Student Congress
Compiled by Ryan Liu :D
So you want to do student congress, eh? Well, first off you need to know
what Congress is. Student Congress is a debate event, where students act as
members of congress and debate bills and resolutions. Unlike other debate
events, Congress, as is modeled after actual Congressional Debate’s, from
rules and procedures to the issues we debate.
THE GOLDEN RULE OF CONGRESS: In order to win, you MUST STAND
OUT! If you are unique (in a positive way), participate, and make strong,
well-reasoned arguments, you CANNOT lose!
Rules of Congress
Bills and resolutions, which you will receive two weeks (although this
year we have all 30 bills given at the beginning of the year) before the
tournament, are debated in “houses” or “chambers” of about fourteen to
twenty competitors. You will be addressed as Senator (code/last name), and
you should similarly address the other members of your chamber. Although
in the NFL, they split the congress into “house,” and “senate.” Competitors in
the “house” are referred to as “Representative (code/last name),” but for all
CHSSA competitions, everyone is just referred to as Senator.
Parliamentary Procedure
Parliamentary procedure is followed, and a student chairperson known a
“presiding officer” leads the proceedings. After debating a bill or resolution,
you and the other members of your chamber will take a vote to decide if the
bill or resolution should be passed (but this vote does not affect your score).
Roberts’s Rules of Order (look it up if you’re interested for more details) is
used to increase the efficiency of meetings.
 Parliamentary procedure helps to:
o Guarantee that the minority opinion is heard.
o Make sure that the majority opinion prevails.
o Provide orderly procedures for conducting business and debate on
important issues.
Speakers are required to make “motions” or recommendations to move
the discussion in the meeting along.
Preparing
 Prepare two speech outlines per bill/resolution—one affirmative, one
negative. (You shouldn’t speak on both sides in a round, but it’s always
beneficial to prep both sides in case)
 Prepare refutation evidence (both affirmative and negative) on all bills
and resolutions.
 Prepare affirmative and negative talking points (a brainstormed list)
regarding all of the bills and resolutions.
 Prepare cross-examination questions for the affirmative and negative
sides.
 Study and understand the motions used in congress.”
Speeches
All speeches in Student Congress are three minutes in length. Speeches
should either “clash” with the arguments presented in a previous speech or
provide additional reasons to support the arguments given in a previous
speech. (ie: Although Senator 239 stated that most Americans believe Ryan
Liu is not beautiful, according to a survey conducted by the New York Times
on November 4th, 2010, 67.9% of US citizens not only believe Ryan Liu is
beautiful, but also incredible intelligent.). This example also shows the
importance of evidence, when stating evidence, state the author (if
necessary), source, date, and statistic/quote/etc. The format of Congress
speeches is completely flexible to how the speaker wants to tailor it, for
example here’s a format:
NOTE: THIS IS A FORMAT! Really Good Senators change the format of
their speech depending on what the round is, who they are debating, how
far the round has progressed, etc.
1.
Introduction (15-20 seconds)
a.
Attention-getter (usually a quote, analogy, or evidence)
b.
Purpose (“I stand on the firmest affirmation/ negation on
—the bill/resolution to…”)
c.
Preview (“…for the following reasons/contentions…”)
2. Body (2 minutes)
a. Contention(s)
- State the issue on the floor. (SIGNPOST)
- State your point in conflict. (ANSWER)
- Prove your point with evidence or logic. (REASON)
- Bring up another competitor’s point and why it’s flawed (CLASH)
- Tell the assembly the impact of your point and how it should
affect their vote. (COMPARE)
b. Present a challenge to the opposition. Challenge them to answer an
issue or state what the opposition must prove in order to
overwhelm your points or your perspective.
3.
Conclusion (30 Seconds)
a. Summarize your key issues of clash
b. Summarize your key points
c. Come full circle
4.
Open yourself up to cross-examination (“I am now open to
points of clarification or cross-examination”)
Cross-examination
 Questions should add value to the debate. The presiding officer or
parliamentarian may call leading questions “out of order” because
students who ask them may be trying to provide new evidence in the
guise of a question. Such questions often begin with the words: “Isn’t it
true that…?” “Are you aware that…?” “Do you know that…?”
