A Bill to Regulate Cost of Life Saving Drugs – NEGI: Just like zombies, price controls keep rising from the dead because Sen. _______ and others in the AFF seem to think they can create a better methodology.  They never learn that price controls do not work and end up hurting the economy, consumers, and taxpayers.C1: First, fail this bill because it stifles research for new drugs                   W: TTB drug companies are now receiving less money that could have been used for research into new drugs.D: Pharmaceutical prices reflect massive development expenses. Creating just one new drug is an extremely expensive, time-consuming process, usually costing several billion dollars and taking at least a decade. And the failure rate is sky-high: John W. Dailey wrote for Brittanica on May 9, 2016 that “The current state of the chemical and biological sciences required for pharmaceutical development dictates that 5,000–10,000 chemical compounds must undergo laboratory screening for each new drug approved for use in humans.”!: Companies are willing to make such a risky investment because a breakthrough product can generate a huge payoff. But price controls squeeze that payoff. They prevent drug firms from charging prices commensurate with those massive development costs. The U.S. Department of Commerce calculates that price controls among countries in the OECD, a major economic organization comprising much of Europe, drives away $5 billion to $8 billion in potential pharmaceutical development investment every year. That prevents the creation of three to four new drugs annually. This loss of development dollars doesn’t just hurt citizens in controlled markets; it deprives all of us of new, life-saving treatments. This is the terrible toll of drug-price controls. The AFF needs to wake up see the harm they could be causing in passing this bill. C2: Second, fail this bill because competition is a much better alternative to drug cost regulationW: TTB competition can also lead to lowered prices, while not harming anyone (that includes these major drug companies and the American people). D: As mentioned earlier, passing this bill will undoubtedly lead to a significant less amount of  research for new drugs. This is something the AFF has clearly failed to realize, but taking it a step further, there is actually a solution for this. A solution that the AFF has yet to think of, and a solution that will help our constituents. PROMOTE COMPETITION. Instead of directly punishing all drug companies because their prices are too high, let’s promote competition, and let’s watch this problem solve itself. As stated by Julia Andrews on AMD: “competition is the critical driver of performance and innovation. It benefits everyone by enabling us to choose from an array of excellent products at affordable prices. Competition also encourages the adoption of innovation as companies evolve and new ideas flourish in the marketplace.” If drug company one is selling its prescriptions for less money than drug company two, drug company two is naturally going to lower its prices in order to generate business and make money.!: Instead of ruining the potential for new drugs and cures, let’s let this problem solve itself through simple free market principles. Competition leads to success. Concl: Stand for justice, stand for the health of the American people, stand for our constituents and let’s fail.A Bill to Protect Salvadorans at Home and Abroad – NEGI: Whether you come from my home state of Nevada, or Sen. _____ state of ignorance, we must negate. C1: First, fail this bill it will transform El Salvador into a criminal countryW: TTB with a temporary protection status, logic tells us that only people or families who are educated and societally contribute are going to be the only ones that pass our vetting process. D: In an attempt to create a better El Salvador, we are actually going to ruin it. According to refugees.org, there is a long and rigorous 14 step vetting process. STEP 1 – Registration & Refugee Status Confirmed STEP 2 – Referral to the United States STEP 3 – Resettlement Support Center STEP 4 – Security Screening – Consular Lookout and Support System STEP 5 – Security Screening – Security Advisory Opinion STEP 6 – Security Screening – Inter-agency Check STEP 7 – Security Screening – Syria Enhanced Review STEP 8 – USCIS In-person Interview STEP 9 – Approval STEP 10 – Security Screenings – Fingerprint STEP 11 – Medical Screening STEP 12 – Matching Refugees with a Sponsor Agency STEP 13 – Cultural Orientation STEP 14 – Admission to the United States!: The AFF has yet to realize that with such a long and rigorous vetting process, only non-criminals can possibly pass it. With all of the non-criminals leaving the country to go to America, all of the criminals, all of the ones causing this gang violence are going to be the ones to stay in El Salvador. At this point, El Salvador will be ruined, and this whole plan to make it better will not only backfire, but will prove that once again, the AFF is incorrect in standing for the passage of this bill. Sen. _____ is one of the many in the AFF that is incorrect. And furthermore, he believes that ____. This is completely wrong because ______.C2: Second, fail this bill because these are not our citizens to protect.W: TTB our job is to protect and defend not only the Constitution but our constituents as well.D: The only job of government is to protect its citizens, not to intervene with other countries in an attempt to make the world a better place. In no way shape or form are our citizens in any danger regarding El Salvador. According to Section 1 of this bill, we will be providing $200 million from the Department of Defense. This is money can go to the tens of thousands of homeless veterans in our country. Endhomelessness.org states that In January 2016, communities across America identified 39,471 homeless veterans during point-in-time counts.!: This $200 million could be used to provide homes to these veterans, and could be used for other issues in America, not just the whopping amount of homeless vets. Issues like better education, and improved infrastructure can be solved, and need to be solved in our own country today. Concl: Rather than spending $200 million on a useless bill, from which we will be receiving no benefit, we must fail. If we truly want to improve our world, let’s do our