Month: December 2019

Note:  These will be the last practice topics of 2019 as none will be posted next week due to the winter holiday.  New topics will resume on Monday, January 6.  However, we will provide updated results from George Mason and the University of Texas-Austin, along with updated standings in the National Points Race before MBA.

1. Does the U.S. need a new “war on poverty”?
2. Should President Trump endorse a minimum wage increase?
3. Was Labour’s recent defeat in Britain a bad omen for Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren’s presidential campaigns?
4. Why has the U.S. economy grown over the last decade without experiencing inflation?
5. Should college campuses have the ability to adjudicate sexual assault and harassment allegations?
6. Will the recent move by colleges to become “test optional” make the college admissions process more fair?
7. Should the size of the U.S. budget deficit alarm policymakers?
8. Will the Supreme Court force a disclosure of President Trump’s financial records?
9. Should the U.S. lower the legal voting age to sixteen?
10. How can the U.S. break the deadlock in talks over North Korea’s nuclear weapons program?

1. Will Brexit cause a breakup of the United Kingdom as a political entity?
2. What is the future of global capitalism?
3. Will the USMCA become the model for future global trade deals?
4. Can the EU reach its target of having net-zero greenhouse-gas emissions by 2050?
5. Who should be the next leader of Canada’s Conservative Party?
6. Was the recent British general election a realigning one?
7. Do the IMF and World Bank have a role to play in the fight against global climate change?
8. Were the 2010s a “lost decade” for Latin America?
9. Would a victory by Khalifa Hifter in Libya’s civil war be a victory for Russia?
10. Is Russia reasserting control of Moldova?

Adam Johnson, the director of the Montgomery Bell Extemp Round Robin, recently unveiled the list of this year’s sixteen invitees.  These competitors, who represent eleven states, will compete in Nashville on January 5-6 in one of the two second tier tournaments in this year’s Extemp Central National Points Race.

Extemp Central congratulates the following invitees:

*Steve Asthana (Shrewsbury High School, Massachusetts)
*Mukta Dharmapurikar (Durham Academy, North Carolina)
*James Gao (Ridge High School, New Jersey)
*Nikitha Kalahasti (Presentation High School, California)
*Anuj Kothari (Bellarmine College Preparatory, California)
*Gustavo Lanz (Cypress Bay High School, Florida)
*Eve Mainster (Scarsdale High School, New York)
*Jocelyn “Mo” Marks (Theodore Roosevelt High School, Iowa)
*Alex Massa (Hoover High School, Ohio)
*Anurima Mummaneni (Westwood High School, Texas)
*Pranav Pattatathunaduvil (Plano West Senior High School, Texas)
*Juliette Reyes (American Heritage School – Plantation, Florida)
*Kay Rollins (The Potomac School, Virginia)
*Jack Silvers (Scarsdale High School, New York)
*Angela Wang (Plano West Senior High School, Texas)
*Brian Zheng (Naperville North High School, Illinois)

1. Why is Germany’s political center collapsing?
2. Can Macron pass pension reform?
3. Should electoral interference be deemed an act of war?
4. Do economies woes bode ill for the long-term viability of Iran’s Islamic Republic?
5. Should Justin Trudeau fear a “Wexit”?
6. Does Japan need to embrace a more lax immigration policy?
7. Is China gaining more power in international institutions?
8. Are religious parties losing ground in the Arab World?
9. Is Italy’s Five Star Movement imploding?
10. What steps can Haiti take to wean itself from international food assistance?

1. Would the nomination of Pete Buttigieg depress African-American and Latino turnout in 2020?
2. Can the Trump administration close a big trade deal with China by the end of 2020?
3. Is President Trump making significant inroads with African-American voters?
4. If the Trump impeachment push fails, should Democrats try it again if he is re-elected?
5. Do police tactics need a significant overhaul?
6. Will the Pensacola shooting strain the military ties between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia?
7. Why did Kamala Harris’ presidential candidacy fail?
8. Should gunmakers be legally liable for their products?
9. Are America’s public schools becoming too political?
10. Should religious adoption agencies be closed?

The first standings for the 2019-2020 Extemp Central National Points Race have been released.  These include results from the Yale Invitational, the New York City Invitational, the Florida Blue Key, and last weekend’s competition at the Glenbrooks.  Click here to view the standings.

Thank you to Extemp Central correspondent Daniel Kind for compiling results for the rankings, as well as putting the initial rankings together.

The National Points Race features two major events this weekend as the George Mason University Patriot Games takes place in Fairfax, Virginia.  George Mason is a third tier event, awarding 100 points to its winner.  Texas extempers will converge on the campus of the University of Texas-Austin for the Longhorn Classic, a fourth tier event that will give 70 points to its winner.  This weekend will also be the last one for extempers to seal a bid – or break one – to the Montgomery Bell Academy Extemp Round Robin in early January.

1. Do Democratic presidential debates need to focus more on foreign policy?
2. If President Trump is able to negotiate the end of the Afghan war will that pay major political dividends in 2020?
3. How can the U.S. resolve the ongoing fighting between Ukraine and Russia?
4. Does Joe Biden need to win Iowa or New Hampshire to keep his presidential campaign going?
5. Is it too late for Deval Patrick to make an impact on the Democratic presidential primaries?
6. If there is a Supreme Court vacancy in 2020, how might that impact the presidential race?
7. Should OSHA conduct a more thorough review of Amazon workplace practices?
8. Is the future for historically black colleges and universities bleak?
9. Should House Democrats censure, rather than impeach, President Trump?
10. Could school choice become a wedge issue between Democrats and African-American voters?

1. How can Spain resolve the Catalan crisis?
2. Is “knife control” needed in Europe?
3. How might the London stabbings affect the British elections?
4. Will the SPD’s move to the left undermine Angela Merkel’s political standing?
5. Should Benjamin Netanyahu resign?
6. Is AMLO’s anti-corruption drive more about enhancing his own political power?
7. Has Bolsonaro lost the political energy that made his presidential campaign so successful?
8. How should China respond to America’s official support of the Hong Kong protests?
9. Will Sudan’s political revolution help the peoples of Darfur?
10. Is the Internet becoming less free?