美国国家公共电台 NPR Supreme Court To Open A Whirlwind Term

 

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

The U.S. Supreme¹ Court starts a new term today with some major cases on a raft of controversial issues - partisan² gerrymandering, privacy in the age of technology, sports wagering³, gay rights and many more cases. NPR legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg has this preview.

NINA TOTENBERG, BYLINE⁴: If last year was a term so dry of interesting cases that it looked like a desert, this term already looks like a tropical rainforest. And the justices are only half way to filling up their docket. As Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg put it in a speech at Georgetown University, there's only one safe prediction about the coming term.

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RUTH BADER GINSBURG: It will be momentous⁵.

TOTENBERG: It will be the first full term with the court's newest justice, Neil Gorsuch, on the bench. It will also be a term undoubtedly⁶ marked by increasing speculation⁷ about Justice Anthony Kennedy's retirement⁸ plans. In many of the most hotly contested cases that reach the court these days, Kennedy's vote determines the outcome because the court is so closely and ideologically⁹ divided. Were the 81-year-old justice to retire, giving President Trump¹⁰ the chance to appoint a second hardcore conservative, the court would swing dramatically to the right.

For now, though, let's focus on the biggest cases on the docket so far. The Trump travel ban had been scheduled for arguments October 10. But the justices canceled those arguments after a new Trump travel ban was issued just a week ago. And the court is widely expected to declare the issues presented in the previous ban moot¹¹, at least for now. Perhaps the highest visibility case before the court involves the Masterpiece Cakeshop in Lakewood, Colo. In 2012, a same-sex couple went to the bakery to order a wedding cake for their upcoming reception. The owner of the shop, Jack¹² Phillips, told them that he was perfectly¹³ willing to sell them a cake off the shelf. But he would not create a cake for their wedding.

He said he had a general policy based on his religious conviction against same-sex marriage. The bridegroom's filed a discrimination claim with the Colorado Civil Rights Commission, charging that Phillips had violated the state public accommodations law, which bars discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation¹⁴. The commission ruled in their favor, as did the state Supreme Court. And Phillips appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which will hear the case later this fall. Phillips's main argument is that, as a cake creator, he has a First Amendment¹⁵ right of artistic¹⁶ expression to refuse to use his talents in support of gay marriage.

On the other side, the couple says that Phillips's arguments are a pretext¹⁷ for discrimination. They point to cases back to the 1960s involving similar small vendors¹⁸, like a chain of barbecue places in South Carolina which refused to serve African-Americans based on the owner's stated religious opposition¹⁹ to mixing races. In that case, too, the owner claimed a sort of artistic bent²⁰ through his special barbecue recipe. Former Solicitor²¹ General Gregory Garre says he thinks that Phillips and his lawyers have done an effective job of converting a gay marriage case into a test of free speech.

GREGORY GARRE: But on the other side is a very exceptionally compelling narrative²² of, you know, our history as a society, the public accommodations law - I mean, sort of the crown jewels of the Supreme Court's civil rights decisions.

TOTENBERG: The big political case of the term so far is a case testing whether extreme partisan gerrymandering is unconstitutional and whether, regardless of how partisan a gerrymander may be, the court should get into the issue at all. That case from Wisconsin is being argued tomorrow. Later this fall, the justices will hear the privacy versus²³ technology case. It tests whether law enforcement authorities have to get a search warrant in order to obtain information gathered by cellphone towers like the general location information in this case, which led to the apprehension²⁴ and conviction of a large burglary ring. The police in the case obtained the information using cell tower siting information from cellphone service providers. George Washington University law professor Jeffrey Rosen notes that this case, for the first time, forces the court to confront whether law enforcement can track someone's movements in public for months on end.

JEFFREY ROSEN: And the answer to that question will determine whether tiny drones can fly in the air and follow us from door to door and reconstruct our movements for a month, whether other forms of ubiquitous surveillance are permissible²⁵.

TOTENBERG: On the other hand, as University of Chicago professor Aziz Huq observes...

AZIZ HUQ: It is extremely unappetizing from the court's perspective to imagine a world in which the government needs probable cause every time it obtains any kind of data about a person from a third party.

