Eighteen MU debaters competed at the American Debate Association National Championship last weekend, March 8-10 at the University of Georgia in Athens, GA.
The tournament included approximately 170 debaters from over 20 Universities including Emory University, University of Michigan, Indiana University, University of Minnesota, Northwestern University, Wake Forest University, George Mason University, and Michigan State University to name some.
“It’s great for our University and students to compete at the NAtional Championship Tournament,” said Joseph Patten, Ph.D., advisor to the Debate Team and an associate professor of political science. “Our debaters are hard-working, gritty, resilient, and some of the best people I know.”
This year the debate team also competed at tournaments at the West Point Military Academy, New York University, Suny-Binghamton, and the New School. MU took first place at the tournament at New York University in November. MU debaters also run the debate team at Asbury Park High School and coached the Asbury team through five tournaments affiliated with the Urban Debate League this year, including a tournament at Harvard last month.
This weekend, MU had nine teams of two students compete at the tournament. In the experienced division, the team of senior Gregory Harpe (co-captain) and senior Kaitlin Allsopp (co-captain) and the team of Landon Myers (co-captain) and Alexis Vasquez scored some victories against very tough competition. Monmouth also had seven teams of two compete in the novice division including: Julia Bialy and Maddie Doe; Matthew Gruhler and Jon Suttile; Annie Francisquini and Chyna Walker; Esther Wellman and Liam Crowley; Michael McGuigan and Michael Scognomillo; Ziah Rowe and William Siefert; and Ryan Cohen and Christina Balacco. MU debate alum James Hawk and Ryan Kelly helped coach and judge at the tournament.
We will also deeply miss our graduating seniors Gregory Harpe (16 debate tournaments), Kaitlin Allsopp (14 debate tournaments), Landon Myers (11 debate tournaments), and Michael McGuigan (6 debate tournaments). Greg and Kaitlin also coached the Asbury Park debate team for three years.
The topic for this year’s debate was Resolved: The United States Federal Government should substantially increase statutory and/ or judicial restrictions on the executive power of the President of the United States in one or more of the following areas: authority to conduct first-use nuclear strikes; congressionally delegated trade power; exit from congressional-executive agreements and Article II treaties; judicial deference to all or nearly all federal administrative agency interpretations of statutes and/or regulations; the bulk incidental collection of all or nearly all foreign intelligence information on United States persons without a warrant.
On the affirmative side of the debate some of the MU teams advocated for a “No First Use” nuclear policy, which is a U.S. pledge to only use nuclear weapons in a retaliatory fashion.
Please contact political science professor Joesph Patten, Ph.D. if you are interested in learning more about our debate team. No debate experience is necessary. All you need is an interest in working with fun and interesting people and be fun to travel with on weekend tournaments.
PHOTO COURTESY of Joseph Patten
