Tag: extemp files Page 13 of 23

Here is your R&D for November 17th:

Thousands of Sudanese register to vote in secession referendum from the Los Angeles Times
Thousands of people in southern Sudan registered to vote for a referendum that could split the country in two in January.  The registration process is expected to last two weeks.

Russian Arms Pact Faces New Obstacle from the Wall Street Journal
Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl of Arizona announced his opposition to a vote on the new START accord with Russia because of concerns that the cuts to America’s nuclear stockpile endanger national security.  Kyl wants more money to modernize the nuclear arsenal that America will be left with after the treaty is ratified.

TSA chief likely to face lawmakers’ questions on pat-downs, body scans from CNN
The controversy over the TSA’s screening practices continues as TSA chief John Pistole will testify before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation.  Critics say that the use of full body scanners and pat downs is an invasion of privacy and that it is a waste of precious resources.

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Here is your R&D for November 16th:

Prince William to marry Kate Middleton, giving Britain a 21st-century princess from the Christian Science Monitor
While continental Europe is being hit with serious economic problems this morning, Great Britain woke up to good news:  that Prince William will marry his college sweetheart, Kate Middleton next spring or summer.

Ireland told: Take EU bailout or trigger crisis from the Guardian
The European Union has warned Ireland that it needs to make a decision within 24 hours about whether or not it will accept a bailout.  Spain and Portugal fear that they could be next if Ireland defaults on its debt.

Russia denounces ‘Merchant of Death’ extradition from the UK Telegraph
Arms dealer Viktour Bout, dubbed the “Merchant of Death”, has been extradicted by Thailand to face terrorism charges in the United States.  Russia has claimed that the extradition is illegal.

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Here is your R&D for November 15th:

Lame duck preview: The last hurrah for a Democratic Congress from the Washington Independent
This is a fantastic article that breaks down the major issues and party dynamics facing the lame duck session of Congress.

Bernanke’s worst nightmare: Ron Paul from CNN
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is likely losing sleep now that his harshest critic, Texas Congressman Ron Paul, will take charge of the House Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy in January.

Arab League ‘likely to reject 90-day settlement freeze plan’ from Haaretz
Arab League officials announced today that it is likely that they will not support renewed Middle East peace talks if Israel suspended settlement construction in the West Bank for three months.  The Arab League contends that a settlement freeze must include Jerusalem.

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Here is your R&D for November 12th:

Four Lessons from Iraq’s New Government from Time
After eight months of negotiations, Iraq finally has a new government.  Nouri al-Maliki was tapped for a second term as the nation’s prime minister.  In this article, Time lays out four lessons that the world can learn from this parliamentary horse trading and discusses what the new government means for Iraq’s future.

Release of Myanmar Opposition Leader Anticipated from the New York Times
Now that Myanmar’s junta has won national elections, it is going to release democratic activist Aung San Suu-Kyi.  Kyi has spent 15 of the last 21 years under house arrest.

The Blue State Budget Crisis from the Washington Post (courtesy of RealClearPolitics)
Extempers are likely to get questions about state budgets for the rest of the season.  This article describes some of the budget problems that face Democratically-held states like California and New York.

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Here is your R&D for November 11th:

Fail safe from the Economist
In light of Ireland’s latest financial difficulties, the European Union is preparing itself for a potential default by one of its members.  How would the continent deal with a debt default?  The Economist seeks to explain that in this article.

Obama deficit commission drafts drastic cuts from the San Francisco Chronicle
President Obama’s bipartisan deficit commission released its plan to rebalance the federal budget.  The plan calls for cuts in the number of public sector employees, cutting benefits for Social Security, and eliminating $100 billion in tax breaks for individuals and businesses.  The commission believes that these steps will cut $4 trillion of the deficit within the next decade.

Transition processes in Argentina and Brazil seen from Washington from MercoPress
This MercoPress article recounts an opinion-editorial piece in the Washington Post, which noted that Brazil and Argentina are gradually moving away from populist economic policies to more pragmatic ones.

