WHAT IS CONGRESS?
Introduction
Mock congressional debate, student congress, or simply congress is one of the most widespread speech and debate events in the country. Congress is an individual activity, but you compete against multiple other people in a round, simulating a session of debate in the US Congress. In a round of congress, you will debate pieces of legislation proposed by students or provided by the tournament. This legislation is usually provided days, weeks, or months in advance. In round, debate consists of alternating 3-minute speeches from either side of the bill, representing the "affirmation" (pro) and the "negation" (con). The first speaker either authors or sponsors the bill itself, introducing it to the other debaters. Speeches are followed with periods of cross-examination, where any competitor may ask questions of the speaker.
There will usually be one judge, or a panel of judges, that designate their top 8 speakers in the round, and the rest default to a bottom score of 9. Most congress tournaments operate under the rules established by the NSDA.
A congress chamber is almost completely self-governing: the debaters elect a presiding officer to run the session, nominate a docket to determine the order in which bills are debated, and introduce motions that keep the chamber running. Generally, chambers run under Robert's Rules of Order. The presiding officer is also evaluated along with the rest of the competitors, which are called either “Representatives” or “Senators.”
Congressional debate is a very approachable event. Presentational skills and argumentation are both essential to perform well. Compared to other debate events, there's less intense prep involved, and compared to speech events, there's less memorization and focus on presentation. Unique skills will benefit you in the world of congressional debate: round presence, spontaneous argumentation, judge adaptation, and even politicking.
The NSDA is the central authority on speech & debate in America.
Congressional-Debate-Guide.pdfProcedure in congressional debate roughly follows Robert’s Rules of Order.
Read more about how a round works here.
Understanding Civics
In congressional debate, you discuss subjects and legislative proposals that are very relevant to American politics, international relations, and even your own life.
This makes it easy to lose sight of your responsibilities as a representative or senator: Congressional debate revolves around simulating the US congress. When articulating your stance, you are responsible for representing the American people. Unlike other debate events, you are uniquely responsible for shaping your arguments around what’s best for America. This should shape your argumentation, rhetoric, and presentation.
Need a refresher on congress’s constitutional powers? Read here.
Not only that, you are speaking as a policymaker. As a congressional representative, you are responsible for passing bills, resolutions, and constitutional amendments in the nation’s best interests: this means you debate not only about whether we ought to do something, but also how we ought to do it - you debate specific policies.
Listen to California debate coach Luca Moretti explain how political processes influence congressional debate.
What is Congressional Debate Like?
In a round of congressional debate, speakers present alternating speeches in the affirmation and negation of a piece of legislation. Affirmation speakers argue that the bill, resolution, or constitutional amendment should be passed by congress, and the negation speakers argue that it shouldn’t. Easy, right?
The first speaker is either the author (they wrote the bill), or the sponsor (they are assuming responsibility for the bill). This speaker is responsible for:
1. explaining a problem in the status quo,
2. explaining how their legislation solves it,
3. the overall impact of the legislation.
What the heck is the status quo? The existing state of affairs. The way the world is right now.
After that, speakers take turns affirming or negating the legislation. Usually, speakers present 1 or 2 contentions to support their stance. As the round advances, the affirmation and negation will start to clash on key issues - this is where congressional debate can get really interesting and really challenging.
Very many beginners treat forget about the “debate” part of congressional debate, and just deliver a pre-written speech no matter at which point of the round they are speaking in. This can make a round very boring. A speaker is always obligated to refute arguments coming from the other side!
After every speech, there is a cross-examination period. Speakers are selected to question, or “cross-examine,” the person who just spoke. Depending on your league, this happens in one of two ways:
1. Indirect cross-examination: the questioner asks one question, listens to the answer, and sits down.
2. Direct cross-examination: the questioner gets 30 seconds to cross-examine the speaker in a back-and-forth exchange.
Anish Beeram, 2023 national champion in House, speaking in affirmation of a Bill to Establish Standards for Police Training.
Hunter Brown, 2019 national champion in House, speaking in affirmation of the United States and Republic of Korea Alliance Support Act.
Learning More About Congress
There are countless resources across the country and the internet that can help you learn congressional debate. Equality in Forensics also offers regularly occurring free events like lectures, workshops, and office hours, as well as completely free online tournaments. We also offer weekly coaching sessions where our volunteer coaches will spend an hour you and a group of like-minded debaters.
There are numerous congressional camps. These are summer camps that will host you as a student, usually for 1 or 2 weeks. They are intensive programs. These camps can be very helpful in learning more about speech & debate, but they can be prohibitively expensive. Although they are helpful, keep in mind that they are by no means necessary for success in congressional debate.
This guide itself exists because there are far too few resources for students to learn about congressional debate, improve as debaters and communicators, and become strong competitors. Use this guide to learn everything about congressional debate: we cover everything from the basics to advanced methods and strategies.
Are you an educator or coach? Check out the NSDA’s congress curriculum and lesson plans.
The most valuable resource is community. On our Discord server, you can find countless debaters with years of experience who would love to give you more specific advice.
Jack Fitzgerald, 2017 NSDA National Finalist in Senate, breaks down the basics of Congressional Debate.