美国国家公共电台 NPR--What to expect from the new chief judge at the federal courthouse in Washington, D.C.

What to expect from the new chief judge at the federal courthouse in Washington, D.C.

Transcript¹

James Boasberg is the new chief judge at the federal courthouse in Washington D.C., where he's already made important rulings in a federal probe of former President Donald Trump².

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

The federal courthouse in Washington, D.C., is a hub of activity, from the trials of January 6 rioters to grand jury investigations⁴ of former President Donald Trump. A new chief judge recently took control of that court and quickly issued a ruling that paved the way for testimony⁵ by former Vice⁶ President Mike Pence. NPR justice correspondent Carrie Johnson has this profile.

CARRIE JOHNSON, BYLINE⁷: It's hard not to notice when Chief Judge Jeb Boasberg walks down the corridors of the federal courthouse. For one thing, he's about 6 feet, 6 inches tall. For another, he's the kind of guy who stops to chat with all the prosecutors⁹ and defense¹⁰ lawyers and court staffers he sees.

GLENN KIRSCHNER: What made him such an effective trial court prosecutor⁸ is he had this way of connecting with people from all walks of life, and it was genuine.

JOHNSON: That's Glenn Kirschner, who supervised Judge Boasberg in the U.S. attorney's office decades ago, after Boasberg graduated from Yale and Oxford¹¹ University. They were part of a small unit of prosecutors who handled the toughest homicide cases in the city.

KIRSCHNER: One, he never lost a homicide case, and, two, he took the difficult cases to trial. And I know because I assigned him some of those difficult cases.

JOHNSON: Boasberg remains¹² close to the lawyers he met in that homicide section in the 1990s. One of them is Ronald Machen. They shared an office and played basketball every Wednesday back in those days.

RONALD MACHEN: And he was good. I mean, he's a tall guy and played at Yale and was very successful and has more athleticism¹³ than - you know, I couldn't believe it. He's actually pretty good (laughter).

JOHNSON: Boasberg went on to become a judge in the D.C. Superior Court, appointed by then-President George W. Bush. Years later, President Obama elevated him to a seat on the federal court. He won unanimous confirmation¹⁴ by the Senate in 2011. Boasberg has since become one of the top feeder judges in the U.S., sending many of his young clerks on to clerkships at the Supreme¹⁵ Court. Again, Ron Machen.

MACHEN: You know, this is a guy that's devoted¹⁶ his life to public service, that could be the managing partner of probably any firm in the city, making millions of dollars. But he has devoted his life to serving people.

JOHNSON: In his new job as chief judge, Boasberg handles complicated issues that arise in the grand juries. Almost from the start, weighty legal questions came his way.

(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "CNN THIS MORNING")

DON LEMON: Looks like Mike Pence might finally testify in the special counsel's investigation³ of the former president, Donald Trump.

JOHNSON: In a ruling that's still sealed, Boasberg rejected Trump's claims of executive privilege but found the special counsel could not ask Pence certain questions about his role presiding over the Senate on January 6. Pence said this week he won't appeal, which means he could testify in the coming weeks about Trump's pressure campaign to overturn the 2020 election. Former prosecutor Glenn Kirschner says, based on what he's read, Boasberg's decision is both proper and savvy¹⁷.

KIRSCHNER: You know, it kind of gives everybody what they're entitled to under the law, but it keeps matters moving forward.

JOHNSON: Boasberg's friend and former colleague Amy Jeffress says the judge will try to be transparent¹⁸ in his new role.

AMY JEFFRESS: I think that he will take steps to make sure that the public has access to all of the information that he can possibly release. And the grand jury proceedings¹⁹ that he will be handling will, by rule, be secret. But he will try to promote transparency where possible.

JOHNSON: A media coalition²⁰, including NPR, is working to make that Pence ruling public.

Carrie Johnson, NPR News, Washington.

(SOUNDBITE OF THE CACTUS CHANNEL'S "STAY A WHILE")

1 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。

2 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

3 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

4 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

5 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

6 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。

7 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

8 prosecutor   

n.起诉人；检察官，公诉人

参考例句：

• The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。
• The prosecutor would tear your testimony to pieces.检查官会把你的证言驳得体无完肤。

9 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

10 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

11 Oxford   

n.牛津（英国城市）

参考例句：

• At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford.他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
• This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London.这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。

12 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

13 athleticism   

n.运动竞赛，崇尚运动，竞技热

参考例句：

• He brings defense. He brings talent. He brings athleticism. That's a lot. “他带来的防御，他带来了人才，他带来了身体，这是很多”。 来自互联网
• Each of these sports isn't won through sheer athleticism alone. 每个体育项目无法凭借纯粹的运动能力而获胜。 来自互联网

14 confirmation   

n.证实，确认，批准

参考例句：

• We are waiting for confirmation of the news.我们正在等待证实那个消息。
• We need confirmation in writing before we can send your order out.给你们发送订购的货物之前，我们需要书面确认。

15 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。

16 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

17 savvy   

v.知道，了解；n.理解能力，机智，悟性；adj.有见识的，懂实际知识的，通情达理的

参考例句：

• She was a pretty savvy woman.她是个见过世面的漂亮女人。
• Where's your savvy?你的常识到哪里去了？

18 transparent   

adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的

参考例句：

• The water is so transparent that we can see the fishes swimming.水清澈透明，可以看到鱼儿游来游去。
• The window glass is transparent.窗玻璃是透明的。

19 proceedings   

n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
• to initiate legal proceedings against sb 对某人提起诉讼

20 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。