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Here is your R&D for November 10th:

Gates: US open to request from Iraq to stay from the Associated Press
Defense Secretary Robert Gates said that it was a possibility that the U.S. would remain in Iraq after 2011 if the current Iraqi government believed a U.S. presence was still necessary.  The Iraqi government wants the U.S. to help with border security and needs the U.S. to help train the nation’s air force.

Muslims Say Obama Failing to keep Cairo Promises from Reuters
President Obama is facing criticism from Muslims in the international community for failing to live up to the pledges that he made in Cairo during the first year of his presidency.  Indonesian Muslims have recently said that President Obama needs to do more to repair ties with the Muslim world.

Why Bloomberg likes Cathie Black as the new NYC schools chancellor from the Christian Science Monitor
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has named Cathie Black as the new chancellor for the New York City school system.  Black replaces Joel Klein, who stepped down after eight years.  Black’s appointment has been criticized because she has no experience as an educator.

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Here is your R&D for November 9th:

US resists Israel call for tough line on Iran from the Financial Times
The Obama administration has rebuffed an Israeli call to make a “credible military threat” to Iran. Israel believes such a threat may force Iran to change course on its nuclear program.

Christie Travel Expenses Cited in U.S. Report from the Philadelphia Inquirer
New Jersey Governor and potential presidential candidate Chris Christie has been cited in a report by the U.S. Department of Justice for exceeding the government’s approved lodging rate. Christie has yet to comment on the allegations.

South Korea, U.S. go down to wire on trade talks from Reuters
South Korean and U.S. trade negotiators are in the process of reworking a free trade agreement. Cars is the biggest issue in the trade talks because the U.S. auto industry believes the old agreement negotiated under the Bush administration does not ensure access to the South Korea market.

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Here is your R&D for November 8th:

Obama confirms US strategic shift towards India from the BBC
President Obama confirmed America’s foreign policy shift towards India over teh weekend when he announced that he would support India’s bid to have a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.

The Case for Nancy Pelosi’s Staying Put from Time
Should Nancy Pelosi remain the head of the Democrats in the House?  This article from Time says that she should so that she can defend her record as Speaker.

Rubio Republicans from the Wall Street Journal
Will the GOP lose the Hispanic vote if it continues to talk tough on immigration?  Not according to this article, which argues that the GOP can do just fine as long as it promotes a message of economic opportunity.

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Here is your R&D for November 5th:

Obama’s India trip stirs fears in Pakistan about power balance from the Washington Post
President Obama’s three day trip to India, which starts this weekend, has antagonized Pakistan. Pakistan, India’s major opponent in the region, is not getting a visit from Obama and it worries that the Obama administration is unwilling to help resolve issues it has with India over Kashmir.

Burmese Election Holds Little Hope for Democracy from Der Spiegel
Myanmar (Burma) holds its first democratic elections in more than 20 years on Sunday, but the international community does not believe that they will be fair and that the nation’s junta will further consolidate its power.

Bridgeport mayor: Democrat for Conn. gov wins city from the Associated Press
The mess that is Connecticut’s gubernatorial race seems closer to a conclusion after the announcement this morning that Democratic candidate Dan Malloy won the city of Bridgeport, whose votes had not been fully counted, by over 13,000 votes. This margin appears to give Malloy more than a 5,000 vote advantage statewide against Republican challenger Tom Foley.

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Here is your R&D for November 4th:

Jerry Brown’s election doesn’t ensure end to gridlock from the Los Angeles Times
California voters returned Jerry Brown to the governor’s mansion on Tuesday and helped some of their state’s budget woes by passing Proposition 25, which now allows the state legislature to pass a budget by a majority (although a two-thirds majority is still required for tax measures).  However, Brown and state Democratic leaders will need to get along to steer California back to fiscal solvency.

Republican election surge hits U.S. state houses from Reuters
The 2010 midterms didn’t just reshape national politics, it affected politics at the state level as well.  The GOP has won at least 18 state legislative chambers, which brings their control nationally to 54 chambers.  These gains are important because these state legislatures will be redistricting House seats for the next national election in 2012.

Australia’s Julia Gillard struggles to sell asylum center plan to neighbors from the Christian Science Monitor
Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard is seeking to defuse criticisms about illegal immigration by pursuing an asylum plan with other nations in Southeast Asia.  Unfortunately, none of them have committed to the plan.

