Thom explains the simple reason why citizens in Libya and Egypt are rioting - people don't riot when times are good, they only riot when they're pushed. Tonight's "Lone Liberal Rumble" panel discusses day three of the Chicago teachers strike, Romney's latest lie/flip-flop and whether we're headed for another credit downgrade thanks to the Tea Party. In tonight's "Daily Take" Thom looks at how privatizing our country's prisons are not only costing taxpayers more money, but are drastically increasing the number of people incarcerated.

Mitt Romney has figured out a new way to lie. In an interview on Sunday with NBC, watched by millions of people - Romney said that there are a number of things he likes with Obamacare - including a guarantee that health insurers can't deny healthcare to people with pre-existing conditions - and reforms that allow children to stay on their parents' health plans until the age of 26. So the man who first created Obamneycare in Massachusetts, and then disavowed it when he ran for President, now supports it again. Or he did for a few hours, until his campaign told Buzz Feed that Romney actually opposes all provisions of Obamacare and instead believes that the corporate-run "free market" will find a way to cover those with pre-existing conditions. In other words, Romney wants to roll-back Obamacare. So the Romney Big Lie strategy works like this - go on Meet the Press, where a lot of moderate, undecided voters will be watching - and lie about your position on protecting people with pre-existing conditions. Try to assure the independents that you won't let health insurers act like death panels toward children with pre-existing conditions. And then, after the show is off the air - immediately backtrack - and issue a "correction" to your base, a group of right-wing crazies who are perfectly OK with letting health insurance companies discriminate against sick children again. I've said it before - I'll say it again - the only way Mitt Romney can win this election is by lying. And ...

For the second day - teachers in Chicago took to the picket lines - to protest the city's treatment of them - and of the city's public schools. But this is more than just a strike about worker's rights and better wages - it's a battle for the future of our nation.

The Good! *Entertainment Industry* While those in Washington continue to bicker over things like marriage equality and the role of the wealthy elite in America - it seems that the entertainment industry is ready to embrace what lawmakers in Washington won't. This year's Fall lineup of new TV shows includes the likes of NBC's The New Normal - which features a gay couple using a surrogate mother to have a baby. And - on ABC - there is 666 Park - a show about wealthy Apartment owners in Manhattan - and how they are taking overs the lives of - and in some cases stealing from - the middle class tenants in their building. The fact that these issues are now becoming mainstream topics of television shows says something about our culture. We have accepted them as the new norms - and so should those in Washington. The Bad! *Dick Cheney* In an interview last night with the conservative Daily Caller - Cheney accused President Obama of taking "sole credit" for the raid that killed Osama bin Laden last year. He also accused President Obama of failing to attend his daily intelligence briefings. and the Very Very Ugly! *Sheriff Larry Campbell* Campbell is the Sheriff of Leon County, Florida - and is currently up for re-election this year. He also has quite the temper and a streak of abusing his power - including getting in a bar fight and having the man he fought with arrested - and then proceeding to punch him in the face afterwards. But it doesn't stop there for Mr. Campbell. He ...

So, last August - the S&P credit rating agency downgraded our nation's debt. It was referred to as the Tea Party downgrade - since House Republicans refused to come up with a deal until the midnight hour to raise the nation's debt limit and prevent the United States from defaulting on its debts around the world. The downgrade occurred just after Speaker of the House John Boehner bragged that Republicans got 98% of what they wanted in the debt limit deal. The Republican Party was clearly responsible for the downgrade. In fact - in the report explaining why they downgraded our debt - S&P said that one reason was because, "...the majority of Republicans in Congress continue to resist any measure that would raise revenues, a position we believe Congress reinforced by passing the act." So...that downgrade of America happened. And it might happen again soon - this time done by Moody's Credit Rating agency \\ Today - Moody's issued a warning to the United States that a debt downgrade could be on the horizon if Congress doesn't address the coming fiscal cliff and doesn't put in place policies to cut our federal debt. The Moody's statement reads: "If those negotiations lead to specific policies that produce a stabilization and then downward trend in the ratio of federal debt to GDP over the medium term, the rating will likely be affirmed and the outlook returned to stable. If those negotiations fail to produce such policies, however, Moody's would expect to lower the rating ...

