美国国家公共电台 NPR Collins Says Supreme Court Nominee Kavanaugh Called Roe v. Wade 'Settled Law'

 

AILSA CHANG, HOST:

Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine is a key swing vote in the confirmation¹ of Supreme² Court nominee³ Brett Kavanaugh. She says Kavanaugh told her today he views the landmark⁴ abortion⁵-rights ruling Roe⁶ v. Wade⁷ as settled law. As NPR congressional correspondent Scott Detrow reports, Kavanaugh made the statement during the most important meeting he had during today's blitz of meetings on Capitol Hill.

SCOTT DETROW, BYLINE⁸: Kavanaugh met with six senators today. None of those meetings lasted as long as the more than two hours he spent with Collins.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

SUSAN COLLINS: We talked about whether he considered Roe to be settled law. He said that he agreed with what Justice Roberts said at his nomination⁹ hearing, in which he said that it was settled law.

DETROW: That's a big deal for the Maine senator, a moderate Republican who supports abortion rights and supported Roberts back in 2005. But what exactly does settled law mean? Minority leader Chuck Schumer and other Democrats¹⁰ argue not too much, especially since President Trump¹¹ promised to appoint someone who would overturn the landmark ruling that legalized abortion.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

CHUCK SCHUMER: Let's be clear. This is not as simple as Judge Kavanaugh saying that Roe is settled law. Everything the Supreme Court decides is settled law until it unsettles it. Saying a case is settled law is not the same thing as saying a case was correctly decided¹².

DETROW: But with nearly all Democrats likely to vote no, Cavanaugh's key audience isn't Schumer. It's moderates like Collins and Alaska Republican Lisa Murkowski. They both support abortion rights. And with Republicans holding a slim majority, he needs their votes to be confirmed. Collins sounds like she's almost there.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

COLLINS: We covered a wide range of issues. And it was very helpful, very productive and very informative¹³.

DETROW: Still, Collins says she won't commit on whether or not to vote for Kavanaugh until after next month's confirmation hearings. Scott Detrow, NPR News, the Capitol.

1 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。

2 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。

3 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

4 landmark   

n.陆标，划时代的事，地界标

参考例句：

• The Russian Revolution represents a landmark in world history.俄国革命是世界历史上的一个里程碑。
• The tower was once a landmark for ships.这座塔曾是船只的陆标。

5 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。

6 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？

7 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。

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 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

10 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》

11 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。

12 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

13 informative   

adj.提供资料的，增进知识的

参考例句：

• The adverts are not very informative.这些广告并没有包含太多有用信息。
• This intriguing book is both thoughtful and informative.这本引人入胜的书既有思想性又富知识性。