美国国家公共电台 NPR--Some states are laser-focused on supreme court elections after the Dobbs ruling

Some states are laser-focused on supreme¹ court elections after the Dobbs ruling

Transcript²

HELENA, Mont. — The Dobbs decision leaves abortion³ policy up to states and state supreme courts are now a key player in deciding which laws will stand.

Seats on those courts will be up for election in more than 30 states and parties are strategizing. Since Dobbs, state abortion law has already been put before state supreme courts in Utah, Michigan, Louisiana and Arizona, among others.

In Montana, there's a list of reasons Republicans are laser-focused on the judiciary, and at the top of that list is to ban abortion. In 1999, the state supreme court said Montana's constitutional right to privacy protects access to abortion and Republicans are looking for a way around that precedent⁴, known as the Armstrong decision.

At the recent Montana GOP state convention, party chairman Don Kaltschmidt urged the crowd to support two candidates for state supreme court this election cycle — Justice Jim Rice and attorney James Brown.

"It's going to be historic for the sake of our conservative values," Kaltschmidt said.

Elections for the Montana Supreme Court are nonpartisan, but Rice and Brown are known conservatives.

In 2020, Montana Republicans won all statewide elected offices and gained 10 seats in the state legislature. The state supreme court is the party's last territory to conquer.

"We basically have two paths forward. We can either amend⁶ the Montana Constitution to ban abortion, or we can replace enough justices on the Montana Supreme Court to overturn the Armstrong decision," said Jeff Laszloffy — a well-known conservative lobbyist and president of the Montana Family Foundation — in an audio update sent to radio stations across the state.

Democrats⁸' response

Montana Democrats are putting their weight behind incumbent⁹ state Justice Ingrid Gustafson, who faces Brown in the general election.

State Sen. Diane Sands, a Democrat⁷ who's advocated for abortion rights since the 1960s, recently visited the White House for a roundtable with Vice¹⁰ President Harris and talked about Republicans targeting the judiciary.

"This is not a problem the federal government can solve."

She highlighted Republican legislation passed last year that gave Montana's governor unilateral power to appoint judges to vacant positions in between elections. That was previously¹¹ the job of an independent commission.

"In the long game, these forces in Montana are going after the Montana Constitution because they know it is the sole barrier to achieving their goal of making abortion illegal," Sands said.

Democrats in Montana want to protect the Armstrong ruling. The state is one of 10 across the country where state supreme courts have decided¹² their state constitutions protect abortion. But those rulings aren't necessarily set in stone. In Iowa in 2018, for instance, the state supreme court overturned a precedent protecting abortion.

"In 1999, around seven states had judges who'd run in a million dollar race, but by 2016, 20 states had a judge who'd run in a million dollar race," says Douglas Keith, counsel at the Brennan Center for Justice Democracy Program. Those numbers are adjusted for inflation.

Keith says partisan⁵, dark money groups have been getting involved in these races, and that the biggest spender in judicial¹³ elections today is the Republican State Leadership Committee, which has backed James Brown in Montana.

1 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 abortion   

n.流产，堕胎

参考例句：

• She had an abortion at the women's health clinic.她在妇女保健医院做了流产手术。
• A number of considerations have led her to have a wilful abortion.多种考虑使她执意堕胎。

4 precedent   

n.先例，前例；惯例；adj.在前的，在先的

参考例句：

• Is there a precedent for what you want me to do?你要我做的事有前例可援吗？
• This is a wonderful achievement without precedent in Chinese history.这是中国历史上亘古未有的奇绩。

5 partisan   

adj.党派性的；游击队的；n.游击队员；党徒

参考例句：

• In their anger they forget all the partisan quarrels.愤怒之中，他们忘掉一切党派之争。
• The numerous newly created partisan detachments began working slowly towards that region.许多新建的游击队都开始慢慢地向那里移动。

6 amend   

vt.修改，修订，改进；n.[pl.]赔罪，赔偿

参考例句：

• The teacher advised him to amend his way of living.老师劝他改变生活方式。
• You must amend your pronunciation.你必须改正你的发音。

7 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

8 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 incumbent   

adj.成为责任的，有义务的；现任的，在职的

参考例句：

• He defeated the incumbent governor by a large plurality.他以压倒多数票击败了现任州长。
• It is incumbent upon you to warn them.你有责任警告他们。

10 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

11 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

12 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

13 judicial   

adj.司法的，法庭的，审判的，明断的，公正的

参考例句：

• He is a man with a judicial mind.他是个公正的人。
• Tom takes judicial proceedings against his father.汤姆对他的父亲正式提出诉讼。