Megan Carpentier, Raw Story joins Thom Hartmann. Despite Republicans arguing that voter and election fraud are rampant across America - it seems like they are the only ones getting caught for it. One of those caught is in Florida - and there's been some interesting new developments in his case.

Amit Narang, Regulatory Policy Advocate-Public Citizen joins Thom Hartmann. Senator Susan Collins supported the Dodd-Frank Act in 2008 - but now she's introduced legislation that would destroy it. Why are lawmakers in Washington trying to block financial regulators from doing their job of policing the out-of-control finance industry?

As a new op-ed published today in the New York Times uncovers, the Bush administration was repeatedly warned in the months leading up to the attack that terrorists were operating in America and determined to carry out an attack. We all know of the infamous memo Bush received titled, "Bin Laden Determined to Strike in US" on August 6th - a month before 9/11. What we didn't know about was the slew of other memos that Bush received in the months before - that like the August 6th memo - went largely ignored. As journalist Kurt Eichenwald uncovered in that New York Times Op-Ed - as early as May of 2001, the CIA was warning Bush of a coming attack. On May 1st - the CIA warned the White House there was a terrorist group "presently in the United States."

Thom Hartmann's crazy alert

Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) & Sarah Jaffe, AlterNet join Thom Hartmann. Some politicians are lucky enough to have billionaires like Sheldon Adelson behind them - donating billions of dollars to help buy off the election. But what about those who truly believe in our democracy - and want to run without the help of corporate cash? Can they still hope to win in November? We'll ask Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown

John Devlin, 9/11 first responder & Kirk Arsenault, 9/11 first responder join Thom Hartmann. Now on to those who continue to struggle 11 years after the attacks. I'm talking about the 9/11 first responders - the police officers, firefighters, and volunteers who rushed to the rubble to look for survivors - and spent days, weeks, and months at ground zero recovering bodies and cleaning up the rubble. Those men and women are today dealing with sickness - unaware at the time that the air they were breathing at Ground Zero was toxic. Cancers, heart problems, and respiratory problems continue to plague the first responders today - and tragically - have led to the deaths of as many as 1000 of these brave Americans. A year and a half ago - Congress passed the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act - to give sick first responders the healthcare they deserve for serving their nation. It was a hard fought victory just to get the bill passed - as Republicans in the House opposed it - with even Vice Presidential candidate Paul Ryan voting against it. But passing it was just the first battle - the next battle for responders was proving that the cancers and illnesses they suffer from were indeed caused by the toxic rubble at ground zero. Now - there might be some good news. On Monday - the National Institute for Occupational Safety announced they do recognize a link between more than 50 types of cancer and the work done at Ground Zero - thus giving health care coverage to more ...

Thom talks with Senator Sherrod Brown about running for reelection in a post Citizens United world. Also discussed: Romney's latest lie, lawmakers in DC trying to prevent Wall St. reform and Thom talks with two first responders on the 11th anniversary of 9/11. In tonight's "Daily Take" Thom details why the Chicago's teacher strike is the battle for the future of America.

Since he took office - President Obama has been the most radical anti-drug president in American history - despite promising otherwise. Should he continue America's failed war on drugs - or take a surprising page out of Paul Ryan's playbook? Update* Paul Ryan has now backtracked on medical marijuana.

Mike Papantonio, Attorney, Host, Ring of Fire Radio & Hilary Shelton, NAACP join Thom Hartmann. While Republicans are relying on billionaires to win the election this year - Democrats are enlisting the help of lawyers. In response to a rash of Voter Suppression ID laws and restrictions on early voting and voter registration, President Obama's re-election team and the DNC are deploying teams of lawyers in states around the country to challenge right-wing anti-voting laws. The voter-protection teams, as they're called, are monitoring any new law changes, putting pressure on local election officials, and training poll watchers to keep an eye on any "shenanigans" come Election Day. It's a crime that such efforts are necessary in America - the beacon for democracy around the world. But with the Republican Party committed to kicking millions of Democratic voters off the polls by November, what other choice is there?

Author & activist Marianne Williamson joins Thom Hartmann. What does the lack of spirituality/consciousness in politics have to do with low female participation in politics?