Thom Hartmann: Thom's blog

24 May, 2012, 20:15

Big Pharma is The Biggest Tax Dodger in America

The pharmaceutical industry is the single biggest defrauder of Americans taxpayers in the country – surpassing the Defense Industry for the first time. A new Public Citizen report finds that over the last twenty years the pharmaceutical industry has accounted for 25% of all violations of state and federal law when it comes to the False Claims Act. Among the infractions include illegally...

23 May, 2012, 21:13

Just in case you thought our Congress wasn’t the best that money can buy...

This election year, the Chamber of Commerce is looking to confirm it. At a meeting in Washington, Chamber President Tom Donohue told members that his organization is, “planning on having a good year,” and will spend more money this election than they did in 2010, when they spent more than $30 million catapulting corporate shills calling themselves Tea Partiers into Congress. The Chamber is...

22 May, 2012, 22:51

Peter G. Peterson wants your Social Security money

Meet Wall Street billionaire – Pete Peterson – the man trying to destroy Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid as we know it. According to tax documents – between 2007 and 2011 – Peterson has given nearly a half-billion dollars to his Peter. G. Peterson Foundation to run ads and lobby Congress warning that federal safety net programs are going broke and need to be drastically cut or privatized....

18 May, 2012, 21:56

The Occupy Movement confronts the NATO Summit this weekend in Chicago

All eyes are on Chicago this weekend – where an annual NATO Summit is going up against the Occupy Movement. Tens of thousands of demonstrators are expected to attend this weekend’s marches and rallies, calling for peace and economic fairness. Chicago police have already spent more than a million dollars on riot gear and high-tech crowd dispersal technology like long-range acoustic devices to use...

16 May, 2012, 22:52

Why is it legal for foreigners to write our laws?

House Republicans plan to vote on House Resolution 568 – which calls on the President to take our nation to war should Iran even become capable of building a nuclear weapon – without building one. The resolution also takes containment – like sanctions and diplomacy – off the table as an adequate response to a nuclear Iran – leaving military action as the only possibility. So, despite...

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15 May, 2012, 20:16

Could a lawsuit put an end to the Senate filibuster?

The organization Common Cause filed suit today against the United States Senate claiming current filibuster rules are unconstitutional. In a statement released today – Common Cause President Bob Edgar said the abuse of the filibuster by minorities on both sides of the aisle – especially Republicans – is, “an affront to our democracy and not the way the Senate was supposed to work.” Citing a...

14 May, 2012, 18:15

Vermont will soon become the first state to ban Fracking

Last week – the Vermont House and Senate passed legislation outlawing the controversial practice of hydraulic fracturing, which poisons ground water and leads to earthquakes. Democratic Governor Peter Shumlin is expected to sign the bill into law when it reaches his desk. The George W. Bush administration – chock-full of energy barons like Dick Cheney – exempted fracking from federal...

11 May, 2012, 19:37

The GOP controlled House of Representatives fights back against marriage equality

On the same day that President Obama and the nation took a major step forward toward marriage equality – Republicans in the House of Representatives tried to drag the nation backward. Hours after the President’s endorsement of marriage equality – House Republicans passed a measure in support of the discriminatory Defense Against Marriage Act – known as DOMA – which is a federal ban against...

4 May, 2012, 18:19

Why Should Gun Nuts Violate the Rights of the Average Person?

Florida Governor Rick Scott thinks it’s a good idea to arm up the Republican National Convention in Tampa later this year. With an eye on safety, the city of Tampa has banned foreign objects like crowbars, water guns, and string. However, an attempt by the Mayor of Tampa to also ban handguns during the RNC was shot down by Governor Rick Scott his week. A 2011 law passed in Florida prevents...

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2 May, 2012, 18:31

May Day: A Day Without the 99% - Occupy General Strike In Over 135 US Cities

Workers of the world are uniting in a global day of action to commemorate International Workers Day. In hundreds of cities across America and around the world in London, Barcelona, Toronto, Kuala Lampur, and Sydney – there are calls for a general strike with no working, no shopping and no banking. The Occupy Movement here in the United States is branding it as a day without the 99%. In response...