Extemp Questions 2017 May

• Is President Trump’s affinity towards authoritarian leaders bad for US national interests?
• Does a US backed mid-east peace deal need new Palestinian leadership to be successful?
• Is the Israeli Knesset ready to support a peace deal with Palestine?
• Has Director Comey damaged the public’s trust and confidence in the FBI?
• Will Russia continue to attempt interference in future US elections?
• Should social media companies do more to control the misuse of their services?
• Should the US provide more aid to Latin American nations to control gang violence?
• Will President Maduro’s moves to rewrite the Venezuelan Constitution result in further violence and protest?
• Should the government of Brazil do more to protect its indigenous people?
• Is it time for the government of Indonesia to relax some of its strict anti-drug laws?
• Has Theresa May backed herself down a “hard Brexit” path?
• Is social media playing a key role in the upcoming Iranian election?
• Is the division between the Trump White House and Congressional Republicans shrinking?
• Can the Japanese government do more to clean up the Fukushima site?
• Can America’s cities drive green energy despite federal policy changes under Trump?
• Will President Duterte pivot the Philippines away from the US and towards China?
• Is the relationship between the Trump administration and America's intelligence agencies improving?
• Will America’s foreign policy under President Trump push Turkey towards a closer relationship with Russia?
• Is President Trump doing all he can to push his legislative agenda through Congress?
• Will American military forces be embroiled in Afghanistan for the indefinite future?
• Will the Trump administration take any steps to shrink America’s income gap?
• Should the Trump administration take a harder stance with Philippines’ President Duterte for human rights violations?
• Should pharmaceutical companies bear some of the cost of dealing with America’s opioid epidemic?
• Can anything be done to bring the Taliban to the table for a peace deal in Afghanistan?
• Will the new French President be able to create a real governing coalition?
• Should tech industry leaders do more to end pay inequities?
• Should the Trump administration do more to shore up Medicare to deal with aging baby-boomers?
• Have anti-doping measures in international sports gone too far?
• Will the AHCA make it through the Senate?
• What should the Democratic Party do to reconnect with white working-class voters?
• Can the UN do more to alleviate famine in Africa?
• Is the State Department incapable of dealing with President Trump’s style of handling US foreign policy?
• Should the US provide additional aid to South Sudan?
• Can UN peacekeeping forces be used effectively in South Sudan?
• Has American news media been able to adjust to the Trump presidency?
• Can the Trump administration build a governing coalition in Congress?
• Can the core EU nations hold together through Brexit negotiations?
• Should Hillary Clinton continue to play a leadership role in the Democratic Party?
• Can Marine Le Pen broaden out her support base enough to win the French Presidency?
• Will Australia’s tightening of immigration harm its economic growth?
• Is it time for the UK’s Labour Party to change leadership?
• Has the time come for a nationwide ban on the death penalty?
• Should the federal government establish standards for states to perform capital punishment?
• Does Congress need to do more to avoid economic catastrophe in Puerto Rico?
• Should Washington DC be granted Statehood?
• Will new leadership in South Korea be less aligned with US foreign policy in Asia?
• Should the Brazilian government do more to control organized crime cartels?
• Should UN peacekeeping forces withdraw from the DR Congo?
• What will it take to get President Kabila to step down in the Democratic Republic of the Congo?
• Is President Trump losing the support of the GOP base?
• Is the Trump White House getting better with its message discipline?
• Will the AHCA be an albatross around the neck of the Republican Party in the 2018 midterm elections?
• Will President-elect Macron be able to govern effectively?
• Why have broken campaign promises not cost Trump the support of his voter base?
• Will the President Trump face backlash from Congressional Republicans for excessive use of Executive Orders to push his policy agenda forward?
• Should Congress take steps to ensure that state and local policy actions are more transparent?
• Is an Israeli-Palestine peace deal on the Horizon?
• Can the political divide in Venezuela be bridged if President Maduro allowed a new election?
• Will the US increase sanctions against Venezuela?
• What steps should the US take to encourage democratic reforms in Venezuela?
• Should Congress do more to ease economic crisis in Puerto Rico?
• Should Congress take steps to ensure better service for air travel?
• Can Trump get the AHCA through Congress this year?
• What changes will the Senate make to pass the AHCA?
• What steps can law enforcement agencies take to improve their relationship with local communities?
• Arer America’s economic growth prospects for 2017 looking good?
• Should America move to a single-payer healthcare system?
• Is a public option necessary to curb growing US healthcare costs?
• Does Macron’s election in France mean the future of the EU is safe?
• How much longer can Sean Spicer last as Press Secretary?
• Does the growth of Le Pen’s National Front Party in France make it the de facto opposition party in France?
• Is the government in Venezuela losing control?
• Should further steps be taken to distance the financial interests of President trump and his family from potential business conflicts of interest?
• Will South Korea’s new President start to distance the country from US foreign policy?
