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In February, General Motors (GM) began a recall that has grown to include 2.6 million vehicles due to the installation of a defective ignition switch The switches caused the ignition key to move from a running position to an accessory or off position while the car when moving and the sudden loss of power steering, as well as the disabling of power brakes and airbags caused at least thirteen people to lose their lives. GM has come under fire for the recall since the company was first made aware of the problem in 2001 and decided that it did not warrant taking action. There is also evidence that federal regulators were aware of the faulty ignition switches but failed to do due diligence in investigating GM. Additionally, since the company is not legally liable for accidents that occurred with its products before 2009 due to the bankruptcy filing, there are questions about whether GM was forthcoming to federal officials about the switches when it was bailed out. The incident has been dubbed “Switchgate” by some of the media and the company’s new CEO (as well as first female CEO) Mary Barra is now tasked with defending the company to Congress and restoring faith in a company that has seen its share of the American market decline over the last forty years.
This topic brief will describe the roots of the current GM recall, break down the testimony of GM and federal regulators before Congress, and then analyze how GM and the federal government may respond to the scandal and the political and economic implications for the parties involved.
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Like Virginia, Nebraska has six classes for its state championship tournament and this year’s Nebraska School Activities Association State Tournament crowned six new state champions in extemporaneous speaking. Walter Paul of Creighton Preparatory School won Class A, Katlyn Martin of Omaha Marian High School won Class B, Ahinav Suresh of Omaha Brownell-Talbot High School won Class C1, Scott Smith of Nebraska Christian School won Class C2, Matthew Martin of Lourdes Central Catholic School won Class D1, and Isaiah Miller of Leigh High School won Class D2.
Prior to the 2013-2014 season, the Virginia High School League (VHSL) adopted a six division realignment and this led to six state champions being crowned at this year’s VHSL state tournament instead of three, which was the norm for the last few years. Two extempers repeated as state champions at the tournament with Josh Wartel of Lake Braddock Secondary School, the winner of 3A extemp last season, winning the 6A category and Sierra Weaver of Madison County High School, the winner of A extemp last year, winning the 2A category. Other category winners included Sean Wells of Warwick High School in 5A, Akash Raje of Midlothian High School in 4A, Tanya Hoatson of Lafayette High School in 3A, and Stephen Woolwine of Bland/Rocky Gap High School in A.
James Madison Memorial High School dominated last weekend’s 2014 Wisconsin Forensic Coaches Association (WFCA) State Tournament, capturing the top three places in the tournament. Alekh Kale won the state championship by three ranks over Rasika Ramanathan. Vishal Narawaynaswamy finished third. Kale’s victory marks the fourth time in the last six years that James Madison Memorial has taken the Wisconsin state extemp title. The school has had seven students win the championship since 2000.
Susquehanna University played host to this year’s Pennsylvania High School Speech League (PHSSL) State Tournament and Noah Katcher of Altoona Area High School captured this year’s state extemporaneous speaking championship over Collin Quigley of Holy Ghost Preparatory. Quigley was attempting to give Holy Ghost consecutive state extemp winners, but fell just short in the final round. Donnie Stephens of Holy Redeemer High School was the third place finisher in a final round where each of the six finalists came from different schools.
The “Arab Spring” of December 2010 created uprisings throughout the Middle East and North Africa and successfully brought down the existing governments of Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya. As extempers are aware, the Arab Spring, which has also been referred to as the “Arab Uprisings” by some Middle Eastern historians like Dr. Juan Romero of Western Kentucky University, has not produced more stability in the region and some countries that were affected are sliding back toward despotism. Egypt has a short-lived post-revolutionary government under the Muslim Brotherhood that was deposed by the Egyptian military in the fall of last year and Libya is struggling to regain its footing after deposing long time dictator Muammar Gaddafi (you will also see Gaddafi referred to in the media as “Qaddafi”). Libya is home to feuding tribal groups and militias, some of whom have seized the country’s ports and prevented oil from leaving the country. In some ways, Libya’s problems mirror those of Iraq after the United States invasion in 2003 where the central government, built around the personality of the main leader, collapsed and the interim government is finding it very difficult to piece the nation back together again. A big difference between the two is that the United States and its allies in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) never officially put “boots on the ground” in Libya, so the interim government there has struggled to maintain order. 
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