DEBATING THE POLITICS DISAD
Emory
1File Name
Debating the Politics DisadA. How to pick your disad
1. Link Debate certain affs just go a certain way. Gotta win
that.
In my mind, need to win its unpopular or get another disad.
2. uniqueness debate Based on the literature. In my mind, this
is using the literature to find agenda items that will pass.
3. Impact scenarios external & internal.
B. Putting together the 1nc
1. uniqueness card that tells a story mentions capital. I like
disads with a uniq & pc key card
2. read as specific a link as possible
-prevents the link turns from mattering.
-helps with a net benefit to the counterplan3. read an external
impact early. Turn the case not necessary.
C. 2nc/1nr
1. overview
-do not explain the story
-do impact the external argument read terminal impact cards
where possible. Ochs, Bostrom, 1% Warming, etc.
-do read an impact to access as much as possible
-do read additional external impacts if they have good
defense
-do NOT read something that impact turning is
possible/probable.
2. uniqueness -
-have to win it. This is where you have to invest your time b/c
judges will be calling for cards.
-focus on evidence that cites obamas capital as the reason it
will pass first.
-reading quantity is good but focus on a diversity of
warrants.
-read the affs evidence we will have specific answers regularly
read those where necessary.
-handle uniqueness overwhelms the link well. Know your judge.
Means a risk-look for and lie about these things: vote count,
momentum, insiders
3. Link Debate -
-read new links if necessary.
-read link uniqueness to go your way
-read old school theory cards to indict their link
-explain why their link turns dont apply to your scenario4.
Handeling Theory Arguments
-Have blocks that are short and to the point do not waste
time.
-be prepared to debate politics disads good
-intrinsicness Wake Forest people vs MSU people
-Most people it is about not falling victim to the tricks
-mini-voting issues for
5. Impact Debate not an impact turn
-External explained in the overview section
-Access as much as possible - heg, economy are your friends.
-It is difficult on this topic to go for politics vs case. Very
very difficult
-if it access everything and you kick it it screws up everyones
impact in the debate.
6. Impact Debate an impact turn
-Focus on one that you can impact terminally
-Access all of their terminal impacts wherever possible
-focus on uniqueness to their impact turns
D. 2nr on Politics
-How much of the case do you solve/how much of the case do they
win?
If the case is big focus on the magnitude of the impact
If the case is minimal focus on the link and uniqueness.
-If you have played your cards right you should be okay on the
impact
-have a 2nr extension of the uniqueness ev written out before
the debate
-talk about specific link warrants as tied to the bill. Not
political capital.
-Think about it in a macro world. Healthcare/diseases vs
De-Alert.E. Questions Asked
How do I make politics in the 1nr more viable versus big affs?Is
it a net benefit to something less unpopular?
Yes have to win that spin. Its about the risk of losing the
vote.
Should you go for it with case or not?
F. Glossary
1. Types of disads
1. Rider DAs
2. Backlash DAs
3. Agenda Crowd-out DAs
4. Bipart DAs
5. Bush agenda DAs
2. Link argument glossary
1. Political Capital its a lot like being a Don in the mafia all
about favors
2. Flip Flops key to capital
3. Olive Branches/Concessions
4. Focus
5. Public Popularity
6. Base Support the gold standard
7. Winners Win lion tamer theory
8. Winners-Lose banker [party will backlash]
9. Bipar/Partisan
10. Use these in conjunction as long as they are unique
Answering the Politics DisadA. 2ac
1. Screwing with the neg block
- great variety of answers
- do not read cards that make the same argument
-theory, theory, theory
-impact defense on their impact evidence
-read internal link take-outs. Usually the weakest part of the
disad.
-feel free to sand-bag good uniqueness cards.
-link uniqueness in the 2ac
2. Strategic 2ac inclusions
-winners-win link turn always
- multiple link turns specific to the aff
-link uniqueness
-thumpers
3. most strategic options
-impact turns to the bill
-theory arguments.
4. Consider the net benefit
-dont read answers the cp sucks up. Be able to read that the
difference isnt popular
-counterplan is unpopular be prepared to look through
backfiles/analytical arguments.
B. 1ar
1. Have a strategy!
-do I want to straight turn
- am I extending impact defense to everything
2. extend lots of stuff3. Things to consider while answering it
in the 1ar
- is there value to argument uniqueness overwhelms the link if
the warrant for passage isnt connected to the link.
