Today, we return to the crisis in Venezuela as the U.S. threatens even more sanctions against the Maduro government following Sunday's vote for a Constituent Assembly. The U.S. is referring to President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela as a dictator, although he was democratically elected "and, according to the Venezuelan constitution, had a right to call for people to vote for a Constituent Assembly. Meanwhile, U.S. Senator Marco Rubio appeared on Venezuelan television offering solidarity for the opposition of Maduro. Our guest is George Ciccariello-Maher, a political analyst and professor at Drexel University, with specialization in colonialism, social movements, race and racism, and Latin America.

We return to the crisis in Venezuela as the U.S. threatens even more sanctions against the Maduro government following Sunday's vote for a Constituent Assembly. The U.S. is referring to President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela as a dictator, although he was democratically elected – and, according to the Venezuelan constitution, had a right to call for people to vote for a Constituent Assembly. Meanwhile, U.S. Senator Marco Rubio appeared on Venezuelan television offering solidarity for the opposition of Maduro.

Our guest is George Ciccariello-Maher, a professor of politics at Drexel University, specializing in colonialism, social movements, race and racism, and Latin America. Ciccariello-Maher is the author of "We Created Chávez: A People’s History of the Venezuelan Revolution."

In the latest installment of our weekly "Campaigners for Black Lives" series, we are joined by Patrisse Cullors, artist, organizer and co-founder of Black Lives Matter.

Despite pressure from protesters and condemnation from the United States, Europe, Mexico, Paraguay and Columbia, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro refused to back down and the National Constituent Assembly he called proceeded on July 30. At least 10 people were reportedly killed on Sunday. Voter turnout is unsurprisingly in dispute, with the Venezuelan government claiming a turnout of 41.5 percent, and the opposition claiming turnout was between 14 and 18 percent. Meanwhile, the Trump administration on Monday denounced the Assembly and slapped sanctions on Maduro (but no sanctions yet on Venezuelan oil, as the U.S. oil industry is dependent on crude from Venezuela). Today, it is reported that two opposition figures who were under house arrest have been detained. According to the Maduro government, they both violated conditions of their house arrest. Our guests are Lucas Koerner and Mark Weisbrot.

The Trump admin has made an all-out assault on transgender people, with the Department of Justice saying the Civil Rights Act does not protect trans and other LGBTQ people from discrimination, and Trump announcing that no trans people will be allowed in any aspect of the U.S. military. We speak with Tobias Barrington Wolff.

Last month, at a UN conference mandated by the UN General Assembly, 122 nations voted to ban nuclear weapons. North Korea was the only nuclear power to vote for the ban treaty, and almost all NATO nations boycotted the conference. Our guest is Alice Slater.

Despite pressure from protesters and condemnation from the United States, Europe, Mexico, Paraguay and Columbia, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro refused to back down and the National Constituent Assembly he called proceeded on July 30. At least 10 people were reportedly killed on Sunday. Voter turnout is unsurprisingly in dispute, with the Venezuelan government claiming a turnout of 41.5 percent, and the opposition claiming turnout was between 14 and 18 percent. Meanwhile, the Trump administration on Monday denounced the Assembly and slapped sanctions on Maduro (but no sanctions yet on Venezuelan oil, as the U.S. oil industry is dependent on crude from Venezuela). Today, it is reported that two opposition figures who were under house arrest have been detained. According to the Maduro government, they both violated conditions of their house arrest. Here to break down all of this are our guests, Caracas-based journalist Lucas Koerner and economist Mark Weisbrot.

Last week, the Trump administration amped up its assault on transgender rights, with the Department of Justice saying the Civil Rights Act does not protect LGBTQ people from discrimination in the workplace, and Trump announcing that no transgender people will be allowed in any aspect of the U.S. military. Our guest is law professor, LGBT rights specialist and former Obama advisor Tobias Barrington Wolff.

Last month, at a UN conference mandated by the UN General Assembly, 122 nations voted to ban nuclear weapons. To discuss this historic vote, our guest is Alice Slater of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation.

On our weekly rountable: Senator John McCain, who had made a dramatic return to the U.S. Senate days after he was diagnosed with brain cancer, cast the deciding vote that killed seven years of GOP efforts to undo the Affordable Care Act. The so-named skinny bill went down in defeat. Meanwhile, former President Jimmy Carter has joined Senator Bernie Sanders and a grassroots movement on the ground for single-payer healthcare.

Trump issued a tweet saying transgender people cannot serve at any level of the U.S. military. Then, his Department of Justice issued an amicus brief in a case before the Second Circuit Court of Appeals that stated that LBGT people are not protected against discrimination in the workplace under the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

Internationally, there is worry that the U.S. is barreling towards war, saber-rattling or promoting regime change on a number of fronts. Targets include China, Iran, Russia and Venezuela.

To discuss all this and more, our guests are Laura Carlsen, Jackie Golberg and Dr. Gerald Horne.

This coming weekend, Venezuelas President Nicolas Maduro intends to move ahead with a constituent assembly to rewrite parts of the Venezuelan constitution, despite months of protests on the streets against his government. We find out what is really going on from Caracas-based journalist Lucas Koerner.

For our weekly Campaigns for Black Lives series, we are joined by two Black Lives Matter activists, Oluchi Omeoga from BLM Minnesota and Dr. Melina Abdullah from BLMLA.