NFHS EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING TOPICS
November 2009
Domestic
Easier Topics
1. Should President Obama have won the Nobel prize?
2. Are women making strides toward full equality in the American workplace?
3. Can the most recent version of health care reform legislation pass Congress?
4. Should President Obama have involved himself in promoting Chicago’s Olympic bid?
5. Should the United States adopt a new economic stimulus package?
6. What is responsible for the rise of teenage pregnancies in the United States?
7. Four years after Hurricane Katrina, has New Orleans recovered?
8. Should the FDA begin regulating electronic cigarettes?
9. Do cellphone bans for drivers work?
10. Should Congress increase the size of Social Security payments to seniors?
11. Has the threat from Swine Flu (H1N1) been over-exaggerated?
12. Are President Obama’s policies dividing the Democratic Party?
13. Will GM’s restructuring return the company to commercial success?
More Difficult Topics
1. Will gay activists’ march on Washington have an influence on Obama administration policies?
2. Is Olympia Snowe emerging as the most important Republican in the U.S. Senate?
3. What can the federal government do to slow the failure of American banks?
4. Will President Obama’s Nobel Prize help or hurt him politically?
5. Who is likely to be the Democratic nominee in the California governor’s race?
6. Is capitalism dying in the United States?
7. What do election results in New Jersey and Virginia say about the prospects for Republican success in 2010?
8. Are the Obama administration’s policies on terrorist detention different than those of his predecessor?
9. Are there racist overtones in criticisms of the Obama administration?
10. Can state governments manage losses from declining tax revenues?
11. Is federal stimulus money succeeding at putting people back to work?
12. Should health insurers be exempted from anti-trust laws?
International
Easier Topics
1. Can the United States form a coalition supporting sanctions against Iran?
2. Is Cuba under Raul Castro moving away from its communist traditions?
3. Can Brazil succeed in preparing for the Olympics by 2016?
4. Can China bring North Korea back to the Six-Party Talks?
5. Will a fundraising scandal bring down Japan’s new Prime Minister?
6. Is Iran’s nuclear threat greater than originally believed?
7. Is Kenya moving quickly enough to reform itself after 2008’s post-election violence?
8. Can Armenia and Turkey overcome their historic animosity to reopen diplomatic relations?
9. Will Tony Blair be selected as the first permanent President of the European Council?
10. Should America send more troops to Afghanistan?
11. Can Pakistan help suppress the growing Taliban activity within its borders?
12. Can Jacob Zuma defeat corruption in South Africa?
13. How will Germany’s new governing coalition change the country’s policies?
More Difficult Topics
1. Is Mikhail Saakashvilli’s Georgia truly a democratic state?
2. Should the world community refuse to recognize the results of Afghanistan’s elections?
3. Can India’s BJP Party rebound in the next parliamentary elections?
4. Should the Palestinian government endorse the UN’s Goldstone report on human rights abuses by Israel in Gaza?
5. Is the Muslim Brotherhood’s influence in the Arab world growing?
6. Will Italy’s Silvio Berlusconi fall from power due to corruption charges?
7. Can Greece’s new Prime Minister succeed in bringing about a reunification of Greek and Turkish Cyprus?
8. Can Britain’s Conservative Party maintain its lead in the polls and retake the government in Britain’s next election?
9. Is Northern Ireland’s power sharing agreement in danger of crumbling?
10. Will receding ice in the Arctic lead to conflict between states bordering that region?
11. Is Sri Lanka doing enough to address the needs of the defeated Tamil people?
12. What are the prospects for a return to power for Thailand’s Thaksin Shinawatra?