美国国家公共电台 NPR Amid Skepticism And Scrutiny, Election Integrity Commission Holds First Meeting

 

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

President Trump¹'s commission to look into voter fraud and other election problems will hold its first public meeting today. Already, this panel has come under fire. Let's remember, it was formed by President Trump to look into his widely discredited² claim that millions of people voted illegally in last year's election. Then states balked³ at the commission's first request that they send in detailed⁴ voter registration⁵ information.

We're joined by NPR's Pam Fessler, who's come by our studios before covering this meeting today. Hey, Pam.

PAM FESSLER, BYLINE⁶: Hi, David.

GREENE: So this panel, to put it bluntly, is off to a pretty bad start. But - which makes me wonder, are they going to be able to do what they say they want to do here, which is instill public confidence in voting?

FESSLER: It's going to be really, really hard. As you said, this panel started off with a lot of problems, a lot of credibility problems. And it only seems to have gotten worse. First, the commission was set up on what a lot of Democrats⁷ and Republican election officials say is a false premise⁸, which is that voter fraud's widespread. They say it exists, but it's rare.

Second, the commission was supposed to be bipartisan. But both leaders are two Republicans, Vice⁹ President Mike Pence and Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach.

GREENE: Doesn't sound exactly bipartisan.

FESSLER: Not exactly. And the rest of the 12-member panel is predominantly Republican. And it also includes some leading advocates for tough voter laws, such as strict proof of citizenship¹⁰ and ID requirements. And that has Democrats and a lot of liberal voter advocacy groups pretty worried that, you know, what is this commission really up to?

And are they really just set up to just justify¹¹ some of these new restrictions¹² on voters?

GREENE: Has the commission responded to the suggestion that they're trying to restrict votes?

FESSLER: They say that's not their intention, that they are open, that they're just going to follow the facts where they lead. Their purpose is to look at voting problems, whatever they are and figure out how to fix them so that we can improve public confidence in elections. Vice Chair Kobach says that the reason he asked for all the state voter data - registration data - is he wants to look at the lists to see if there's any evidence of voter fraud or just problems with voter registration lists.

Now, of course, a lot of people are skeptical¹³ that that is going to work. That said, also the commission, besides asking for state voter registration data, they've also asked for recommendations on how to address a whole range of issues, whether it's voter intimidation¹⁴ and also things like computer security.

GREENE: Well, and, Pam Fessler, that raises a central question here - right? - about competing priorities. Like, President Trump suggested that there was all this fraud he wanted this commission to look into. But once a commission starts looking into voting, aren't there things that they've really been, you know, that these people have really been interested in, which includes computer security issues?

FESSLER: Right. I mean, definitely. I mean, by far, most state and local election officials that I talked to, the thing that they're really worried about is the potential for hacking¹⁵ into their election system. Obviously, we had evidence that Russia tried to do that last year. And by all indications, they're going to try and do it again in the future.

And there's a lot of fear that this commission is really diverting attention and resources away from that problem, trying to fix that problem. Another thing election officials are worried about is old voting equipment. A lot of it's aging. They have no money to replace it. And that could also be another big problem.

GREENE: All right, so this commission is going to be meeting for the first time in public today. NPR's Pam Fessler.

1 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。

2 discredited   

不足信的，不名誉的

参考例句：

• The reactionary authorities are between two fires and have been discredited. 反动当局弄得进退维谷，不得人心。
• Her honour was discredited in the newspapers. 她的名声被报纸败坏了。

3 balked   

v.畏缩不前，犹豫( balk的过去式和过去分词 )；（指马）不肯跑

参考例句：

• He balked in his speech. 他忽然中断讲演。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• They balked the robber's plan. 他们使强盗的计划受到挫败。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

4 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

5 registration   

n.登记，注册，挂号

参考例句：

• Marriage without registration is not recognized by law.法律不承认未登记的婚姻。
• What's your registration number?你挂的是几号？

6 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。

7 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》

8 premise   

n.前提；v.提论，预述

参考例句：

• Let me premise my argument with a bit of history.让我引述一些史实作为我立论的前提。
• We can deduce a conclusion from the premise.我们可以从这个前提推出结论。

9 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。

10 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

11 justify   

vt.证明…正当(或有理)，为…辩护

参考例句：

• He tried to justify his absence with lame excuses.他想用站不住脚的借口为自己的缺席辩解。
• Can you justify your rude behavior to me?你能向我证明你的粗野行为是有道理的吗？

12 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

13 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。

14 intimidation   

n.恐吓，威胁

参考例句：

• The Opposition alleged voter intimidation by the army.反对党声称投票者受到军方的恐吓。
• The gang silenced witnesses by intimidation.恶帮用恐吓的手段使得证人不敢说话。

15 hacking   

n.非法访问计算机系统和数据库的活动

参考例句：

• The patient with emphysema is hacking all day. 这个肺气肿病人整天不断地干咳。
• We undertook the task of hacking our way through the jungle. 我们负责在丛林中开路。