VOA新闻杂志2022 美国最高法院可能推翻堕胎权

Report: US High Court Could Overturn Abortion¹ Rights

A leaked document suggests that the U.S. Supreme² Court could overturn the 1973 decision that legalized abortion in the country.

An abortion is a medical procedure that ends a pregnancy³. The 1973 high court ruling is known as Roe⁴ v. Wade⁵. It created a constitutional right for women to choose to have an abortion.

Politico, a Washington, D.C.-based news organization, reported that it received an early version of the majority written opinion. The leaked document was written by Justice Samuel Alito.

In the document, Alito stated that "Roe was egregiously⁷ wrong from the start." He wrote, "Roe and Casey must be overruled," adding that the U.S. Constitution does not make note of abortion or protect the right to abortion. Planned Parenthood v. Casey is a 1992 court decision that confirmed abortion rights in the country.

The leaked document is said to be a "first draft" of the majority opinion for a case on Mississippi's ban on abortions⁸ after the 15th week of a pregnancy. The draft stated, "It is time to heed⁹ the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people's elected representatives."

A leak of the high court's documents is extremely rare. A former court officer compared it to the leak of the secret history of the Vietnam War, known as the Pentagon Papers.

Chief Justice John Roberts confirmed on Tuesday that the document is "authentic," or real. But he added that "it does not represent a decision by the Court or the final position of any member on the issues in the case." Roberts also ordered an investigation¹⁰ into the leak.

Senator Susan Collins of Maine is one of a small number of Republican lawmakers in support of abortion rights. She voted in 2017 and 2018 to confirm Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. She said, "If this leaked draft opinion is the final decision and this reporting is accurate, it would be completely inconsistent with what Justice Gorsuch and Justice Kavanaugh said in their hearings and in our meetings at my office." Collins has said that both men told her during the confirmation¹¹ process that they would not act to overturn Roe v. Wade.

On Tuesday morning, American President Joe Biden told reporters that he hoped there would not be enough votes to overturn Roe. The president earlier said in a statement, "if the Court does overturn Roe, it will fall on our nation's elected officials at all levels of government to protect a woman's right to choose. And it will fall on voters to elect pro-choice officials this November." The United States will hold mid-term elections in November.

The abortion debate in America

Shortly after reports on the possible overturn of Roe v. Wade came out, hundreds of pro-choice supporters gathered in front of the Supreme Court. A small group of anti-abortion activists¹² also gathered.

A 2021 opinion study from Pew Research Center found that 59 percent of American adults say abortion should be legal in all or most cases. Thirty-nine percent think it should be illegal.

State leaders reacted to the possible ruling on social media. Republican Governor Kristi Noem of South Dakota promised to pass a law banning abortions in her state. She wrote on Twitter, "I will immediately call for a special session to save lives and guarantee that every unborn child has a right to life in South Dakota."

Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul of New York said, "For anyone who needs access to care, our state will welcome you with open arms. New York will always be a place where abortion rights are protected and where abortion is safe..."

The pro-choice research organization Guttmacher Institute says that anti-abortion policymakers have been waiting for the court's anti-abortion majority to weaken or overturn Roe v. Wade.

The organization reported that laws banning abortions have been introduced in 31 American states. Some of the laws are designed to start immediately if Roe is overturned. 

Words in This Story

egregious⁶ - adj. very bad and easily noticed

draft - n. a version of a document that you make before the final version

accurate - adj. free from mistakes or errors

inconsistent - adj. not in agreement with something

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 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 pregnancy   

n.怀孕，怀孕期

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕早期常有恶心的现象。
• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage.怀孕期吸烟会增加流产的危险。

4 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？

5 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。

6 egregious   

adj.非常的，过分的

参考例句：

• When it comes to blatant lies,there are none more egregious than budget figures.谈到公众谎言，没有比预算数字更令人震惊的。
• What an egregious example was here!现摆着一个多么触目惊心的例子啊。

7 egregiously   

adv.过份地，卓越地

参考例句：

• But previous Greek governments egregiously violated those limits. 但之前几届希腊政府都严重违反了这些限制。 来自互联网

8 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

9 heed   

v.注意，留意；n.注意，留心

参考例句：

• You must take heed of what he has told.你要注意他所告诉的事。
• For the first time he had to pay heed to his appearance.这是他第一次非得注意自己的外表不可了。

10 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

11 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。

12 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》