NEVER as a uniqueness argument but as an indict to the link to
the disad.
NEVER in the 2acAre your non-uniques related to the link
argument
-did we sandbag good uniqueness evidence to read4. If you are
straight turning Uniqueness focusing on warrants, multiple link
turns, explain specific to scenario.
5. If you are not straight turning impact defense, internal link
defense, specific link turns, a few theory arguments. Quality and
then shit-kicking
C. 2ar
1. You should have read the cards up till then where are they
the weakest.
2. have specific link turns you are ready to talk about at all
times. Talk about what it means to win some or all of the link
debate for the risk of the disad3. impact defense.
4. make an assessment on uniqueness can I decrease the risk talk
about what it means to win a chunk of uniqueness.
5. dont be pscyhophrenic6. you will be behind on uniq &
impact debate against good politics teams. You should be ahead on
the link debate and internal link debate.
Questions
Researching Politics
Researching politics
1. Search the week before Bush congress to create a list of
disads
2. make friends to find out what other disads are being read
a. college friends
b. camp friends from across the country
c. use cross-x and files to purchase indexes to find out what
will be read
3. create your list of all possible disads and start
researching
a. uniqueness both ways
b. mpx defense to most unless uniqueness is overwhelming in a
particular way you dont need
c. IL answers to the impact you want to read
4. Once you decide uniqueness is one sided pick a disad based on
that all good debaters know this
a. Brute force strategy for researching politics
i. type title into google news & lexis-nexis and read EVERY
article
ii. copy articles into WORD and change key words to bold to
improve processing speed
b. finesse strategy for researching politics
i. refine your searches to make sure you cover everything that
is in the lit
ii. cut enough articles to guarantee uniqueness if you cant
guarantee keep working
c. things you do regardless of your strategy
i. make a list of the non-unique warrants cut/write answers for
the block
ii. make sure Bush is key to the passage research this including
phrases like political capital
5. impact research
a. if you are aff dont impact turn research link turns &
have uniqueness
b. make sure you have a big external and internal impact
scenarios
c. be prepared for mpx turns before you read a disad
d. go old school to look for new and varied mpx
i. think tanks discuss proposed bills in congress
ii. congressional testimony is great for economy internal
links
6. Link uniqueness file research these for the aff & Neg
a. PC yes/no
b. congress likes each other doesnt like each other
c. Bush getting wins now Bush losing now
d. Bipart now / Partisan now
e. Bush making concessions now no concessions now
f. bush popular / unpopular
7. Have a solid internal link file
a. produced one at most camps so they are online
b. research what is key to the agenda at the start of each
semester to improve your link arguments
c. use old school cards to support your updated link &
uniqueness arguments
Line by Line Specifics1. extend the 1nc
2. indict their evidence
3. when in doubt read more cards.
1. Non-unique wont pass1. You cant lose to this it has to be
absolutely certain before you start picking your disad.
2. Read a card in the 1nc that answers the warrants for why it
wont pass.
3. reference political capital. Capital will insure it passes
the 1nc card should reference capital as overcoming other problems
that exist with the bill.
4. know the literature is there a threat you could lose? Do your
own work or at least familiarize yourself with the aff n/u
evidence.
5. when in doubt read more cards.
2. Non-unique other issues insure fights1. This is the biggest
rising and most popular of aff answers largely because they are
easy to find and throw a hole into the way most politics disads are
debated. Often called thumpers.
2. focus on what the thumper is missing
a. is obama using capital or is it just a fight?
b. does it say it will impact the agenda or are people just
generally angry.3. time frame have top of the docket cards ready to
go for yourself.
4. few other stock arguments
a. our authors assume other fights.
b. this doesnt deny the link or the impact just provides a brink
- which is why PC is at a premium.
5. cut answers to them as you hear them.
3. non unique no PC1. very few of these cards say no PC. They
often say low or are assumptive of a weakened president.2. evidence
indicts because these are usually written from a very conservative
set of news sources.
3. your evidence assumes this says he has enough with specific
groups. IF, for example, your card says he has enough to win over
particular groups to get votes then you are okay. BE careful if
your PC key card is older.
