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Last Sunday, Brazilian voters went to the polls and re-elected Dilma Rousseff by the slimmest margin since the country reverted back to democracy in the 1980s. Rousseff, aligned with the leftist Workers’ Party (PT) defeated center-right candidate Aecio Neves of the Brazilian Social Democracy Party (PSDB) in the runoff election by a three point margin, 51.64% to 48.36%. The results show that the country is divided between its poorer, more dependent northern regions and its more prosperous, middle-class southern regions. Rousseff has promised to do more to clean up corruption, enact political reform, and rejuvenate Brazil’s ailing economy, but her campaign pledge to maintain generous social benefits and the nastiness of the general election campaign may hinder her ability to do any of these things. Since Brazil has the seventh-largest economy in the world and is part of the BRICS nations extempers should be prepared to discuss the country’s economic problems and the outcome of the presidential election at future tournaments.
This topic brief will provide a quick overview of the Brazilian presidential election and its outcome, how the election result could impact Brazilian economic policy, and discuss the chances of Rousseff being able to govern effectively for the next four years.
Readers are also encouraged to use the links below and in the related R&D to bolster their files about this topic.
Last week Canada was rocked by two terrorist attacks. On Monday, Martin Couture-Rouleau drove his car into two Canadian soldiers in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, killing one of them, and on Wednesday, Michael Zehaf-Bibeau killed a soldier guarding the National War Memorial in Ottawa and wounded a guard in the Canadian Parliament. Both men were killed in their attacks and were recent converts to Islam. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper argued that the actions of Couture-Roleau and Zehaf-Bibeau were inspired by the Islamic State, which has urged its followers to attack Western nations. Harper plans to push for legislation that would grant more powers to Canadian intelligence services and strengthen authorities in anti-terrorism operations, but his opponents argue that these security reforms could do significant damage to Canadian politics and culture. These Canadians worry that Harper will push anti-terrorism measures too far and that their country will eventually have the same intrusive surveillance systems as the United States and Great Britain.
Last week’s news cycle was consumed by the spread of the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in the United States. Liberian Thomas Eric Duncan was the first person to be diagnosed with the virus on American soil in U.S. history. Duncan was admitted to Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas on September 28 and died of the virus on October 8. Since that time, two nurses that cared for Duncan have contracted the virus. Reports that one of the nurses was allowed to fly after having a fever alarmed the American public, which is showing signs of panic about a virus that carries a fatality rate of over 60%. Newscasters have labeled Ebola as the “October surprise” of this year’s midterm elections and the federal government’s handling of the situation is becoming a hot political topic. President Obama has reportedly shown signs of frustration in meetings with officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and last Friday he appointed Ron Klain as the nation’s “Ebola czar.” Mr. Klain will be tasked with coordinating the federal response to the virus as well as assuaging public fears about the situation.
For the last fourteen years political pundits have debated whether Hillary Clinton will become America’s first female president. When her husband Bill ended his presidency in 2001, Hillary became New York’s junior senator. In 2004, she thought of running for the Democratic presidential nomination, but opted against it. In 2008, she decided to run for the presidency but was defeated by Barack Obama in the closest primary race since 1976. Following the 2008 presidential election Clinton became President Obama’s Secretary of State. She left that position in 2013 and observers believe she has been using her time away from Washington to solicit support for another presidential bid.
Two weeks ago, citizens of Hong Kong took to the streets to agitate for universal suffrage. In 2017, Hong Kong will be able to elect its chief executive, but the candidates for that office will be approved by a nominating committee that is sympathetic to mainland China. Once a British colony, Hong Kong reverted back to Chinese rule in 1997. Since that time it has agitated against the Chinese government’s attempts to impose greater control over some of the city’s affairs. The recent protests have caused some observers to remark that there are parallels between the agitation for wider democracy in Hong Kong and the aims of the Tiananmen Square protesters of 1989, who sought to turn China into a democratic republic. China violently suppressed the Tiananmen protests over two decades ago, but doing the same in Hong Kong could do significant damage to the country’s international reputation and economic standing.
Last week, Attorney General Eric Holder announced his resignation. Holder is one of three officials still remaining from President Obama’s original Cabinet and he was a lightning rod for conservative criticism of the administration. During Holder’s six-and-a-half year tenure the Justice Department sought to re-emphasize the importance of civil rights, but it came under fire for refusing to cooperate with a congressional investigation into the “Fast and Furious” scandal and prosecuting journalists that leaked government information. Holder’s departure comes on the heels of an expected Republican takeover of the Senate, which may limit President Obama’s selection of his replacement. Holder announced that he will remain at his post until a successor is chosen and confirmed.