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Here is your R&D for November 3rd:

GOP seizes control of House; Dems retain Senate from Politico
In last night’s midterm elections voters returned the Republicans to power in the House of Representatives. However, the GOP was unable to run the table in the Senate and take control.

‘Yes, we did’ from the Las Vegas Sun
Senate Majority Harry Reid survived a challenge from Tea Party candidate Sharron Angle last night and will return to the Senate for the fifth time. Read more about this exciting race in this article.

Republican Kirk defeats Democrat Giannoulias for Obama’s old Senate seat from the Chicago Tribune
In a stinging rebuke of President Obama, Republican Congressman Mark Kirk defeated Illinois State Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias in the state’s much watched Senate race. Republicans believe that this is a big victory because Kirk will be seated immediately and now occupies President Obama’s old Senate seat.

Marijuana legalization measure loses in California from the Associated Press
California’s Proposition 19, which would have legalized the sale and use of marijuana, went up in smoke last night as voters rejected the measure. Supporters say that they are already preparing for a new effort in California and other states in 2012.

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Here is your R&D for November 2nd:

Comcast: ‘Massive’ Amount Of Political Calls Lead To Phone Outages from WCBVTV in Boston
Comcast phone customers have experienced outages because of heavy political phone traffic this week.  A good AGD article for questions that force you to summarize the midterm election results.

Bungled bungled from the Economist
A lingering sex scandal might help Italy’s opposition send Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi packing.

If Israel Wants Peace… from Foreign Policy in Focus
In this interesting article, Foreign Policy in Focus describes what it might take for Israel to warm to the Middle East peace process.

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Here is your R&D for November 1st:

Republicans Appear Poised to Win Big on Tuesday from Gallup
In Gallup’s final measure of voter intentions prior to tomorrow’s midterm elections, the polling agency finds that Republicans have a substanial lead over Democrats among likely voters, which suggests the Republicans are likely to win back control of the House of Representatives.

Bomb Plot Shows Key Role Played by Intelligence from the New York Times
This weekend’s bomb plot was a reminder that strong intelligence networks are needed to thwart terrorism as a Saudi intelligence tip prevented explosive packages from being loaded onto planes bound for the United States.

Myanmar’s polls a headache for ASEAN from the Asia Times
This month’s elections in Myanmar have divided the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), with democratic members criticizing them and less democratic governments defending them.

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Here is your R&D for October 29th:

Clinton Asked Democrat to Quit Florida Senate Race from the Wall Street Journal
Yesterday it was reported by Politico that President Bill Clinton tried to get Kendrick Meeks, the Democratic Party’s Senate candidate in Florida, to drop out so that Florida Governor Charlie Crist would have a better chance at defeating Republican candidate Marco Rubio.  The incident has angered some Democrats who feel that Meeks appearance on the ballot could lead to higher African-American turnout and assist Democratic gubernatorial candidate Alex Sink.

The passing of kirchnerismo from the Economist
The Economist evaluates former Argentinian President Nestor Kirchner’s political and economic legacy.  Kirchner passed away from a heart attack on Wednesday.

Brussels summit: Union dues from the Guardian
The European Union is in trouble because it has failed to quell the anxieties of Eurosceptics across the continent.  The Guardian analyzes what the EU has done wrong in this editorial.

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Here is your R&D for October 28th:

Indonesia Disaster Survivors Get Aid as Planes, Vessels Arrive from Business Week
Food and supplies are being sent to survivors of Indonesia’s latest tsunami, which hit Sumatra on October 25th.  The tsunami was triggered by a volcanic eruption on a nearby island.  To date, the tsunami has killed 311 people and 378 others are missing.

China’s global responsibility growing from the Korean Times
This op-ed from the Korean Times argues that wealth will not make China a global superpower or even a respected international player.  Instead, it argues that China can only gain these things by not abusing its economic resources and respecting international institutions.

Alaska Supreme Court reverses ban on write-in candidate lists from the Los Angeles  Times
Alaska’s Supreme Court has ruled that the state Division of Elections can provide the write-in candidate lists to voters who need help at the polls.  The ruling is expected to benefit the state’s current Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski.

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