If you thought the Paul Ryan plan to privatize Medicare was bad – wait until you see what Republicans have up their sleeve today. Republicans in the House today will vote on THEIR plan to raise the debt-limit – which includes a balanced budget amendment that makes sure the government can’t close loopholes on rich people in the future – and can’t spend any money beyond a certain threshold – even if emergency spending is needed to fight off a recession or some other crisis.

The balanced budget amendment will require a 25% spending cut in every single government program – from Social Security – to Medicare – to Veteran’s benefits – and will return government spending to it’s lowest levels since 1966 – when the United States population stood at 100 million people fewer than it is today. No President has ever supported a spending cut and structural changes this massive – yet Republicans feel that with our nation in a Great Depression and real unemployment above 16% - that now is the perfect time to blockade government spending – just like Herbert Hoover did.

What we’re seeing unfold in the House today is the final step in Ronald Reagan’s "starve the beast" economics – and if Republicans are successful – we’re all screwed.

-Thom

(Do you think they will succeed? Tell us here.)

The Daily Stack

Quote: "America cannot hold itself as a moral beacon to the world if it violates the rule of law by engaging in illegal spying, torture and secrecy. The ACLU is committed to making sure that our government complies with universally recognized human rights principles and upholds our Constitution." -- Jamil Dakwar.

Hour One: Rupert Murdoch Has Gamed American Politics Every Bit as Thoroughly as Britain's John Nichols, Washington Correspondent - The Nation Magazine

Article: "Rupert Murdoch Has Gamed American Politics Every Bit as Thoroughly as Britain's" by John Nichols.

Article: "Murdoch: 'Humbled' by Phone-Hacking Scandal but Not Personally Responsible" by VoA.

Article: "Sean Hoare death: postmortem being held on hacking whistleblower" by Paul Lewis.

Article: "Comedian held after Murdoch attack".

Article: "House set to vote on GOP debt cutting measure" by Alan Silverleib.

Article: "AP Exclusive: Mortgage 'robo-signing' goes on" by Michelle Conlin.

Article: "Roger Ailes’ Secret Nixon-Era Blueprint for Fox News" by John Cook.

Cheesy news alert: "Murdochs Vow to Launch Full Investigation to Find Out Who is Running Company They Are in Charge Of" by Andy Borowitz.

Article: "James and Rupert Murdoch at the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee - live transcript" by Simon Rogers, Ami Sedghi & Lisa Evans.

Site: "Organizing for America".

Site: "Democracy for America".

Site: "Rebuild the Dream" campaign.

Latest on Rupert-gate Victoria Jones, White House Correspondent

Article: "Protester armed with foam pie attacks Murdoch" by Douglas Stanglin.

Article: "Rupert Murdoch assembles US legal team over phone-hacking scandal" by Ed Pilkington.

Article: "Can the Murdochs plead the Fifth?" by Roger Parloff.

Hour Two: Murdoch hearings...is this the end of News Corp? Stephen C. Webster, Raw Story

Article: "LulzSec hacks The Sun, publishes fake story about Murdoch’s death" by Eric W. Dolan.

Article: "LulzSec claims to have obtained trove of News Corp. emails" by Stephen C. Webster.

Article: "Fmr. Fox News Executive: Americans' Phones Were Hacked" by The Anomaly.

Article: "Bloomberg, CNBC: Murdoch ‘Considering’ Stepping Down As News Corp. CEO" by Mark Joyella.

Case: "New World Communications Of Tampa Inc WTVT TV v. Akre", 2003.

Site: "BGH Bulletin" (Jane Akre, Steve Wilson, Fox).

Site: "Progressive Democrats of America".

Full Monty alert: "Palin is "the leader of a strange family of inbred weirdos straight out of 'The Hills Have Eyes'"" by Desi.

Article: "Role-reversal: Passenger accused of groping TSA agent" by Ben Mutzabaugh.

Article: "Senate Republicans vow to fight Obama nominee to head consumer bureau" by Amy Biegelsen and Shirley Gao.

Article: "Elizabeth Warren says she'll think about Senate race" by Catalina Camia.

Article: "Progressive Change Campaign Committee Threatens To Pull Obama Support Ahead Of 2012" by AP.

Talk Radio News Segment: Ellen Ratner, Bureau Chief

Article: "Obama Likes 'Gang Of Six' Proposal" by Kenneth R. Bazinet.

Article: "Gang Of Six Unveils $3.7T Deficit Package, Coburn Returns" by TRNS.

Article: "McConnell, Reid tweaking debt limit fallback plan to boost its chances" by Ted Barrett.

Article: "Egan-Jones Officially Cuts U.S. Credit Rating" by Larry Doyle.

Article: "GOP congressmen show up at White House, want plan" by Alexander Mooney.

Article: "June housing starts at 6-month high, permits up" by Reuters.

Article: "Special report: DoD’s budget quandary" by Philip Ewing.

Hour Three: The CIA's Secret Sites in Somalia Jeremy Scahill, Investigative Journalist

Book: "Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army" By Jeremy Scahill.

Article: "The CIA's Secret Sites in Somalia" by Jeremy Scahill.

Site: Center for Constitutional Rights.

Site: Reprieve, Clive Stafford Smith.

The trouble with terrorists...? Catherine Herridge, Fox News National Correspondent.

Book: "The Next Wave: On the Hunt for Al Qaeda's American Recruits" by Catherine Herridge.

Article: "Al Qaeda's Yemen branch has aided Somalia militants, U.S. says" by Brian Bennett.

Article: "Messages To The World by Osama bin Laden - Thom Hartmann's "Independent Thinker" Book of the Month Review".

The good: "Elizabeth Warren says she'll think about Senate race" by Catalina Camia.

The bad: "Mitt Romney: Carbon not a health threat" by Darren Samuelsohn.

The very, very ugly: "Fox's Bolling: "Some Have Called" Park51 "A Victory Mosque"" by Media Matters.

Article: "Two Santa Clauses or How The Republican Party Has Conned America for Thirty Years" by Thom Hartmann.

Article: "First recall election in Wisconsin kicks off" by Alexis Levinson.

Crazy alert: "Nobody runs for office in small N.C. town" by Craig Johnson.

Coming up Wednesday on The Thom Hartmann Program

Hour Two: "Reaganomics is the Only Way"...what?! Thom confronts Peter Ferrara, General counsel of the American Civil Rights Union, author

And, the best of the rest of the news and your calls right here on...

The Thom Hartmann Program... your media support group for we the people.

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