Although the Scottish independence referendum failed last week, the cloud of secession still looms over Europe. Catalonia, a region located in Northeastern Spain, is pushing for an independence referendum. Catalans view their culture as separate from that of the larger Spanish state and the country’s economic problems have led growing numbers of Catalans to conclude that they would be better off if they went their own way. A day after the Scottish independence referendum failed, Catalonia’s regional parliament authorized Catalan President Artur Mas to call a “consultation” (a fancy name for a referendum) on independence. The Spanish government, headed by Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, says that a Catalan independence vote would violate the Spanish Constitution and they have vowed a legal challenge to the measure. Since the Catalan secession issue might drag out for the remainder of the year, extempers should be prepared to talk about the subject at tournaments.
Arguably no other country in Latin America has defined the region’s shift to the political left like Venezuela. Embarking upon a socialist revolution under former President Hugo Chavez in 1999, the country spread its left-wing policies to other nations such as Nicaragua, Peru, and Bolivia. Under Chavez, Venezuela nationalized foreign businesses, bought international allies with subsidized oil, and became a vocal critic of American foreign policy. Unfortunately, poor economic decisions laid the foundation for the country’s current economic mess. President Nicholas Maduro has thus far shown himself ill-equipped to make the hard choices necessary to rescue the economy from inflation and a heavy reliance on imports. Since the failure of the Venezuelan economy would indict the cause of Bolivarian socialism throughout Latin America, it is imperative that extempers continue to follow Venezuela’s economic difficulties.
The fast food chain Burger King made waves in the corporate world two weeks ago when it announced an agreement to merge with Tim Hortons, a Canadian doughnut and coffee chain, and relocate to Toronto. Financial analysts argued that the move – called a tax inversion – may help Burger King reduce its corporate tax burden since Canada has a lower corporate tax rate than the United States. President Obama and Democratic lawmakers criticized Burger King for joining the list of “corporate deserters,” a term applied to companies that have relocated their corporate headquarters outside of America’s borders to reduce their tax burden. Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown and leftist groups have called for a national boycott of Burger King as well. If the merger is approved by American and Canadian regulators, the new company will become the third-largest fast food chain in the world.
In less than two weeks, Scottish voters will head to the polls to decide whether to sever their 307-year relationship with the United Kingdom. The referendum is the culmination of decades of agitation by the Scottish National Party (SNP) and mirrors events taking place across the European continent by people who no longer associate with large, multicultural states. If Scotland decides to become independent on September 18 it could significantly weaken the defense posture of Great Britain, while simultaneously motivating other independence movements in continental Europe. An independent Scotland would face sizable economic problems, though, and concerns about those issues could help the “no” forces with the upcoming referendum.
When Nawaz Sharif became the Prime Minister of Pakistan last year international observers thought the country was heading down the right path. For the first time in Pakistani history power was peacefully passed from one democratically elected government to another. Sharif’s government made tackling corruption and high unemployment a priority. It also sought to rein in the power of the Pakistani Army, which still seeks to execute a veto of internal security measures and foreign policies. Unfortunately, Sharif’s government now finds itself under siege from political protesters that are demanding its removal. Led by two minor politicians, these forces allege that Sharif’s government illegitimately came to power in a fraudulent election and that it is too corrupt to lead. Protesters are blocking government buildings in the capital city of Islamabad and the unrest might give the Pakistani military an excuse to topple the civilian government, something that the military has done three times previously in the country’s history.
Since 2008, Iraq gradually ceased to be a topic in extemporaneous speaking. This accelerated after the U.S. withdrew its remaining forces from the country in 2011. Optimists thought that Iraq questions would fade much like Vietnam questions did in the 1960s and 1970s. However, the rise of the Islamic State (IS) in 2014 will cause extempers to talk a great deal about Iraq policy in 2014-2015. The IS was proclaimed by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), a Sunni militant group, on June 29 and includes territory in Syria and Iraq. This summer, ISIS continued its advances into Iraqi territory, seizing Mosul, Iraq’s second-largest city, and taking over several Christian towns. The group murdered non-Sunni Muslims, Christians, and those of other religious denominations. These religious minorities sought refuge elsewhere in Iraq, especially Kurdish areas of Northern Iraq. Advances by ISIS into Kurdish territory and their siege of the Yazidis – a Kurdish-speaking Zoroastrian/Sufi religious community – near Mount Sinjar prompted the Obama administration to launch airstrikes to halt the group’s advance. Although President Obama stated that U.S. ground forces will not be returning to Iraq, these airstrikes constitute a return of American military forces to Iraq. The airstrikes have also created a debate over the effectiveness of President Obama’s foreign policy, which his former Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, criticized in 
California is currently suffering from a prolonged drought that is damaging the state’s agricultural industry. The drought, which began three years ago, covers the entire state and 60 percent of the state is experiencing an “exceptional drought,” the worst level in its recorded history. Since California is America’s largest state and is the producer of a large percentage of its fruits and vegetables, its drought could have a significant impact beyond its borders. Due to the fact that scientists expect the drought to continue into 2015, extempers should be prepared to analyze California’s drought at tournaments during the 2014-2015 season. The topic is screaming for placement in a “domestic social” or “state and local issues” round.