4. cut a few. Sometimes tough but always written in some
context. Not always use the phrase political capital.4. Fiat t/o
the link
A. magic wand passes magically.B. not a should question shouldnt
have to debate it.1. Prefer the quality of the link evidence says
getting it passed requires the president to get involved.
2. backlash to having it got done. If their magic wand notion of
debate is accurate congress will be like a new born child, theyll
start crying b/c they have no idea how that happened.
3. presidents get pulled into everything.
4. this is an older theory that the plan actually requires PC in
order to pass. That is one argument there is also a backlash
argument. Combined with president gets drawn in this isnt an
issue.
C. vote no - 1. silly. Not an accurate representation of what
happens in the debate round.2. makes the neg have to defend
something worse than the status quo.
D. policy maker
1. read specific evidence about politics on this particular
topic.2. focus on your link evidence.
3. the president has to engage in these types of internal
negotiations all the time health care vs. the economy vs.
warming.
E. bottom of the docket
1. kills all disads b/c dont know when
2. the 2012 budget got moved all the way to the next year.3.
makes the cp to do the plan at the top of the docket competitive
plan cant sever doing it at the bottom b/c theyve used it for a
strategic benefit.
5. PC isnt key to this bill1. it isnt about the buzz word of PC
it is about the warrant of PC2. need to make sure this isnt true if
you cant explain why passage involves the president you will lose
to this argument and every other argument.
6. only ideology matters PC irrelevant theory1. Dickinson is the
most popular.2. indict these cards as a general study of the way
politics have worked. They are technically correct. On a majority
of issues they are simply pass or wont pass and have little to
nothing to do with the president. However, on any very close bill
capital, popularity, swag becomes an important tie breaker.
3. default to the specificity of warrants. Example it might be
true that economic theory is unlikely to cause war that doesnt mean
that no war has ever started because of economic decline just
unlikely.7. missing internal links a. PC doesnt t/off between
things
1. need to coherently explain why either Little a this is an
issue that interacts with the other.
Little b the general presidents capital has everything to do
with passage. If I do something unpopular I lose sway with people
because my party will distance itself and the opposition wont go
along.
2. read evidence that are link magnifiers that speak to the
general aff.
b. one issues doesnt spillover
1. yes they do you need to know that they do and have a coherent
reason why little a & b above still apply. 8. Plan popularIt
isnt about being popular or unpopular see my article in the 3nr
journal. Something can be both popular and unpopular it is about
the relative power of that group for the particular bill vis--vis
the other people. You need to generally control this.a. public
1. good cards exist in the abstract & better cards exist in
election years.2. good evidence saying that the public response
takes time to build up
3. public popularity is used for the electionb. congress
1. this is the only true link turn in my mind. BUT need to point
out who it is talking about and why they are relevant.2. needs to
speak to congress NOT to individual members of congress they are
totally irrelevant.
c. generally
weigh the popularity versus the unpopularity of a group.Old
People, Big Industries, Israeli Lobby these are powerful. A lot of
others arent really all that pouplar.
d. lobbies
I dont care unless they provide political cover.9. plan is
bipart1. this phrase just means that there are members of both
parties that like it not that it is popular with a majority a
single democrat makes a bill bipartisan. That isnt really all that
revelant.
2. no evidence that bipart is key to the actual passage of the
bill. Need to focus on the importance of political capital to the
passage of the bill.10. winners-winWhat does it mean to be a win? A
president has been pushing for the passage of something and gets it
done. A win is something you fight for not something that just
falls in your lap. It helps if:a. it was tough to get
done/unpopular
b. it results in the image that someone is awesome.
The lion-tamer theory of political capital.
These do not require you win any other part of the link turn
debate IF they win that winners-win then everything else is
irrelevant. BUT, winning the other stuff doesnt hurt the
winners-win argument.Answering it
1. plan isnt a win
2. obama cant win too much backlash
3. if true long time frameWhen in doubt read cards.
11. entropyUse it or lose it.
Not true president is using it. 12. bill failsNeed to be able to
defend the bill and the internal link from it to the actual impact
that you are reading2. have a wall written and ready to go
perception, not passing it, passing it solves, fixes the
markets.
13. impact defenseRead more impact evidence.14. future bill
solvesThis is stupid.15. impact turns terminalCovered this
above.16. impact turns to the bill.These are my favorite.1