job to protect our constituents first, let’s do our job and fix our country first, and let’s fail. A Resolution to Increase Support of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) – AFFI: Refer to “Good Congress Intros” document, or come up with one on the spot.C1: First, pass this bill because ASEAN needs to strengthen its diplomatic leverage and security role beyond Southeast AsiaW: TTB ASEAN’s collective voice does matter on a wider multilateral forumD: Vannarith Chheang wrote for the Diplomat on June 6, 2017 that “ASEAN took an unprecedented approach on North Korea by strongly condemning the nuclear tests by Kim Jong-un, and collectively urging North Korea to ‘immediately comply fully with its obligations arising from all relevant United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions.'” ASEAN’s response to North Korea got a strong diplomatic point from the United States. ASEAN’s regional architecture, fostered by the cultivation of comprehensive, strategic partnerships with international dialogue partners, is critical to peace and stability in Southeast Asia. ASEAN’s participation in important global forums and governance bodies has attracted growing international attention and engagement. ASEAN has played a significant security role through promoting trust and confidence among states, facilitating dialogues and mutual understanding, and preventing conflicts.!: Seeing how ASEAN dealt with North Korea, supporting them politically and economically can lead to them being an even bigger asset, in the potential of further tensions between the U.S and North Korea. Seeing that ASEAN has strategic partnerships in the Southeast Asian region, and seeing how they dealt with North Korea, we must support them, as they could be an even bigger asset. C2: Second, pass this bill because the U.S can gain so much economically from ASEANW: TTB  ASEAN matters so much in an economic perspectiveD: The AFF needs to recognize that ASEAN matters in both the economic and security sectors. According to the Diplomat, ASEAN is the third largest economy in Asia and seventh largest economy in the world. ASEAN is the United States’ fourth largest trading partner, and the U.S. is the largest source of foreign direct investment to ASEAN. ASEAN member states de­fine their national interests primarily in terms of economic development. They want an inclusive and open regionalism in which all countries can benefi­t from regional cooperation and integration. Therefore, America’s Asia-Pacifi­c rebalance should emphasize economic opportunities for the people of ASEAN. Winning the hearts of the ASEAN people best serves the long-term interests of the United States in the region.Along with East Asia, the fast-growing economies of ASEAN have become linchpins of global production networks and supply chains. As a party to free trade agreements in the greater Asia-Pacifi­c, ASEAN is assuming an important role in shaping regional economic governance in Southeast Asia. The ASEAN-led Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) comprises 30 percent of global GDP — it is going to be a game changer in Asia’s multilateral trade arrangements.!: Supporting ASEAN can truly help us economically.Concl: Stand for prosperity, stand for long-term success, stand for America, and let’s pass. A Bill to Reinstate the Yucca Mountain Waste Repository Project – NEGI: Home means Nevada. Home means the hills. Home means the sage, and the pine. But not if this same sage and pine is destroyed with radioactive waste. C1: First, fail this bill because the Yucca Mountain site was chosen based on politics, rather than scienceW: TTB of the 1982 Nuclear Waste Policy ActD: Lisa Ledwidge wrote for the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research (IEER) that History illustrates that Yucca was chosen based on politics, not science. In 1982, Congress passed the Nuclear Waste Policy Act, a law which designated deep geologic disposal as the preferred technical solution for nuclear waste disposal, essentially curtailing or terminating serious research and development on other methods like deep borehole or sub-seabed disposal. The law stipulated that explicit site selection and environmental criteria be adopted, and that a final site be selected from among numerous sites examined on the basis of detailed characterization studies. However, the Dept. of Energy’s problem-ridden site selection process, flaws in law and in federal regulations, and vigorous citizen opposition led to a more politically convenient solution. Congress amended the Nuclear Waste Policy Act in 1987, overriding many of the original site selection and characterization provisions. Congress voted to eliminate other contenders and concentrate on Yucca Mountain as the sole site to be examined as a candidate for the first high-level waste repository, even before scientific studies were completed. Thus the final selection of Yucca Mountain came about as a result of a process in which politics overwhelmed science.!: Understanding that this site was not chosen based on how scientifically sound it was, but based on politics is not only critical, but something the AFF has yet to understand. The scientific soundness was also an issue, which brings me to my second point.C2: Second, fail this bill because this is not a scientifically sound site. W: TTB of its geology, structure, and location. D: The geology of Yucca Mountain, volcanic tuff, is not expected to provide an adequate barrier in the long term. Also, serious questions have been raised about the integrity of the canisters that would hold the spent fuel. U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) assessments assume that the engineered barriers, notably the metal canisters, will provide adequate containment. Yet these canisters are made of an alloy that has been in existence for only about two decades and studied very briefly. Like all metals in an oxidizing environment, the canisters could corrode under certain conditions of moisture and temperature. DOE’s models of canister performance are based on relatively scant data and contain large uncertainties. Yucca Mountain is in the desert, but there is evidence that water has welled up into the region in the geologic past according to a study published in 1999 by an independent technical group. This issue is an important one because water is expected to be the