Our country is in the midst of a full-blown “politically-motivated” judicial crisis.

That’s the conclusion of a new report from the Alliance for Justice, a watchdog group located right here in Washington, DC.

The group looked at the number of federal judges confirmed since Republicans took over the Senate in January, and what it found was shocking.

So far this year, the Republican-controlled Senate has confirmed just six federal judges, the fewest it’s confirmed in the first 8 months of a year since 1953.

We’ve never seen anything like this before in our history, or at least not in our recent history.

As of today, President Obama is on pace to have fewer judicial confirmations over the final two years of his presidency than any president since World War II

Even the Democratic-controlled Senate during the final years of the George W. Bush administration got its act together, did its constitutional duty, and approved 68 judges.

Today’s Republicans, though, could care less about doing their constitutional duty - they just hate President Obama.

Even though Chief Justice John Roberts warned three years ago that we were heading towards a major judicial crisis if something weren’t done soon about the rising number of judicial vacancies, they’ve gone ahead and delayed votes, put off hearings, and done pretty much everything in their power to stop the senate from voting on Obama’s nominees.

Read more here.

-Thom

Tonight on The Big Picture on RT TV at 7pm and 10pm... Drug Prices Are Out Of Control / More Radioactive Waste Heading Our Way (check your local listings for stations or stream at RT or Free Speech TV, and catch past shows on Youtube)

Be sure to check out our newest video: RESTORATION - narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio & Thom Hartmann, directed by Leila Conners / Visit GreenWorldRising.org to check out all the videos: CARBON, LAST HOURS & GREEN WORLD RISING - narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio & Thom Hartmann, directed by Leila Conners

Big Picture Politics Panel:
- Jennifer Kerns, Washington Times/The Blaze
- Kymone Freeman, Black Lives Matter DC/We Act Radio
- Gianno Caldwell, Caldwell Strategic Consulting

Best of the Rest: Drug Prices Are Out Of Control
- Richard Eskow, Campaign for America's Future/The Zero Hour (radio)

Green report: More Radioactive Waste Heading Our Way
- Kevin Kamps, Beyond Nuclear

Tuesday's Daily Stack

Article: "Ben Carson: Muslim president a 'theoretical' idea" by Nick Gass.

Article: "S.E. Cupp Unwittingly Labels Herself A Bigot" by John Amato.

Article: "Biden insiders feel Clinton stalking" by Edward-Isaac Dovere.

Article: "Constitution of the United States" Article 6 section 3. "The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States."

Case: "Bush v. Gore", 2000.

Article: "Voters Raise Concerns About Bernie Sanders’ Record On Guns" by Alice Ollstein.

Article: "Bernie Buckeye Banner Fly By".

Article: "Clinton pledge on drug prices knocks $15bn off biotechs" by David Crow.

Article: "Scott Walker drops out of 2016 presidential race" by Eric Bradner, John King, Dana Bash and Jeff Zeleny.

Article: "Cutting Losses, Kochs to Sell Scott Walker" by Andy Borowitz.

Article: "Scott Walker falls to 3% support in Iowa: poll" by Aliyah Frumin.

Article: "Tuberculosis drug price jumps 2,000%, shocks doctors" by CBC News.

Article: "CEO: 5,000-percent drug price hike "not excessive at all"" by CBS News.

Article: "28 years for salmonella: Peanut exec gets groundbreaking sentence" by Moni Basu.

Article: "Epinephrine" by Wikipedia.

Article: "GM To Pay $900 Million To Settle U.S. Case Over Faulty Ignition Switches" by David Ingram, Nate Raymond and Joseph White.

Article: "Too Big To Jail" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Larry Wilmore Asks Bernie Sanders: Is America Ready For a Socialist President? (VIDEO)" by Adam Johnson.

Article: "It's Al From's Democratic Party..the rest of us just live here. The takeover." by madfloridian.

Article: "Clinton Minion Won’t Apologize For Dirty Opposition Research Attack On Bernie Sanders [VIDEO]" (David Brock) by Chuck Ross.

Article: "WATCH: America After Charleston hosted by Gwen Ifill".

Site: Jill Stein for President.

Hour Two: Conservatives... All About the Money
- Neil McCabe, One America News Network

Article: "Conservatives Buoyed by Historic Flood of Money Into Politics" by Sarah Lazare.

Case: "Buckley v. Valeo", 1976.

Article: "America is an oligarchy, not a democracy or republic, university study finds" by Cheryl K. Chumley.

Book: "The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight: Revised and Updated: The Fate of the World and What We Can Do Before It's Too Late" by Thom Hartmann.

Article: "Aboriginal 'memories' of Australia's coastline go back more than 7,000 years" by Taylor & Francis.

