Topic: Upholding an international reputation
- What should our international reputation look like? Are there better approaches to foreign affairs than the United States’s strategy? What about China?
- Does being powerful mean intervening in conflicts?
- (for seniors) How has U.S. foreign involvement changed in your lifetime?
- (for students) How have your views on world peace changed since you were a little kid?
Topic: Humanitarian responsibility
- When is it morally and/or practically necessary to intervene in another nation’s policies?
- When is it applicable for a global superpower such as the U.S. to intervene with smaller nations?
- Should the U.S. respond to humanitarian crises abroad?
- Is foreign aid an ethical obligation or a strategic tool?
- Should genocide or human rights violations trigger intervention?
- Is NATO effective today?
- Should it continue to exist?
- Is deterrence (NATO) a responsibility or a choice?
- To what extent should Americans be required to pay taxes towards resolving humanitarian issues in other nations?
- Is the UN still effective today?
- When does military presence prevent war, when might it escalate tensions?
- Do global military bases make the U.S. safer?
Topic: Security and military power
- Is it a good idea to have a significantly powerful U.S. President during a time of crisis?
- E.g., WWII, Post-9/11, War On Covid
- How should nations effectively incorporate nuclear deterrence into peacekeeping strategy?
- Are arms races ever helpful? Or should they always be avoided?
- How do superpowers influence global arms control?
- How do superpowers reconcile military power with moral obligation?
Topic: Economic leadership
- How should nations balance the responsibility of leading global economic growth with their own domestic economic needs?
- How do superpowers use their economic influence to uphold international norms and agreements?
- How does the United States ensure that its currency functions as a trusted reserve currency for the rest of the world?
- Does economic dominance require fair trade practices?
- How responsible is the U.S. for global financial crises?
- Is US foreign expenditure to little, to much, or just right
Topic: Climate/global challenges
- What responsibility do developed nations have for climate change compared to developing nations?
- Should economic growth ever take priority over environmental protection?
- Do powerful countries have greater responsibility for global environmental damage?
Topic: Democracy/values
- When another nation is oppressing its citizens (or a minority of its citizens), at what point does the United States need to get involved?
- Should US territories exist and if so what governing power should the US hold over them?
- How does taxation without full representation align with democratic values?
- Should superpower actively promote their form of government?
- Does moral leadership strengthen credibility?
Topic: Accountability/limits
- Who decides when intervention is justified?
- Does global power require greater transparency?
