In the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers and Pentagon building in Washington, D.C. Americans woke up to a new world. Coupled with the anthrax scare, Americans began to worry that terrorists were around every corner, in every city. In seeking to allay this fear President Bush created a new Cabinet position and government office called the Office of Homeland Security. The President and the Attorney General John Ashcroft then asked Congress to pass legislation that would give federal law enforcement greater tools with which to fight terrorism. In the past month or so President Bush and the Office of Homeland Security have introduced a sweeping anti-terrorism bill to congress. It contains provisions which greatly enhance the governments ability to monitor the activities of individuals suspected of terrorist activities or engaged in terrorist behavior. Many Americans and civil rights organizations are concerned that this legislation will allow the government to infringe upon our individual right to privacy, our Fourth Amendment freedoms.
Congratulations. Because of your years of tireless loyalty to the Republican party you have been appointed lead counsel on the debate over the proposed anti-terrorism bill. Since you will be testifying before the special Senate Committee for Homeland Security you will need to be adequately prepared to address any and all concerns of the committee members and the American people. The best way to prepare for your testimony is to practice debating the issue with other members of your legal team. This will ensure that you are familiar with all of the key issues that may be presented during the hearings.
For the debate, the class will be divided into three parts:
1.The Affirmative: Prepares opening statement, rebuttal and closing statement agreeing and supporting the resolution.
2.The Negative: Prepares opening statement, rebuttal and closing statement disagreeing with and refuting the resolution.
3.The Reporters: Prepares questions for both sides of the resolution for a post-debate news conference.
The opening statement presents the key issues of the position you are taking supported by factual data and evidence and persuades a panel of judges that your position is valid . The rebuttal attempts to refute the arguments and evidence of your opponents opening. The closing reaffirms the strength and validity of your opening statement while reiterating the weaknesses of your opponents’.
Opening statements are a maximum three minutes in length; rebuttal, one minute; closing statement, one minute.
Preparing for such a task would normally require an extensive research team and a retainer fee of about $500,000. Unfortunately, you will get neither. But fortunately, we have been able to do some of the initial research for you.
In order to facilitate your research and preparation, several useful web sites have been included below. They need to be separated into three categories: Sites for the affirmative, the negative and general reference. You should visit all of the sites, gather information and take notes before preparing your oral arguments.
The class will be divided into three parts:
1.The Affirmative: Prepares opening statement, rebuttal and closing statement agreeing and supporting the resolution.
2.The Negative: Prepares opening statement, rebuttal and closing statement disagreeing with and refuting the resolution.
3.The Reporters: Prepares questions for both sides of the resolution for a post-debate news conference.
Though you will be assigned to only one of these groups, it is essential that you are well versed on both sides of the issue. This will ensure that you can fend off any counter arguments that your opponents may raise during rebuttal. When preparing your arguments it is important to present primarily factual and historical evidence rather than emotional and/or personal arguments.
The resolution for research and debate will be as follows:
Below you will find Internet resources and hyperlinks that will help you to prepare your arguments. You will visit these sites as well as well as more traditional sources of information to prepare for the debate. Remember to consider both sides of the issue so that your rebuttal will be as effective as your opening statement. Gather information and take notes as you go. You can never know when a minor point may become a useful tool in your argument, so be prepared!
|
American Civil Liberties Union Patriot Bill
|
All students are responsible for the research of the arguments surrounding this Fourth amendment issue. From that point your individual responsibilities will differ.
Debaters will submit their opening statements, rebuttals and closing statements.
Reporters will be responsible for submitting a summary of the key arguments of both the affirmative and negative sides, a set of three or more intelligent questions to ask the panel of debaters as well as a 100 word column for the newspaper you write for describing this momentous debate.
Debaters will be evaluated thusly:
Reporters will be evaluated thusly:
The debate over Fourth Amendment Rights and civil liberties does not end today. It continues in the halls of Capitol Hill and in the homes of Americans. Hopefully, at the end of this exercise you will be armed and ready to intelligently participate in the national debate over the USA/PATRIOT Act.
Thomas.loc.gov , House.gov, Whitehouse.gov, are hyperlinks to the addresses and E-Mails of the President of the United States, U.S. Senators and representatives. Write a letter to your Senator or the President etc. and tell them how you feel about the issue. Take part in the political process! Remember, you will all be voting in the Presidential Election of 2004.