 New evidence is not allowed to brought in when asking questions.
 A speaker’s response to questions during cross-examination should be to
the point.
 Take the speaker’s answers during cross-examination and incorporate it
into your speech. (ie: When asked how this bill would affect foreign
policy during cross-examination, senator 722 responded by saying it
would create more tension in the Middle east, but that contradicted what
his point is, etc.)
 The Golden Rule 4 Asking Questions: You are NOT trying to “get” people.
If you ask a question such as “are you aware that you’re third contention
is wrong because…….”, a senator can just answer “no”. No person will say
“oh, you got me, wow. I am just going to sit down.” It just does not
happen! Instead, ASK FOR EVIDENCE, FACT, and questions that they
would either need to squirm or provide facts that can be turned against
them when asking questions. Build off other Senator’s questions, anything
that can question the factual accuracy and poke holes in their argument.
Such questions can be “can you provide a definition for…” or “can you
distinguish between…?” RATHER than “do you know that…?”
Motions
Motions are made at specific points in time during Student Congress. The
first time a person is allowed to make a motion is at the beginning of the
round to author the bill (read it to your chamber so the judges know what
the actual resolution states) and open the debate (basically to begin the
round). Afterwards you need to wait four speeches, (two affirmation and two
negation) to make motions (every two speeches are called a cycle). Then it
only takes two speeches (one affirmation and one negation) to make motions.
The presiding officer may ask for motions at these times, or may not. To be
recognized by the presiding officer to make a motion, you simply stand up or
rise your hand. The presiding officer has the discretion to recognize you.
When making a motion, you state “motion to ____,” or “I move to ____.”
Certain motions need to be “seconded” before they will be considered. Some
are debatable and amendable. And, the required vote varies depending on
the motion. In this packet, there are CHSSA and NFL approved motions
included but the most useful motions are:
- “I move to open debate upon a resolution/bill to ____” (To open debate)
- “I move to author the bill” (To read a bill/resolution)
- “I move to pervious question” (To call for a vote on a bill/resolution)
- “I move to end debate upon ____” (To end the debate)
- “I move to personal privilege” (To use the restroom, leave the room, etc.)
- “I move to table the bill” (Used in final rounds to switch bills)
- “I move to divide the house” (Technically illegally under CHSSA rules, but
it’s based on the presiding officer’s discretion.) (if the PO refuses for second,
as k if the PO could informally ask who’s on aff and neg, which IS allowed
under CHSSA rules)
Notes
During other competitor’s speeches, it’s beneficial to take notes. In the
notes it’s important to include the speaker code, which side their on, their
reasons, relevant information you can agree or disagree with, and a question
you will ask them after they finish speaking.
Example:
Code
Side
1.)
2.)
Contention #2
3.)
Contention #3
R.)
Contention #1
Q.)
Relevant
information
Question?
Example #2 (Anything in Parenthesis are samples)
NOTES ON Speech (whatever u feel is necessary)
Including: Contentions, Statistics, and References to Other Senators
Code + Side (112 NEG)
NOTE: This is NOT how everybody takes notes on speeches. Some people
only write important facts down and then one or two questions. TRULY, the
only required elements are to
have a question and rebuttal to a person’s
REBUTTAL TO SPEECH (If you were to attack his
speech, put what you would say in this box) (CAN be
added after questioning period
Questions for the Senator (which can rollover to the next
Senator if the question still applies)
speech (quick notes on how you refute that person’s speech in your speech)
Schedule of
Speeches/Cross-ex/Motions
The first speech is always an affirmative speech in support of the bill or
resolution which is followed by a one-minute questioning period. The
second speech is a negative speech followed by a questioning period. At the
start of a round four speeches need to be made before motions can be made,
but following the first four speeches, motions can be made after two
speeches. One affirmation speech and one negation speech is called a “cycle.”