main pathway by which radioactive materials from repository spent fuel would reach the human environment.!: We must fail this bill for the protection of our constituents. Passing this bill will be detrimental.Concl: It is because this bill protects our home of Nevada, protects our hills, protects our sage, protects our pine that we must negate. A Bill to Increase Minimum Wage Nationwide – NEGI: The headline in the news for the affirmation reads “Congress Fixes Poverty”, but the fine print shows the truth; that Congress actually is ruining business, and ruining prices for consumer products.C1: First, fail this bill because a minimum wage increase would hurt businesses and force companies to closeW: TTB small and large businesses alike would have less money to better their companies, due to the fact of higher employment costs.D: 60% of small-business owners say that raising the minimum wage will “hurt most small-business owners,” according to a 2013 Gallup poll. Jamie Richardson, MBA, Vice President of fast food chain White Castle, said that the company would be forced to close almost half its stores and let go thousands of workers if the federal minimum wage were raised to $15. Forbes reported that an increase in the minimum wage has led to the closure of several Wal-Mart stores and the cancellation of promised stores yet to open.!: The AFF truly needs to open their eyes and see the negative effects of this bill. While they may think they are doing something good, man are they wrong. Because companies are being  forced to close due to high wages, these people who “need this higher wages” are going to end up without a job anyway. The psychological definition of insanity is doing something over and over again and expecting the same result. The AFF keeps thinking that increasing minimum wage is going to solve issues of poverty, yet the same result occurs: nothing happens, except for the fact that these businesses close, and these people lose their jobs. Furthermore, the AFF has been proposing higher minimum wages since FDR implemented it, so by very definition, the AFF is literally insane.C2: Secondly, fail this bill because raising the minimum wage would increase the price of consumer goodsW: TTB of several studiesD: A 2013 article by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago stated that if the minimum wage is increased, fast-food restaurants would pass on almost 100% of their increased labor costs on to consumers and that other firms may do the same. A 2015 Purdue University study found that raising the wage of fast food restaurant employees to $15 or $22 per hour would result in a price increase of 4.3% and 25% respectively, or a reduction in product size between 12% and 70%: “a hamburger would be much smaller,” the researchers stated. NBC News found that the price of a cup of coffee went up by 10 to 20% in Oakland, California, after a 36% minimum wage hike in the city to $12.25. The report also found a 6.7% rise in coffee prices in Chicago after the minimum wage rose to $10. The Alberta Hotel and Lodging Association (Canada) found that a “sudden and significant increase to the minimum wage” would result in increased prices for food & beverage, guest rooms and meeting facilities.”!: It is of utmost importance that we fail because not only will companies go out of business, but consumer goods all around will begin to rise. Concl: If you don’t stand with me, then stand with the American people, and let’s fail.A Bill to End Agricultural Subsidies – AFFI: Isn’t it great to live in a society where the penalty for lying to a congressman can be up to 30 years in jail, but the penalty for a congressman such as Sen. ______ lying to you is another two years in office.C1: First, pass this bill because farmers aren’t entitled to free handoutsW: TTB farmers need to learn to operate a business like everyone else. D: Many in the AFF will ask: Don’t these farmers deserve protection from taxpayers? The answer is simple: Of course not. It isn’t up to taxpayers to make sure that every farmer’s business model is going to succeed. Every industry has challenges. Yet, others manage without such handouts. Do we really think farmers, including multimillion-dollar operations, are incapable of operating like other businesses. Risk forces businesses to respond to market demand and innovate. This is how the economy progresses. Farmers sheltered from market realities will often take unwise actions they otherwise wouldn’t. Under the current system, the cost of these unwise decisions is borne by taxpayers. Markets provide valuable information to businesses. For example, low prices signal it’s time to produce less of one crop and switch to another. By intervening to insulate farmers from low prices, the federal government distorts production decisions and commodity prices.!: These agricultural subsidies need to end. They are costing our constituents significant amounts of taxpayer money ($20 billion according to WSJ) and are making these farmers feel entitled to money that they can even pocket if they want. Which brings me to my second point. C2: Second, fail this bill because farmers can pocket this money.W: TTB of the status quoD: Daren Bakst wrote for The Hill on March 31, 2017 that “The current “safety net” isn’t solely focused on helping farmers when they experience a major crop loss, such as from severe weather, as most people would reasonably assume. It goes way beyond this. Farmers can pocket federal handouts even when they have bumper crops or when they just fall short of their revenue targets.” The sense of entitlement to farm handouts is even more audacious when one looks at the actual distribution of the handouts. Most go to the largest agricultural producers that have much greater income and wealth than non-farm households.The income and wealth numbers are staggering even when looking at all farm households (not just the largest farms). In 2015, the median income of all U.S. farm households was about 50 percent greater than that of all U.S. households. Median farm household wealth was 10 times greater than that of all U.S. households. !: Legislators need to start pushing back against the powerful agricultural special interests and start representing all Americans: taxpayers and consumersConcl: If you stand with the taxpayers, and if you stand with justice, you will affirm today’s piece of legislation.