• Will newly elected President Macron be able to unite a divided France?
• Should Congress enact a carbon tax?
• Can the federal government do more to improve the cybersecurity of American businesses?
• What steps can US intelligence agencies take to avoid the problem of “going dark” on electronic surveillance?
• Is cyber-crime in the US getting worse?
• What should be done to rebuild Venezuela’s economy?
• Can the Maduro government regain control over the Venezuelan economy?
• Will China’s “one-belt, one-road” initiative supplant US geopolitical interests in the developing world?
• Is the Ivory Coast headed for a new round of violence?
• Has the government of the Ivory Coast lost control of its military forces?
• Has President Trump irreparably damaged his reputation with the intelligence community?
• Should Congress revise the Independent Counsel statute?
• Should Congress terminate the EB-5 visa program?
• Does Venezuela face imminent economic collapse?
• Does any chance still remain for a compromise between the Maduro government and Venezuelan protesters?
• Has President Trump overestimated the influence that China has on the government of North Korea?
• How much longer will the Russia investigation continue to distract from the Republican legislative agenda in Congress?
• Will Senate Democrats block a vote on a new FBI Director until an independent prosecutor is appointed?
• Has the Trump administration permanently changed American political norms?
• What should France expect from Macron’s Presidency?
• Will Angela Merkel retain her leadership of Germany?
• Can South Korea’s new President rein in government corruption?
• Will President Trump’s plan to arm Kurdish rebels in Syria push Turkey to a closer alliance with Russia?
• Is the UK’s National Health Service in need of major overhaul and reform?
• What should the US do to more effectively react to nation-state backed cyberattacks?
• What effect will the US arming Kurdish rebels have on the Syrian conflict?
• Does FIFA still have a long way to go in fixing corruption?
• Will a new FBI Director be able to maintain independence from the Trump White House?
• Should the US increased troop deployments to Afghanistan?
• Can US-backed forces in Afghanistan break the stalemate with the Taliban?
• Is bipartisan healthcare reform still possible?
• Should the NATO allies do more to counteract Russian influence operations in elections?
• Should the Trump White House make some major changes to its Communications staff?
• What more should the international community do to block the flow of foreign fighters into ISIS-controlled areas?
• \Should the US take direct military action against Al-Shabab militants?
• What does the future hold for the US-Iran nuclear deal?
• Can the new South Korean President diffuse the growing tension with the North?
• Will the upcoming British general election renew calls for a Scottish independence vote?
• Can Emmanuel Macron achieve the economic reforms he promised during the campaign?
• Should continued weapons tests change America’s approach to North Korea?
• Is Greece in need of additional debt relief?
• Is the government of Greece committed to necessary fiscal reforms?
• Are Congressional Republicans getting more comfortable in breaking with the Trump administration?
• Is the fight over the Dakota Access Pipeline over?
• Should the US take a direct role in the peace talks over eastern Ukraine?
• Have UN sanctions against North Korea become an ineffective tool?
• Has President Trump put the future of US intelligence sharing with international allies at risk?
• Has enough been done to protect the water sources of the Standing Rock Sioux against oil spills?
• Is America’s role as an international leader in the protection of human rights on the decline?
• Should Japan allow female members of the royal family to assume the throne?
• Is it time for Japan to change the rules for its royal family?
• Should Japan’s Diet do more to address the economic changes of an aging population?
• Will international allies stop sharing intelligence wit the US?
• Will the firing of James Comey been seen as a major turning point for the Trump administration?
• Will the success of President Trump’s first trip abroad be stalled by his problems at home?
• Will the appointment of a special prosecutor for the Russia investigation quiet Democrats in Congress?
• Can Brexit solve the UK’s EU immigration problems?
• Will White House credibility problems hamper the Republican legislative agenda in Congress?
• What does the reelection of Iran’s President Rohani mean for the Syria conflict?
• Has the news media been treating President Trump unfairly?
• Can the US Still find ways to cooperate with Russia towards ending the Syrian conflict?
• Should the federal government require schools to provide more comprehensive sex education?
• What can US intelligence agencies do to crack down on terrorist funding networks?
• Are voting rights destined to remain a partisan issue?
• Will President Trump’s Election Integrity Commission have the effect of suppressing minority voters in future elections?
• What should the White House do differently to better control leaks to the press?
• Is President Trump’s reputation among international leaders improving?
• Can Iran’s President Rohani deliver on his campaign’s economic promises?
• Can the US remain at a distance in the proxy conflicts between Saudi Arabia and Iran?
• Is government corruption in Brazil an unsolvable problem?
• Are Japan’s economic fortunes changing?
• Should judges be given more discretion in sentencing for federal drug crimes?
• How much of Trump’s budget proposals will make it through Congress?
• Should the US be putting more effort into blocking the resurgence of Al Qaeda?
• What can the Trump Administration do to repair its relationship with the US intelligence agencies?