* In finals there are multiple bills, so at the beginning of the congress
round, motions can be made on which bill or resolution to speak on first. *
Order of the debate:
--- Motions may be made --1.) Affirmative speech—3 minutes
- Cross-examination –1 minute
2.) Negation speech—3 minutes
- Cross-examination –1 minute
3.) Affirmative speech—3 minutes
- Cross-examination –1 minute
4.) Negation speech—3 minutes
- Cross-examination –1 minute
--- Motions may be made --5.) Affirmative speech—3 minutes
- Cross-examination –1 minute
6.) Negation speech—3 minutes
- Cross-examination –1 minute
--- Motions may be made ---
Repeat
Priority
It is the presiding officer’s job to maximize the number of speeches and
questions on the bill/resolution under consideration in the house and be fair
and equitable in giving each representative the opportunity to deliver
speeches and ask questions.
1.) The first way presiding officers chose speakers is by the number of
priority cards. A packet of priority cards is given during the first round
and is to last for all the prelims (A new packet is given out in finals).
These help the presiding officer quickly “eyeball” who has made the
fewest speeches. Each time you deliver a speech, you will surrender your
highest priority card. So using more than one a round, might prove to be
a disadvantage the next round since you have lower priority. (CHOOSE
YOUR SPEECHES WISELY. A good rule of thumb is to ONLY MAKE A
SECOND SPEECH first round if you feel your first speech will not get
you a high score.)
2.) The second way presiding officers chose speakers is by number of
attempts (attempts to give speeches and ask questions).
3.) The third way presiding officers chose speakers is by the number of
questions asked the competitor asked.
4.) If in the event competitors are tied, the presiding officers will asked for
yields (person volunteer’s to not speak), and if neither competitor yields,
the deciding factor will be trivial (ie: Rock-paper-scissors, what’s the
square root of 4?, etc.).
Although the presiding officer keeps track of how many attempts, speeches,
etc. each competitor has, they have the ability to change how they choose
speakers. The scoring sheet used by the presiding officers is attached, and it
might be beneficial to keep count yourself.
Priority Rules for Speeches
 Highest priority goes to representatives who have
delivered the fewest speeches.
 Representatives who have stood up the most number of
times to be recognized should be given priority over
those with fewer attempts.
 When choosing between representatives who have
delivered the same number of speeches and have equal
standing time, the presiding officer will give priority to
the ones who have asked the most questions.
 All other things being equal, the presiding officer will
ask for yields, play rock-paper-scissors, or ask trivial
questions
Resolutions
A resolution is a generalized statement expressing a conviction or
sentiment. Unlike bills where all the sections are important, the wording of a
resolution does not need to be prefect to support it. And easy way to
remember resolutions are that they are just “suggestions,” so that leaves
room for imperfections in the writing, because when it gets approved it can
still be edited.
Example of a Resolution:
NOTE: These Whereas facts are SUBJECTIVE affirmation facts on the bill. They
are no way stipulations, true facts, or anything solid of any kind. All they can really
do is point to where you should research first.
A RESOLUTION TO END THE WAR ON DRUGS
WHEREAS, billions of dollars have been spent by the federal and state governments to
eradicate the use of drugs without significantly reducing the availability and use of drugs; and
WHEREAS, the War on Drugs has clogged the nation’s criminal justice system with thousands
of punitive drug cases which has resulted in the severe overcrowding of the penal system; and
WHEREAS, addiction to any substance, whether legal or illegal, is actually a health problem
best treated by the medical community; therefore be it
RESOLVED, all laws criminalizing the possession, use and delivery of controlled substances
be repealed and federal authorities will; cease and desist from combating production of
controlled substances at home and abroad; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED that this Congress shall authorize creation and funding of the federal
of Office of Addictive Drugs and Addiction Treatment which shall establish and maintain a
network of free clinics nationwide for drug education and the treatment of addiction.
NOTE:
Further
NOTE: The RESOLVED clause is the actual
actionThe
the bill
takes,Resolved
and it’s clause is only is some bills and implies
there areIttwo
the most important clause in the entire Resolution.
is a actions
GOOD happening
or BAD by the bill, one usually an extension of
the other.
thing, as long as there is no egregious implementation
errors, the actual
NOTE:
ALWAYS
ANNOTATE
YOUR
RESOLUTION. It is an effective way to
carrying out of the bill is negligible. Resolutions are whether we WANT
something to happen, not HOW we want something to happen
start and will be helpful so researching and comprehensively understanding
what the bill will do.
