1. Did President Biden respond appropriately to the attack on U.S. personnel at the Kabul airport last week?
2. What will be the economic impact of the Supreme Court’s decision on President Biden’s eviction moratorium?
3. Will Florida’s recent COVID surge do lasting damage to Ron DeSantis’ political ambitions?
4. Should President Biden team with former President Trump to tout COVID vaccinations?
5. Is “cancel culture” hurting America?
6. Should Sirhan Sirhan have been pardoned?
7. Will the Senate approve of President Biden’s “human infrastructure” package?
8. Should the U.S. military start relying more on drone strikes as part of its strategic mission?
9. Will American schools be forced to return to virtual instruction this fall?
10. How can Liz Shuler revitalize the AFL-CIO?
Month: August 2021 Page 1 of 2
1. Is ISIS a bigger threat to Afghanistan’s security than al-Qaeda?
2. Will Turkey’s recent overtures to African nations bear fruit?
3. Does there need to be a new global convention on refugees?
4. Will the world ever get a proper investigation into COVID-19’s origins?
5. Are democratic institutions eroding throughout the Americas?
6. Can Michel Barnier mount a successful bid for the French presidency?
7. How should Naftali Bennett conduct Israel’s foreign policy during the Biden presidency?
8. Should Canada impose restrictions on foreign home buying?
9. Will the UN fail to eliminate world hunger by 2030?
10. Is Europe leading the way on COVID mitigation measures?
Today’s R&D is brought to you by Prepd (pronounced “prepped”). Prepd is building debate technology that helps extempers and congressional debaters research, practice, and compete. Visit www.prepd.in to learn more.
This week’s R&D is on Canada’s elections. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called for a snap election last week in a bid to win a governing majority and secure the votes necessary to enlarge COVID-19 relief and pass climate change legislation. Currently, Canada’s Liberal Party, which Trudeau leads, is ruling with a plurality of votes in the Canadian parliament. The elections are scheduled for September 20.
Now could be the perfect time for an election in Canada for the Liberal Party. Half of Canadians think Justin Trudeau’s government has handled the pandemic well https://t.co/Hc7imAZzrv
— The Economist (@TheEconomist) August 22, 2021
Canada halted evacuations of its citizens and vulnerable Afghans who assisted Western nations in Afghanistan. With elections around the corner, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau faces questions over his handling of this month’s chaos in Kabul https://t.co/kk1y9dwJFs #Elxn44 pic.twitter.com/OoLpDlcmPG
— Reuters (@Reuters) August 26, 2021
While not an attractive platform, a successful leader will need to address the international pandemic strategy, as this will be an integral part of global diplomacy.
Canada’s global pandemic strategy is missing from election dialogue#Opinion by @zchagla https://t.co/gMfhIVeFEM
— Toronto Star (@TorontoStar) August 25, 2021
Here is this week’s Extemp Central news quiz. Good luck!
1. What does the Taliban’s victory in Afghanistan mean for Europe’s security policies?
2. Should West Africa adopt a single currency?
3. What can stop Lebanon’s economic free fall?
4. Is the UN’s approach to solving Yemen’s civil war failing?
5. Do booster shot plans in wealthy nations threaten the WHO’s efforts to vaccinate the rest of the world?
6. Is China’s economic recovery losing steam?
7. Can Russia “normalize” Afghanistan?
8. Are the world’s central banks prepared to deal with inflation?
9. Will the Green Party be part of Germany’s next government?
10. How did Hakainde Hichilema win Zambia’s presidential election?
1. Should President Biden demand Lloyd Austin’s resignation?
2. Would it be constitutional for the federal government to restrict misinformation on social media platforms?
3. Should health departments relax COVID-19 quarantine guidelines for schools?
4. If the federal government were to pass a slave reparations bill, how should it work?
5. Is Marjorie Taylor Greene laying the groundwork for a presidential run?
6. Will failure in Afghanistan weaken the state of America’s foreign alliances?
7. Has the #MeToo movement been a success?
8. Should the SEC require human-capital disclosures by companies?
9. Does the U.S. need to re-evaluate its approach toward Pakistan?
10. Should Congress extend child tax credit payments beyond 2021?
Today’s R&D is brought to you by Prepd (pronounced “prepped”). Prepd is building debate technology that helps extempers and congressional debaters research, practice, and compete. Visit www.prepd.in to learn more.
This week’s R&D is on American infrastructure. The Biden administration has made upgrading American infrastructure a policy priority and worked across the aisle with Republicans on a $1 trillion package in the Senate. The House has yet to vote on the legislation, but progressives are threatening to balk unless the chamber votes on President Biden’s $3.5 trillion social infrastructure package first. Passage of either bill would be a major domestic success for President Biden, but is also showing the difficulties of moving legislation in today’s partisan climate.
What’s in the U.S. Senate’s infrastructure bill?
