Check out this week’s news quiz! Good luck!
1. The stopgap spending bill recently approved by Congress funds the government through what date?
Spoiler
November 17. The stopgap spending deal passed the House with the support of the Democratic minority and cleared the Senate 88-9. It avoided a government shutdown that could have happened at the end of September.
2. In the stopgap spending bill, there was no additional funding granted for what?
Spoiler
Funding for Ukraine in its war with Russia. Republicans have increasingly grown skeptical of continued funding, arguing that America’s commitment cannot be indefinite and that there have not been enough controls on the money that the U.S. has spent on the conflict so far.
3. Which House Republican has moved to topple Speaker Kevin McCarthy over the passing of the stopgap spending bill?
Spoiler
Representative Matt Gaetz of Florida. On Monday, Gaetz offered a “motion to vacate” to call for a vote of confidence in McCarthy’s speakership. To survive, McCarthy may have to rely on the support of House Democrats. Gaetz is considered as a possible candidate for the Florida governorship in a few years and some see his move as trying to posture for that run.
4. Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev warned on Sunday that World War III could be triggered if Great Britain did what?
Spoiler
Send British troops to train soldiers inside of Ukraine. Medvedev said that the move would further escalate the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Later in the day, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said that there were no plans to send any British forces to Ukraine.
5. When was the last time that a United Nations-approved force went to Haiti?
Spoiler
2004-2017. In that time, UN forces were implicated in a sexual abuse scandal as well as a cholera outbreak in the country that killed almost 10,000 people. The UN Security Council approved a resolution on Monday allowing Kenya to lead a multinational force to help Haiti’s government combat gang violence.
6. Which current presidential candidate is said to be ready to announce an independent bid for the office in the near future?
Spoiler
Robert Kennedy, Jr. Kennedy had been seeking the Democratic presidential nomination but is nowhere close in the polls to President Joe Biden. He is said to be frustrated at the rules of the Democratic National Committee that will not schedule a debate with Biden and others that he feels are hurting his candidacy.
7. The trial of what crytocurrency executive begins this week?
Spoiler
Sam Bankman-Fried. The former head of FTX, a cryptocurrency exchange, Bankman-Fried is accused of misappropriating billions of dollars, money laundering, and fraud. FTX collapsed last year, wiping out $8 billion in consumer funds.
8. Which country recently rejected European Union funds to stop migrant flows?
Spoiler
Tunisia. President Kais Saied said that the EU has not followed through on earlier agreements to help Tunisia balance its budget and patrol its border. He also said that EU funds have not been enough and that it was not his country’s job to patrol the Eu’s borders. The EU had agreed in July to a $1.1 billion package with Tunisia to stop boats carrying migrants across the Mediterranean Sea.
9. Why has the African Union shelved plans to withdraw 3,000 peacekeepers from Somalia?
Spoiler
There are fears among AU leadership that if AU peacekeepers leave that the Somali government will be overrun by militants from al-Shabab, an al-Qaeda affiliate. Somali’s national army is deemed as woefully ill-equipped to battle the terrorist group so the AU’s peacekeepers will remain for now, continuing an operation that has been going on for 17 years.
10. What 9 countries are considered candidates for future European Union expansion (excluding those who are in the active application process)?
Spoiler
Ukraine, Moldova, Albania, Serbia, Kosovo, Turkey, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. EU expansion into all nine countries could establish a massive bloc that would include nearly the entire European continent. However, the likelihood of admitting all of these nations is small because any EU country can veto the membership of an aspirant and Russian influence/destabilization efforts in Ukraine, Moldova, and Serbia make them unlikely entrants at present.
