Category: U.S. Extemp Page 8 of 56

HotTopics: United States Extemp Questions for the Week of January 31-February 6, 2022

1. Who should President Biden nominate to replace Justice Stephen Breyer?
2. What impact would consecutive rate increases by the Federal Reserve have on the U.S. economy?
3. Does the size of the U.S. national debt matter?
4. If Stacey Abrams fails to win Georgia’s gubernatorial election, is her political career over?
5. Will the January 6 committee’s investigations eventually find a direct link to former President Trump?
6. Should the child tax credit be means tested?
7. Student loan forgiveness: An economic boon or a political disaster for the Democratic Party?
8. Should New York City makes changes to its bail law?
9. What will the next evolution of the Internet look like?
10. Should the IRS go with an alternative to ID.me to secure Americans tax records?

HotTopics: United States Extemp Questions for the Week of January 24-30, 2022

1. Does President Biden need to shake up his foreign policy team?
2. Will public education be the biggest victim of the COVID-19 pandemic?
3. What is the Democrats best Senate pickup opportunity in the 2022 midterms?
4. Is the COVID relief bubble in the economy bursting?
5. Will the rise of artificial intelligence be the final blow against organized labor in the private sector?
6. Is the threat of domestic terrorism becoming bigger than terrorism by foreign groups?
7. Will legal problems in New York scuttle former President Trump’s political ambitions?
8. Is Netflix losing the streaming wars?
9. Could Hillary Clinton win a Democratic presidential primary in 2024?
10. What steps can be taken to depoliticize the Supreme Court?

HotTopics: United States Extemp Questions for the Week of January 17-23, 2022

1. Should Democrats expel Kyrsten Sinema and Joe Manchin from their caucus if they do not vote for filibuster reform?
2. Has the expulsion of former President Trump from mainstream social media outlets been a boon for his political fortunes?
3. How can the U.S. economy better weather future strains of the COVID-19 virus?
4. Will conservative efforts to ban critical race theory weaken the performance of public schools?
5. What was the biggest mistake that the Biden administration made in 2021?
6. Are there any changes that Democrats should be willing to make to voting rights legislation to ensure that it can pass the Senate?
7. What does the Supreme Court’s ruling on President Biden’s vaccine mandate mean for the future of American COVID-19 policy?
8. Should the Federal Reserve significantly raise interest rates at its next meeting?
9. How can New York City improve the safety of its subway system?
10. What steps can U.S. states take in the fight against climate change?

HotTopics: United States Extemp Questions for the Week of January 10-16, 2022

1. Should the U.S. government issue a monthly universal income payment to all taxpayers for January to deal with the effects of the Omicron variant?
2. If the Democratic Congress barred Donald Trump from running for re-election under the terms of the 14th Amendment, would it be constitutional?
3. How can schools reduce the number of days they have to close due to staffing shortages caused by the COVID-19 pandemic?
4. Can independent, state-level redistricting commissions solve America’s gerrymandering problem?
5. How will the COVID-19 pandemic affect the future of America’s churches?
6. What steps should the U.S. government be taking to prevent another January 6 attack?
7. Should the U.S. reform the Electoral Count Act of 1887?
8. What should be the legislative priorities of the Biden administration in 2022?
9. Is America’s militia movement stronger or weaker than it was a decade ago?
10. What hurdles must be overcome to increase the number of electric vehicles in the United States?

R&D from Prepd: Vice President Kamala Harris

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 covers Vice President Kamala Harris.  The last few months have been turbulent ones for America’s first female vice president as Harris has seen staffing departures, rumors that she is upset at the lack of a defined role in the Biden administration, and concerns about her electability if President Joe Biden does not run for re-election in 2024.

HotTopics: United States Extemp Questions for the Week of January 3-9, 2022

1. Have new quarantine guidelines damaged the CDC’s credibility with the American people?
2. What grade does President Biden deserve after his first year in office?
3. Should race be used as a factor in distributing life-saving healthcare resources?
4. Is the U.S. headed for another housing crisis?
5. If progressives were to primary President Biden in 2024, who should they nominate?
6. Is the “defend the police” movement dead?
7. At what age should universal public education begin in the United States?
8. Are U.S. sanctions policies against Russia an ineffective strategy?
9. Should President Biden attempt to impose the “Build Back Better” bill via executive action?
10. Will American schools struggle to assemble enough staff to operate in 2022-2023?

R&D from Prepd: Abortion Rights

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 covers abortion rights.  The U.S. Supreme Court recently heard oral arguments for the case Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization that questions the constitutionality of a 2018 Mississippi state law that bans most abortion after fifteen weeks of pregnancy.  In addition, the Supreme Court sent a lawsuit over Texas’ controversial abortion law, that bans most abortions after six weeks, back to the appellate level yesterday and has left the law intact at the moment.  Pro-choice advocates warn that the Supreme Court is on the verge of overturning the landmark 1973 case of Roe v. Wade that constitutionalized the right to abortion, and if that happens, more than twenty states would immediately ban the procedure.

HotTopics: United States Extemp Questions for the Week of December 13-19, 2021

Note that these will be the last questions of the first semester.  Extemp Central will resume posting new, original content on Monday, January 3.