Here’s a comparison of the plan President Biden proposed in March and the one that passed on Tuesday. https://t.co/ZffSvPfjSK
— The New York Times (@nytimes) August 10, 2021
From @WSJopinion: As Biden’s approval rating falls, the President needs a win. But Congress isn’t poised to provide, as Democrats feud over the infrastructure bill and budget resolution, writes @BillGalston https://t.co/3tzfrOOioT
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) August 18, 2021
The bipartisan infrastructure bill includes $65 billion for internet development – some states need more help than others. https://t.co/Tv3wdDub6O
— U.S. News & World Report (@usnews) August 17, 2021
Here is this week’s Extemp Central news quiz. Good luck!
1. What lessons should the United States learn from the War in Afghanistan?
2. Should states require teachers to get the COVID-19 vaccine?
3. What role should the United States play in stabilizing Haiti?
4. How can organized labor recover its footing?
5. Why are Joe Biden’s approval numbers slipping?
6. Should Jerome Powell be nominated for another term?
7. Has social media made American life worse?
8. Are the structures of American public education crumbling?
9. Does the Federal Reserve need to take the threat of inflation more seriously?
10. Is Andrew Cuomo’s political career over?
1. Will China be the biggest beneficiary of a Taliban victory in Afghanistan?
2. Is Hezbollah’s political position weakening?
3. Can the global economy afford more COVID lockdowns?
4. Will Haiti’s recent earthquake exacerbate the nation’s political crisis?
5. Was Zambia’s recent election fair?
6. Will plans for more stringent regulations weaken China’s economy?
7. Are jihadists becoming Africa’s biggest national security problem?
8. Will Trudeau’s snap election gambit work?
9. How can the international community more efficiently distribute COVID-19 vaccines to the developing world?
10. Should the EU offer membership to the Balkan Six?
Today’s R&D is brought to you by Prepd (pronounced “prepped”). Prepd is building debate technology that helps extempers and congressional debaters research, practice, and compete. Visit www.prepd.in to learn more.
This week’s R&D is on the war in Afghanistan. In 2001, the United States helped the Northern Alliance overthrow Afghanistan’s Taliban regime due to the Taliban harboring 9/11 mastermind Osama bin Laden. Now, the United States is withdrawing its forces from the country and the Taliban has captured nearly a dozen of the country’s provincial capitals. International observers question whether the Afghan government can fight on its own and worry about how a restored Taliban regime will treat the rights of women, ethnic minorities, and political dissidents.
The West may want to forget about Afghanistan, but that won’t be possible. Of the many bad options Biden faced, he chose perhaps the worst. https://t.co/9jjZaUy8Zh
— World Politics Review (@WPReview) August 12, 2021
Ideally, America would not be withdrawing its forces from Afghanistan at all. Its rush for the exit has allowed the Taliban to drop the pretence of negotiations https://t.co/vTAszVNlFi
— The Economist (@TheEconomist) August 12, 2021
The Islamist group was in power in Afghanistan until the US led invasion in 2001https://t.co/ittpBn3iSI
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) August 12, 2021
Here is this week’s Extemp Central news quiz. Good luck!
1. Will Germany remain the leader of the EU after Merkel?
2. Is the growth of the delta variant creating political headaches for Xi Jinping?
3. Where will Ebrahim Raisi take Iran’s nuclear program?
4. How can international organizations prevent their domination by authoritarian entities?
5. What are new tools that the world needs to better combat human trafficking?
6. Is Ethiopia headed for a breakup?
7. What is the biggest threat to India’s governing BJP?
8. How should the OAS respond if Nicaragua’s next presidential election is not free and fair?
9. Why have Ukraine’s military reforms failed?
10. How can the Mexican government reduce the nation’s high poverty rate?
1. Is the Biden administration doing enough to combat inflation?
2. Can the U.S. have a more liberalized border policy during the COVID-19 pandemic?
3. Are Republicans gaining momentum for the 2022 midterm elections?
4. Should the Department of Justice open a criminal probe into former President Trump’s challenges of the 2020 election result?
5. Will New York’s state legislature impeach and remove Governor Andrew Cuomo?
6. Would universal pre-K improve educational outcomes in the United States?
7. Will the Supreme Court eventually nullify the CDC’s extension of the eviction moratorium?
8. How can the U.S. stymie cooperation between China and Russia?
9. Could vaccine mandates exacerbate America’s worker shortage?
10. How can Senate Democrats win Republican support for voting rights legislation?
Today’s R&D is brought to you by Prepd (pronounced “prepped”). Prepd is building debate technology that helps extempers and congressional debaters research, practice, and compete. Visit www.prepd.in to learn more.
This week’s R&D is on the debate over school mask mandates. While some states like South Carolina and Texas have prohibited schools from setting mask requirements, others like California and New Mexico will require them. The fight has become a grassroots battle over local education policy going into the 2021-2022 school year.
One of the first in the U.S. to start a new school year, Arizona provides an early indication of how mask-wearing could play out across the country https://t.co/j7Xh8n2ZSy
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) August 4, 2021
Read more about how students are adjusting to masks in school from @melissagomez004 at https://t.co/1alTkUmAXX
— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) August 3, 2021
Arkansas is one of a handful that blocked school districts from mandating the use of masks in schools. Within days of reopening, hundreds were quarantined. https://t.co/ERPlCfabpT
— U.S. News & World Report (@usnews) August 5, 2021