot com National Diversity and Inclusion Book Prize .Professor Sue is also the co-founder and first President of the Asian American Psychological Association. His new book - "Race Talk and the Conspiracy of Silence: Understanding and Facilitating Difficult Dialogues on Race" - is a fascinating look into how we talk about race and racism.

For tonight's Conversations with Great Minds - we're going to take a look at Part 2 of my interview with legendary TV and film producer Norman Lear. The creative force behind some of the 20th century's most famous television shows including "The Jeffersons", "All in the Family", "Good Times" and "Sanford & Sons" - Norman is a titan of modern American culture. He’s also the founder of the People for the American Way - one of America's most influential political advocacy groups - and the author of the new book "Even this I Get to Experience."

Norman Lear, (Pt. 1) is an American television writer and producer who produced such 1970s sitcoms as All in the Family, Sanford and Son, One Day at a Time, The Jeffersons, Good Times, and Maude. As a political activist, he founded the advocacy organization People For the American Way in 1981 and has supported First Amendment rights and progressive causes. Shows like "All in the Family" and "The Jeffersons" didn't just shatter ratings charts - they changed the way we thought about American society. Why is that - and what can that tell us about the power of socially-conscious art? I'll ask legendary television producer Norman Lear - the man behind "All in the Family" and "The Jeffersons" - in tonight's Conversation with Great Minds. His new book is Even This I Get to Experience.

Scott Horton, Lords of Secrecy: The National Security Elite and America's Stealth Warfare / Harper's Magazine joins Thom Hartmann.

Katrina Vanden Heuvel, The Nation Magazine joins Thom Hartmann. For tonight’s Conversations with Great Minds - we’re going to take a closer look at the momentous decision by the Obama administration to normalize relations with Cuba. First announced on Wednesday - the move - which came after months of secret negotiations - is the most significant shift in American foreign policy towards Latin America in decades. Not surprisingly - it’s also causing a lot of controversy back here in the U.S. - with many Republicans slamming the president for what they say is another example of his “weakness” But what's the real deal with America's new policy towards Cuba? And who stands to benefit most from the end of one of the last remaining Cold War standoffs?

Ray McGovern, former CIA analyst joins Thom about The Torture Report. The Senate's shocking report on the CIA's torture program has exposed a culture of lawlessness in America's intelligence community. But were things always like this?

Maya Schenwar, Truthout / Locked Down, Locked Out: Why Prison Doesn't Work and How We Can Do Better