1. Will Donald Trump’s intervention in the Georgia governor’s race produce an Abrams victory?
2. Is Biden’s term turning into Jimmy Carter 2.0?
3. Will “The Great Resignation” continue into 2022?
4. Should the GOP abandon its position on keeping taxes low for business owners?
5. Would private school tax credit programs undermine public education?
6. Is there a “missile gap” forming between the U.S. and China?
7. Should Democrats cease using the term “Latinx”?
8. Is an arms embargo on Cambodia necessary?
9. How could Mike Pence defeat Donald Trump in a Republican presidential primary?
10. What steps do American cities need to take to curb rising homicide rates?

HotTopics: United States Extemp Questions for the Week of December 6-12, 2021

1. To what extent should the United States defend Ukraine’s territorial integrity?
2. Is President Biden responsible for Vice President Harris’ poor poll numbers?
3. Are existing discipline guidelines making America’s schools less safe?
4. Will the omicron variant doom Democratic efforts to keep control of Congress in 2022?
5. What should the Biden administration do if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade?
6. Will Major League Baseball’s owners reach a new labor agreement with the players’ union by spring training?
7. Can Dr. Oz win Pennsylvania’s Senate seat?
8. Will a reduction of the Fed’s quantitative-easing program substantially lower inflationary pressures in the U.S. economy?
9. What role should the U.S. federal government play in fixing lead pipes throughout the country?
10. Will Stacey Abrams win Georgia’s governorship next year?

R&D from Prepd: The Omicron Variant

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 covers the omicron variant of COVID-19.  First discovered in South Africa, the variant is still under study and as of the time of this R&D’s creation, a handful of cases have been identified in the United States.  There are fears that the new variant might infected vaccinated individuals and be more contagious than the delta variant from India.

HotTopics: United States Extemp Questions for the Week of November 29-December 5, 2021

1. Will the omicron variant cause a new wave of COVID lockdowns in the U.S.?
2. How can the Biden administration convince Joe Manchin and Krysten Sinema to vote for the Build Back Better Act?
3. What explains the decline of college enrollment in the U.S.?
4. Are equity policies doing greater harm or good to the groups they are intending to help?
5. Does the U.S. still have a role to play in Afghanistan?
6. Has the Biden administration done enough to help organized labor?
7. Will the release of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve lower gasoline prices over the long-term?
8. How can California cities best prevent “smash-and-grab” thefts?
9. Does the U.S. need to do more to weaken kleptocracies across Latin America?
10. How can Glenn Youngkin position himself for higher office after his term ends in 2025?

HotTopics: United States Extemp Questions for the Week of November 22-28, 2021

1. Have the Biden administration’s energy policies made gas prices higher?
2. Will the recently passed infrastructure bill make Pete Buttigieg a more powerful player in Democratic circles than Vice President Kamala Harris?
3. Did prosecutors botch the Rittenhouse case?
4. Has corporate consolidation made America’s inflation woes worse?
5. Should the U.S. abolish the TSA?
6. What steps can the U.S. take to strengthen democratic governments in Africa?
7. Would passage of President Biden’s social infrastructure bill help or hinder Democratic chances in the 2022 midterms?
8. What role, if any, should the Federal Reserve take in the fight against climate change?
9. Is a U.S. diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics an empty gesture?
10. Are electric vehicles the future of American transport?

HotTopics: United States Extemp Questions for the Week of November 15-21, 2021

1. Will the Supreme Court eventually find that the Biden administration’s vaccine requirement is constitutional?
2. Should all U.S. schools adopt a “mask optional” policy?
3. What can Democrats do to stop a “red wave” in 2022?
4. Will the recently passed infrastructure bill help the U.S. economy?
5. Is Chris Christie a “dark horse” presidential candidate?
6. If Russia invades Ukraine, how should the U.S. respond?
7. What should the Biden administration to do reduce migrant flows at the Mexican border?
8. Should the U.S. invest more in nuclear power?
9. Will the embrace of equity policies by schools further increase the achievement gap?
10. How would the rise of a “metaverse” affect American society?

R&D from Prepd: Inflation in the U.S. Economy

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 covers inflation in the U.S. economy.  The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported this week that consumer prices rose by 6.2% in October and inflation is standing at its fastest increase since 1991.  Shortages of consumer goods due to supply chain issues, all of which exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, are making the problem worse and are wiping out some recent wage gains made by American workers.  The inflation issue is also becoming a political problem for President Joe Biden, who is seeing his approval ratings crash near the end of his first year in office.

HotTopics: United States Extemp Questions for the Week of November 8-14, 2021

1. Will the results of the Virginia and New Jersey gubernatorial elections cause the Democrats to back off of President Biden’s social infrastructure plan?
2. Is Eric Adams the future of the Democratic Party?
3. Does the Democratic Party have a messaging problem?
4. Will the Supreme Court strike down New York’s concealed carry restrictions?
5. Does the U.S. need to get more involved in the Tigray War?
6. Is Europe’s new COVID-19 wave a warning sign for the U.S. this winter?
7. Do states need to do more to make juries racially equitable?
8. Are American commitments going far enough at COP26?
9. Will the Minneapolis question 2 vote destroy ongoing progressive efforts to defund police?
10. Should states require high school students to pass an ethnic studies course?

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