TOTENBERG: And, finally, there's a case that tests whether the federal law that bans sports betting commandeers state resources unconstitutionally to enforce a federal mandate²⁶. The case is from New Jersey²⁷, which wants to repeal²⁸ its ban on sports betting but can't under the federal law. On one side is Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey - and on the other, every major sports league in existence. Nina Totenberg, NPR News, Washington.

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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 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。

3 wagering   

v.在（某物）上赌钱，打赌( wager的现在分词 )；保证，担保

参考例句：

• Generally, wagering contracts are illegal and will not be enforced. 通常情况下，赌博性合同是无效的并且不能执行。 来自互联网

4 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。

5 momentous   

adj.重要的，重大的

参考例句：

• I am deeply honoured to be invited to this momentous occasion.能应邀出席如此重要的场合，我深感荣幸。
• The momentous news was that war had begun.重大的新闻是战争已经开始。

6 undoubtedly   

adv.确实地，无疑地

参考例句：

• It is undoubtedly she who has said that.这话明明是她说的。
• He is undoubtedly the pride of China.毫无疑问他是中国的骄傲。

7 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

8 retirement   

n.退休，退职

参考例句：

• She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
• I have to put everything away for my retirement.我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。

9 ideologically   

adv. 意识形态上地，思想上地

参考例句：

• Ideologically, they have many differences. 在思想意识上，他们之间有许多不同之处。
• He has slipped back ideologically. 他思想退步了。

10 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。

11 moot   

v.提出；adj.未决议的；n.大会；辩论会

参考例句：

• The question mooted in the board meeting is still a moot point.那个在董事会上提出讨论的问题仍未决的。
• The oil versus nuclear equation is largely moot.石油和核能之间的关系还很有争议。

12 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

13 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

14 orientation   

n.方向，目标；熟悉，适应，情况介绍

参考例句：

• Children need some orientation when they go to school.小孩子上学时需要适应。
• The traveller found his orientation with the aid of a good map.旅行者借助一幅好地图得知自己的方向。

15 amendment   

n.改正，修正，改善，修正案

参考例句：

• The amendment was rejected by 207 voters to 143.这项修正案以207票对143票被否决。
• The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the bill.反对党已经就该议案提交了一项修正条款。

16 artistic   

adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的

参考例句：

• The picture on this screen is a good artistic work.这屏风上的画是件很好的艺术品。
• These artistic handicrafts are very popular with foreign friends.外国朋友很喜欢这些美术工艺品。

17 pretext   

n.借口，托词

参考例句：

• He used his headache as a pretext for not going to school.他借口头疼而不去上学。
• He didn't attend that meeting under the pretext of sickness.他以生病为借口，没参加那个会议。

18 vendors   

n.摊贩( vendor的名词复数 )；小贩；（房屋等的）卖主；卖方

参考例句：

• The vendors were gazundered at the last minute. 卖主在最后一刻被要求降低房价。
• At the same time, interface standards also benefIt'software vendors. 同时，界面标准也有利于软件开发商。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

19 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

20 bent   

n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的

参考例句：

• He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
• We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。

21 solicitor   

n.初级律师，事务律师

参考例句：

• The solicitor's advice gave me food for thought.律师的指点值得我深思。
• The solicitor moved for an adjournment of the case.律师请求将这个案件的诉讼延期。

22 narrative   

n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的

参考例句：

• He was a writer of great narrative power.他是一位颇有记述能力的作家。
• Neither author was very strong on narrative.两个作者都不是很善于讲故事。

23 versus   

prep.以…为对手，对；与…相比之下

参考例句：

• The big match tonight is England versus Spain.今晚的大赛是英格兰对西班牙。
• The most exciting game was Harvard versus Yale.最富紧张刺激的球赛是哈佛队对耶鲁队。

24 apprehension   

n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑

参考例句：

• There were still areas of doubt and her apprehension grew.有些地方仍然存疑，于是她越来越担心。
• She is a girl of weak apprehension.她是一个理解力很差的女孩。

25 permissible   

adj.可允许的，许可的

参考例句：

• Is smoking permissible in the theatre?在剧院里允许吸烟吗？
• Delay is not permissible,even for a single day.不得延误，即使一日亦不可。

26 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

27 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

28 repeal   

n.废止，撤消；v.废止，撤消

参考例句：

• He plans to repeal a number of current policies.他计划废除一些当前的政策。
• He has made out a strong case for the repeal of the law.他提出强有力的理由，赞成废除该法令。