美国国家公共电台 NPR--The White House is gearing up for a battle over abortion pill access

The White House is gearing up for a battle over abortion¹ pill access

Transcript²

Democrats³ campaigned on abortion rights in 2022. We examine how Vice⁴ President Harris and President Biden are talking about the issue — as the focus turns to next year's presidential race.

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

The Supreme⁵ Court has extended a temporary freeze in the abortion pill case until Friday at midnight.

A MART?NEZ, HOST:

At stake is access to an FDA-approved medication used in abortions⁶ and to help manage miscarriages⁷. The White House says it is prepared to fight, regardless of the outcome.

MARTIN: NPR White House correspondent Asma Khalid has been looking into the White House strategy on defending mifepristone, and she's with us now to tell us more. Good morning, Asma.

ASMA KHALID, BYLINE⁸: Good morning.

MARTIN: So abortion access for the moment seems to be largely in the hands of the courts or the states. So what's the White House trying to do?

KHALID: Michel, the administration can't do a whole lot, it seems, on the policy front. It can fight this in the courts. That's what it's been doing. That's what it's going to continue to do. And I interviewed the White House chief of staff, Jeff Zients, yesterday. He also made it clear that the administration is going to continue to use the power of the bully⁹ pulpit.

JEFF ZIENTS: Vice President Harris is leading the charge for our administration with urgency and determination. We've been clear - she's been clear we're prepared for any outcome, and we're going to continue to fight. And the court needs to do the right thing here.

MARTIN: How is the White House doing that? How is it trying to draw focus to the issue?

KHALID: Well, the vice president has been traveling around the country. She's been meeting with local lawmakers, activists¹⁰, students, health care providers. Her staff tells me she's been to 18 states so far. And, you know, she talks about, I will say, a woman's body, a woman's choice with a degree, I think, of authenticity¹¹, activists tell me, that Biden cannot necessarily do. You know, for example, the other day she was out on the streets of LA, rallying the crowd at a women's march. And then she went on to Reno, Nev., where she was applauding efforts to enshrine abortion rights into that state's constitution. But she was also criticizing Republicans for efforts nationwide to try to restrict abortion.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

VICE PRESIDENT KAMALA HARRIS: We have to have a countermovement to what they're attempting to do, which is to create a national ban on the right to make these decisions.

MARTIN: So, Asma, you've told us what the vice president is doing. What's the president doing?

KHALID: Well, you know, to be clear here, whatever the administration is doing is essentially¹² the president's agenda, but he's not as visible on the issue. Some Democrats say that Biden is not as comfortable speaking about abortion. You know, he has expressed reservations in the past because of his Catholic faith. And I want to be clear here that his position has certainly evolved. Democrats say the debate has shifted so far to the right, with six-week bans and this medication abortion case, that it's easier for people to pick a side. I was speaking the other day with Lanae Erickson. She's with this centrist Democratic group called Third Way. And she had this sharp analysis of what exactly Biden's job is.

LANAE ERICKSON: I think that his role is to help frame just how extreme the Republican policies are. He is much more comfortable talking about the kind of edges of this debate and where it has moved.

KHALID: Biden's main role has been to set the direction of his administration - you know, make it clear that reproductive rights are a priority. He's also called on Congress to pass a law that would restore Roe¹³ v. Wade¹⁴. But he's not out there rallying the troops. You know, he's framing abortion more broadly as a threat to democracy in the context of how extreme Republicans have become and also raising alarms about politics interfering¹⁵ in medical decisions made, you know, for example, by the FDA.

MARTIN: Let's talk for a minute about the politics. It would seem that this would be a huge focus as we head into next year's presidential elections. I'm just thinking even just about the role that it played in more recent state or midterm elections.

KHALID: No doubt. And I will say so far, Michel, reproductive rights seem to be a winning political issue for Democrats. You've seen that in recent elections, and you've seen that in polls.

MARTIN: That is NPR's Asma Khalid. Asma, thank you.

KHALID: My pleasure.

1 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。

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 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》

4 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。

5 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。

6 abortions   

n.小产( abortion的名词复数 )；小产胎儿；（计划）等中止或夭折；败育

参考例句：

• The Venerable Master: By not having abortions, by not killing living beings. 上人：不堕胎、不杀生。 来自互联网
• Conclusion Chromosome abnormality is one of the causes of spontaneous abortions. 结论：染色体异常是导致反复自然流产的原因之一。 来自互联网

7 miscarriages   

流产( miscarriage的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Miscarriages are usually caused by abnormal chromosome patterns in the fetus. 流产通常是因为胎儿的染色体异常造成的。
• Criminals go unpunishedareconvicted and are miscarriages of justice. 罪犯会逍遥法外，法律会伤及无辜，审判不公时有发生。

8 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。

9 bully   

n.恃强欺弱者，小流氓；vt.威胁，欺侮

参考例句：

• A bully is always a coward.暴汉常是懦夫。
• The boy gave the bully a pelt on the back with a pebble.那男孩用石子掷击小流氓的背脊。

10 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 authenticity   

n.真实性

参考例句：

• There has been some debate over the authenticity of his will. 对于他的遗嘱的真实性一直有争论。
• The museum is seeking an expert opinion on the authenticity of the painting. 博物馆在请专家鉴定那幅画的真伪。

12 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

13 roe   

n.鱼卵；獐鹿

参考例句：

• We will serve smoked cod's roe at the dinner.宴会上我们将上一道熏鳕鱼子。
• I'll scramble some eggs with roe?我用鱼籽炒几个鸡蛋好吗？

14 wade   

v.跋涉，涉水；n.跋涉

参考例句：

• We had to wade through the river to the opposite bank.我们只好涉水过河到对岸。
• We cannot but wade across the river.我们只好趟水过去。

15 interfering   

adj. 妨碍的 动词interfere的现在分词

参考例句：

• He's an interfering old busybody! 他老爱管闲事！
• I wish my mother would stop interfering and let me make my own decisions. 我希望我母亲不再干预，让我自己拿主意。