The endangered species act, signed by Richard Nixon in 1973, has been one of the most successful defenses of the great web of life in the history of American legislation. It has prevented extinction for 99 percent of species under its protection and accomplished a 90 percent recovery rate in more than 100 species throughout the United States. As the Center for Biological Diversity notes, "The Act has allowed the designation of millions of acres of critical habitat, which is crucial to species' survival and recovery."

Which is exactly why Donald Trump's billionaire developer, drilling, and mining buddies want to gut it. When Louise and I were in Alaska recently, we saw over 100 bald eagles; these birds were on the brink of extinction before the act helped ban DDT and bring them back.

Biodiversity is the foundation on which all life depends, including humans. It provides our water, food, shelters and health. It's the air we breath, the nutrients we take in and the soil that our food is grown on. Now, with Trump's attack on the Endangered Species Act, the web of life is more at risk than ever before. All in the name of more profits for Trump's rich friends. What Trump and other corporatists don't understand is that biological diversity is natural capital that we must protect.

It's the best life insurance for everything.

-Thom

Bill Barr, whose father gave Jeffrey Epstein his start, is now in possession of all the photos and movies taken when they raided Epstein's house a few weeks ago. Now they're raiding his other properties to get all the rest of his photos. Will Barr be using these for prosecution? Or, like J. Edgar Hoover, will Barr be using these pictures of powerful and wealthy men in compromised positions to enhance his own political power?

-Thom

Tuesday's Daily Stack

Article: "The Trump administration delays a portion of planned China tariffs until December" by Gina Heeb.

Article: "Hong Kong protests continue as pictures show extent of violence" by NCAN.

Article: "Tiananmen Square online searches censored by Chinese authorities" by Jonathan Kaiman.

Tweet: "Keep an eye on this. I'll bet Trump has green-lit it. No complaints from America..." by Thom Hartmann.

Tweet: "Disturbing video taken in #Shenzhen just across the boarder with #HongKong. Something extraordinarily bad is about happen. #China #HongKongProtests #Democracy #SaveHongKong Alex" by Alexandre Krauss.

Tweet: "Now that Barr has Epstein's pix & movies seized from his NY mansion, and is now getting all others, a question:
Will Barr use these in prosecutions?
Or use them to enhance his own political power?
FBI agents swarm Jeffrey Epstein's Caribbean island
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/fbi-agents-swarm-jeffrey-epstein-s-private-caribbean-island-n1041596" by Thom Hartmann.

Article: "FBI agents swarm Jeffrey Epstein's private Caribbean island" by Rich Schapiro, Tom Winter and Jonathan Dienst.

Tweet: "The single question reporters need to be asking is:
"Now that Bill Barr's Justice Department has possession of these photos/films of rich, powerful men with underage girls, where are they and what will Barr be doing with them?"
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/08/nyregion/jeffrey-epstein-charges.html" by Thom Hartmann.

Article: "Jeffrey Epstein Is Indicted on Sex Charges as Discovery of Nude Photos Is Disclosed" by Ali Watkins.

Article: "Trump Administration Guts Endangered Species Act" by Rafi Letzter.

Event: July 25, 2020: "Bermuda Bliss Cruise Hosted by Thom Hartmann".

Article: "Bald Eagles Rebound After 40 Years on Endangered List" by Theresa Barry.

Article: "David Bernhardt: Trump selects former oil lobbyist to oversee interior department" by Emily Holden.

Article: "As Equinox owner hosts Trump fundraiser, rivals offer deals to gym switchers" by Jeanette Settembre.

Article: "The 'white replacement theory' motivates alt-right killers the world over" by Rosa Schwartzburg.

Article: "The wealthiest family in the world makes $4 million per hour" by Bloomberg.

Law: "Patriot Act", 2001.

Article: "Leaked Draft of Trump Executive Order to 'Censor the Internet' Denounced as Dangerous, Unconstitutional Edict" by Jon Queally.

Article: "Donald Trump lost most of the American economy in this election" by Jim Tankersley.

Article: "Electoral College" by Wikipedia.

Article: "North American Free Trade Agreement" (NAFTA) by Wikipedia

Article: "Detroit Was Crumbling. Here's How It's Reviving." by Monica Davey.

Article: "Attorney general 'appalled' over Epstein's death, announces investigation" by Veronica Stracqualursi.

Article: "AG Barr will recuse-oh, wait-won't recuse himself from Epstein sex trafficking case" by Kerry Eleveld.

Article: "Real Earnings – July 2019" by BLS.

Hour Two: "This Land Sings" Featuring, Thom Hartmann!
- Justin Ralls Artistic Co-Director, (w/Nicholas Meyer) - Opera Theater Oregon.

Event: Aug. 24 730p: Portland, Or: Thom Hartmann in "This Land Sings" at the "Alberta Rose Theater" (Details).

Event: Aug. 25 3pm: Portland, Or: Thom Hartmann in "This Land Sings" at the "Alberta Rose Theater" (Details).

Article: "Woody Guthrie" by Wikipedia.

Song: "Bread and Roses" by James Oppenheim.

Song: "The Wayfaring Stranger".

Song: "Pete Seeger/Arlo Guthrie - You gotta walk that lonesome valley".

Article: "This machine kills fascists" by Wikipedia.

Article: "US yield curve at flattest level since 2007 as sovereign bonds rally" by FT.

Article: "Epic of Gilgamesh".

Article: "Sub zero: the topsy-turvy world of negative interest rates" by Tommy Stubbington.

Article: "The Honeymooners" by Wikipedia.

Article: "The Kochs Funded Third Way To Push Free Trade To Democrats, New Book Says" by Ryan Grim, Andrew Perez.