Book: "The Alphabet Versus the Goddess: The Conflict Between Word and Image" by Leonard Shlain (Thom's review).

Quote: "Who controls the past controls the future; who controls the present controls the past" - "Nineteen Eighty-Four" by George Orwell.

Article: "General Mining Act of 1872" by Wikipedia.

Article: "John McCain and Congress helping mining company steal ancestral, ceremonial Apache land" by Carissa Lovelace.

Article: "Unions Take Victory Lap As Scott Walker Drops Out of Race" by Kendall Breitman.

Talk Radio News Segment:
- Bob Ney

Article: "Republicans target Social Security disability" by David Rogers.

Article: "Pope Francis’ U.S. Visit Could Benefit Both Left and Right" by Peter Baker.

Article: "Dems. Block Funding Bill, McConnell Offers Sour-Pill Alternative" by William McDonald.

Article: "Republican Ben Carson seeks to soften stance on Muslim president" by Ben Jacobs.

Article: "John Kasich won’t be at Koch brothers’ event in Columbus" by Darrel Rowland.

Article: "Campaign Cover-Up? Hillary Clinton Facing ‘Mounting Health Issues,’ Political Insider Claims: ‘Blinding Headaches,’ Near-Fainting Fits & Worse!".

Site: "Goats for the old Goat".

Site: Governor Free Don Siegelman.

Book: "Sideswiped: Lessons Learned Courtesy of the Hit Men of Capitol Hill" by Robert Ney.

Article: "TRNS News Notes- 9/22" by Victoria Jones.

Article: "TRNS News Notes- 9/21" by Victoria Jones.

Article: "10 Times Bernie Sanders and Pope Francis Sounded Alike" by Maryalice Parks.

Article: "Official Donald Trump Make America Great Again Cap - Gold/White".

Article: "Protester says Cincinnati Police used Taser on him because he 'flipped off' another officer" by Greg Noble, Julie O'Neill.

Article: "Hillary Clinton campaign only wanted four debates" by hencexox.

Article: "The Poverty Line Was Designed Assuming Every Family Had a Housewife Who Was a 'Skillful Cook'" by Jordan Weissmann.

Bible: "Matthew 5:40" "And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well".

Article: "Oil and Indians Don't Mix" by Greg Palast.

Article: "Connolly on New Dems" by Greta Wodele Brawner.

Article: "Eric Cantor, Paul Ryan & Kevin McCarthy: Plot To Sabotage US Economy with Frank Luntz" by keepemhonest.

Site: Unionwear.

Article: "Record El Niño Puts the 'Icing' on Global Warming Cake" by Lauren McCauley.

Article: "Climate Shock: The Economic Consequences of a Hotter Planet" by Michael Mann.

Article: "Big Changes Underway in the Climate System?" by Met Office.

Article: "In First, TEPCO Dumps Fukushima Groundwater Into Pacific Ocean" by Common Dreams.

Article: "Court Rules Pesticide That’s Been Found To Harm Bees Is No Longer Approved In The U.S." by Katie Valentine.

Article: "New Study Shows Just How Deadly Air Pollution Really Is" by Katie Valentine.

Article: "Leaf-Eating Caterpillars Use Their Poop to Trick Plants" by Elizabeth Newbern.

Wednesday on The Thom Hartmann Program, 12-3pm ET

We'll have the latest news and information...everything you need to know to win the water cooler wars...

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

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Is it wrong for House Republicans to boycott the Pope's speech?

Vote here!

Another Economic Crisis Tipping Point

Should Carly Fiorina Apologize to Planned Parenthood?

Senate Republicans Now Taking Lessons From the Taliban

The Real Culprit of the Animas River Disaster

The Good, the Bad - and the Very, Very Piacularly Ugly!

Presidential Bigotry Run Amok

Full Show 9/21/15: Koch Bros’ Candidate Scott Walker Suspends Campaign

Thom discusses Trump and Carson’s courting of the Islamophobic vote with CAIR’s Robert McCaw and author Rev. Barry Lynn, what the Syriza party’s reelection means for the EU and the world economy with economist Richard Wolff, and who’s to blame for the Animas River spill in Colorado with Waterkeeper Alliance’s Robert Kennedy, Jr. And in tonight’s Daily Take Thom discusses how Senate Republicans created a full blown judicial crisis.

When Does it Become Bigotry?

Thom Hartmann on Science & Green News: 9/22/15

DNC in Defend Hillary Mode...

Bernie Sanders' Views ARE the Mainstream...

How Barbara Boxer Took Down Carly Fiorina with the Truth!

Caller: I Have No Problem With a Muslim President

Climate Change Deniers Should Be In Prison...

Ben Carson: Muslims Shouldn't be President!

Viola Davis' Historic Emmy Award...