美国国家公共电台 NPR Tennessee Could Be A Bright Spot For Republican Women In 2018

 

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Democratic women are winning primaries this year at record numbers. In the next Congress, the number of Republican women could drop, but in Tennessee, two GOP candidates stand out as they try to make history as the first women ever to serve as senator or governor in that state. As NPR's Jessica Taylor reports, neither is really emphasizing that possibility, though.

(APPLAUSE)

JESSICA TAYLOR, BYLINE¹: Representative Marsha Blackburn is at a bank in Portland, Tenn., making her pitch for why voters should pick her in this fall's tough Senate race against former Democratic governor Phil Bredesen.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

MARSHA BLACKBURN: People will say, Marsha, you're a wife; you're a mother, a businesswomen, and you've been in public service; why in the world do you want to go to the U.S. Senate? That place is totally dysfunctional.

TAYLOR: Blackburn's answer is that she wants to be part of fixing the problem, but she's quick to emphasize her resume over her gender². In fact, that's why she famously prefers to go by congressman³ instead of congresswoman. She says it's more gender-neutral.

BLACKBURN: When I'm talking with Tennesseans, I say, I'm the most well-qualified⁴ person for this position.

TAYLOR: Her colleague in Congress, Diane Black, is taking the same approach in her campaign for governor.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

TAYLOR: She's in a truck stop in Greeneville, Tenn., where a new flagpole is being dedicated⁵. Black first has to win a crowded primary next week, and that's no sure thing.

DIANE BLACK: No, people talk about that more than I do. I rarely talk about it.

TAYLOR: Like Blackburn, she thinks it's more important to talk about her loyalty⁶ to President Trump⁷ than whether she can make history in November. Both women have already had trailblazing careers. Black grew up in public housing and was a single mother who worked the night shift as a nurse. She later remarried and with her husband founded a multimillion dollar drug-testing company. Black eventually ran for the state Legislature and then Congress, which led to historic milestones⁸.

BLACK: It was the first female caucus⁹ chairman here in the state Senate, the first female to have served as the budget chair for our country. But that's not what I'm running as. I'm running on my credentials¹⁰.

TAYLOR: Blackburn took a similar path, and in 2002, she became the first woman elected to Congress in Tennessee who hadn't followed her husband in the position. Nearly a century ago, Tennessee gave women nationally the right to vote as the deciding state to ratify¹¹ the 19th Amendment¹². But since then, Tennessee has lagged behind. Now it's one of only seven states that's never had a female governor or senator. Susan Richardson Williams was the first female chairman of the Tennessee Republican Party. She says that while other women running for office have faced pushback because of their gender in the past, she doesn't think either Black or Blackburn will this cycle.

SUSAN RICHARDSON WILLIAMS: I think we're to the point in the South and around the country where gender doesn't matter so much. Yes, it'll be historic, but both of those women were qualified to serve in the offices.

TAYLOR: But nationally, a win by either Black or Blackburn would be important for conservative causes, according to Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony List.

MARJORIE DANNENFELSER: Tennessee stands out as a place that is really answering the call for women to run.

TAYLOR: Dannenfelser's group promotes anti-abortion-rights women candidates and has endorsed¹³ Black and Blackburn. She says it's important for more conservative women to run. The difference is, the Republicans don't talk about their gender in the same way Democrats¹⁴ do.

DANNENFELSER: Yes, I think that Democrats are far more invested in identity politics - so vote for me because of how I look and what my gender is.

TAYLOR: But Marsha Blackburn says she still understands the significance of her candidacy.

BLACKBURN: I don't talk a lot about it in the race, but when I win this race, it will be a history-making win.

TAYLOR: And in a year when women are generating lots of enthusiasm for the Democratic Party, Tennessee could be Republicans' answer. Jessica Taylor, NPR News.

(SOUNDBITE OF EVIL NEEDLE SONG, "LUCKY LADY")

1 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。

2 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。

3 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

4 qualified   

adj.合格的，有资格的，胜任的，有限制的

参考例句：

• He is qualified as a complete man of letters.他有资格当真正的文学家。
• We must note that we still lack qualified specialists.我们必须看到我们还缺乏有资质的专家。

5 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

6 loyalty   

n.忠诚，忠心

参考例句：

• She told him the truth from a sense of loyalty.她告诉他真相是出于忠诚。
• His loyalty to his friends was never in doubt.他对朋友的一片忠心从来没受到怀疑。

7 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。

8 milestones   

n.重要事件( milestone的名词复数 )；重要阶段；转折点；里程碑

参考例句：

• Several important milestones in foreign policy have been passed by this Congress and they can be chalked up as major accomplishments. 这次代表大会通过了对外政策中几起划时代的事件，并且它们可作为主要成就记录下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Dale: I really envy your milestones over the last few years, Don. 我真的很羡慕你在过去几年中所建立的丰功伟绩。 来自互联网

9 caucus   

n.秘密会议；干部会议；v.（参加）干部开会议

参考例句：

• This multi-staged caucus takes several months.这个多级会议常常历时好几个月。
• It kept the Democratic caucus from fragmenting.它也使得民主党的核心小组避免了土崩瓦解的危险。

10 credentials   

n.证明，资格，证明书，证件

参考例句：

• He has long credentials of diplomatic service.他的外交工作资历很深。
• Both candidates for the job have excellent credentials.此项工作的两个求职者都非常符合资格。

11 ratify   

v.批准，认可，追认

参考例句：

• The heads of two governments met to ratify the peace treaty.两国政府首脑会晤批准和平条约。
• The agreement have to be ratify by the board.该协议必须由董事会批准。

12 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。

13 endorsed   

vt.& vi.endorse的过去式或过去分词形式v.赞同( endorse的过去式和过去分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品

参考例句：

• The committee endorsed an initiative by the chairman to enter discussion about a possible merger. 委员会通过了主席提出的新方案，开始就可能进行的并购进行讨论。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The government has broadly endorsed a research paper proposing new educational targets for 14-year-olds. 政府基本上支持建议对14 岁少年实行新教育目标的研究报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 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》