Bills
A bill is basically the wording for a law or piece of legislation. Unlike a
resolution, a bill’s wording is final. So for instance, if a section of a bill is
detrimental, you can negate a bill just off of one sentence in a section.
NOTE: IMPLEMENTATION, not only if the effect of the bill is good but IF
the bill will achieve it’s intended effects, is ALWAYS important for bills
Example of a Bill:
A Bill to Establish a National Vocational School System
BE IT ENACTED BY THE CONGRESS HERE ASSEMBLED THAT:
SECTION 1. Students who wish to follow a certain career path can attend
vocational school before graduating high school to learn specific skills that are
required for their desired trade.
SECTION 2. Students identified as non college bound will be offered this
alternative career path. All funding will be through a block grant system that
will provide 80% of the necessary funding requirements.
SECTION 3. Students will take courses that only apply to the career path of
their choice. Students must decide in their 10th grade year of high school
whether they wish to attend a college or a vocational school after graduating
high school.
SECTION 4. This law will take effect within six months of passage.
SECTION 5. All laws in conflict with this legislation are hereby declared null
and void
This is a stock line used in almost EVERY bill. It is virtually useless.
Other Good Things TO Know About
Congress
This is known as the timeline, one factor you should always look for in bills. If
there is none, the bill should be able to be effected immediately after passing.
1. It’s a debate about public policy
a. THIS MEANS that one should refrain from using hypothetical
issues and philosophical arguments. It should be grounded on
empirical effects (ie. Historical examples, past articles, surveys,
evidence)
2. If you are in doubt about writing points, follow EPSI
a. E=Economic
i. What are the Economic Ramifications of the Bill?
ii. How might this bill cause potential economic harm?
iii. Would the positive effects of the bill be worth the cost
iv. Other Cost/Benefit Analysis (Ask a Speech Officer for the
Basic Economics Lecture for more details)
v. BLOCK TO ECONOMIC ARGUMENTS: Are there any
compelling reasons to disregard ECONOMIC
ARGUMENTS? (ie. Government MUST ensure the
security of its people, regardless of the cost. If the death
penalty ensures increased security, then all economic
arguments MUST be tossed!)
b. P=Political
i. What are the political ramifications of the bill?
ii. Which department or branch will the bill effect? Are the
any changes to the current political system?
iii. The Constitutionality of a Bill
iv. Etc.
c. S=Social/Cultural
i. What effect will this have on the American social
atmosphere?
ii. How will this effect future generations and the current
generation of American youth?
iii. How will this bill
d. I=International
i. What international effects of this bill?
ii. How will this effect our relationship with the
1. United Nations and it’s branches
2. Other Countries (namely Arab countries, Britain,
Mexico, Cuba, China, Russia, etc.)
iii. Etc.
NOTE: This is a failsafe mechanism and a way to brainstorm ideas. Try not to
say economic, political, social, etc. when titling your contentions.
3. Being Smart and Appearing Controlled and Organized outside of your
speech and questions (though ESPECIALLY in your speech and
questions) it really important. Try not to lie…
4. Your are literally competing for about an 1 hour and a half, and the
entire time COUNTS. Refrain from negative actions such as talking
with people loudly during a speech.
Scoring
The judges will use these criteria to score your speech:
1. ) Delivery—communicative and persuasive manner.
2. ) Analysis—logical examination of the issues.
3. ) Clash—directly responds to the issues presented by previous speakers.
4.) Original arguments—new and innovative views on the issue backed up
by evidence. (NEVER USE STOCK ISSUES FOR CONGRESS. How would
you like to listen to 20 speeches with the exact same boring arguments?)
5.) Answers to Questions—incisive, knowledgeable, and direct answers
during the questioning period. (ALWAYS HAVE SHORT ANSWERS
AND QUESTIONS!!!! A good senator should have about 5 questions
answered during their questioning period)
In determining your final rank in your chamber, the judges will also take
into consideration your overall and knowledge of parliamentary procedure,
and your skill in asking appropriate and direct cross-examination questions.
But the most important aspect about congress, considering how there’s
fourteen to twenty competitors in a round is STANDING OUT (In a good
way, not being infamous).
* Ironically, the final vote of a bill is not important: what is important is the
quality of the debate that preceded the vote. *
GOOD LUCK SENATOR!