Article: "Paul Manafort Seemed Headed to Rikers. Then the Justice Department Intervened." by William K. Rashbaum and Katie Benner.

Article: "Pic Of The Moment: Who Needs Clean Power At Negative Prices?" by EarlG.

Law: "Taft-Hartley Labor Act", 1947.

Law: "The National Labor Relations Act (The Wagner Act)", 1935.

Book: The Hidden History of the Supreme Court and the Betrayal of America by Thom Hartmann.

Article: "What Appointing Eugene Scalia As Secretary Of Labor Could Mean For Workers" by Tom Spiggle.

Article: "Eugene Scalia" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Elizabeth Warren proposes $85 billion grant for expanding rural internet access" by Adi Robertson.

Article: "William Barr" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Dominion adds 2 new directors; Barr leaves board to become US Attorney General" by S&P Global.

Article: "Critics appalled as controversial Tacoma LNG plant moves closer to final approval" by Debbie Cockrell.

Article: "Tracer ammunition" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Negative-Yielding Debt Hits Record $15 Trillion on Trade Woes" by Cormac Mullen.

Article: "Swiss Bond Yields all Negative up to 30 years: Greatest Bubble in Financial History" by Graham Summers.

Talk Media News Segment:
- Douglas Christian

Site: "Goats for the old Goat".

Book: Loving What You Do: The Elements of a Great Working Life by Ellen Ratner.

Article: "Stock market rallies after decision to delay Trump tariffs on China" by Chris Riotta.

Article: "Soybean giant Brazil swoops on US crop as China trade war punctures prices" by Keegan Elmer.

Article: "Dow Jones Industrial Average History" by Yahoo! Finance.

Article: "U.S. Officials Suspect New Nuclear Missile in Explosion That Killed 7 Russians" by David E. Sanger and Andrew E. Kramer.

Article: "Trump makes 'bizarre' nuclear-powered cruise missile claim after Russia explosion" by Jon Sharman.

Hour Three: The Strange Case of Jeffrey Epstein
- (former) Gov. Don Siegelman (D-AL), the last Democratic Governor of Alabama (1999 to 2003)

Article: "In Short-Staffed Jail, Epstein Was Left Alone for Hours; Guard Was Substitute" by Ali Watkins, Katie Benner and Danielle Ivory.

Article: "FBI agents search Epstein's private Caribbean island" by Sharon Marris.

Article: "William Barr misled Congress about Mueller's report. He must resign as attorney general." by Mimi Rocah.

Article: "Donald Trump admits 'this Russia thing' part of reasoning for firing Comey" by David Smith, Julian Borger and Lauren Gambino.

Article: "Sally Yates" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Trump fires Attorney General Jeff Sessions" by Wikipedia.

GoFundMe: "Dana Jill Simpson".

Article: "Gun Expert: Tracer Bullets Are A 'Well-Known Fire Danger'" by Michael Abeyta.

Article: "The Tax Experiment That Failed" by ITVS Independent Lens.

Book: What's the Matter with Kansas? by Thomas Frank.

Article: "Sam Brownback Finally Confirmed as America's Religious Freedom Ambassador" by Kate Shellnutt.

Article: "Kris Kobach" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach officially kicks off 2020 Senate campaign" by Bryan Lowry, Jonathan Shorman.

Article: "The GOP's Stealth War Against Voters" (Interstate Crosscheck) by Greg Palast, August 24, 2016.

Article: "The right-wing love affair with Ayn Rand ties conservatism to one of the most disturbing sociopathic killers" by Thom Hartmann.

Article: "Ayn Rand" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Romancing the Stone-Cold Killer: Ayn Rand and William Hickman" by Michael Prescott.

Article: "Murder of Marion Parker" by Wikipedia.

Book: "Atlas Shrugged" by Ayn Rand.

Book: "The Fountainhead" by Ayn Rand.

Article: "Mark Sanford On Ayn Rand" by Mark Sanford.

Book: "An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations", Adam Smith, 1776.

Article: "Supply-side economics" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Monetary policy" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Fiscal Policy" by Will Kenton.

Article: "Lew Rockwell" by Wikipedia.

Quote: "In the long run we are all dead." - John Maynard Keynes.

Article: "IRAQ: Bush Aims to Remake Iraq as a Free-Market Paradise" by William O'Rourke.

Article: "Baghdad Year Zero: Pillaging Iraq in pursuit of a neo-con utopia" by Naomi Klein.

Video: Will You Vote for Universal Basic Income in 2020 Election? (w/Andrew Yang).

Article: "Basic income" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Alaska Permanent Fund" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Report on the Subject of Manufactures" by Alexander Hamilton.

Book: "Rebooting the American Dream: 11 Ways to Rebuild Our Country" by Thom Hartmann (read online)

Book: "Rebooting the American Dream: 11 Ways to Rebuild Our Country" by Thom Hartmann

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

Congressman Mark Pocan (D-WI, 2nd District) will be calling in to talk about the issues of the day and take your calls.

Plus, I'll be talking with P.E. Moskowitz former staff writer for Al Jazeera America / their work has appeared in numerous other publications including the Guardian, New York Times and the New Yorker... they are the author of 2 books, How to Kill a City AND, their latest, The Case Against Free Speech: The First Amendment, Fascism and the Future of Dissent

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

The Thom Hartmann Program, Occupying The Media 3 hours a day 5 days a week" for "we the people"

And don't forget...Democracy is NOT a spectator sport...it begins with you...

Trump's Profits Will Tear Web of Life Apart

Exposing the Flaw in Trickle Down Economics

It Is Happening Here, But How Do We Stop It?