时代周刊:终审法院(1)

Courts of Last Resort

终审法院

Tight margins¹ in key swing states trigger litigation

优势较小的关键摇摆州引发诉讼

In the wee hours of the morning after election Day, state officials were still tallying² millions of mail-in and absentee ballots³ in key battleground states, and the presidential race remained too close to call. But that didn't stop President Donald Trump⁵ from gathering⁶ his supporters in the East Room of the White House, falsely asserting he had already won, and promising⁷ he would challenge future election results in court. "We'll be going to the U.S. Supreme⁸ Court," he said. "We want all voting to stop. We don't want them to find any ballots at 4 o'clock in the morning and add them to the list."

在选举日结束后的凌晨时分，各州官员仍在清点主要战场州的数百万张邮寄选票和缺席选票，总统选举的胜负仍然难分伯下。但这并没有阻止唐纳德·特朗普总统在白宫东厅召集支持者，谎称自己已经获胜，并承诺将在法庭上质疑未来的选举结果。“我们会去美国最高法院，”他说。“我们希望所有的投票都停止。我们不希望他们在凌晨4点找到任何选票，把他们加到名单上。”

By the time the sun had risen, the Trump campaign had taken its cue, with top advisers⁹ calling for multiple lawsuits¹⁰ on the grounds that the ongoing¹¹ vote count would result in tallying "illegally cast ballots." In a recording¹² of a Nov. 4 phone call with supporters obtained by TIME, campaign aides forecast legal challenges in Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. By late that afternoon, the campaign had demanded a recount in Wisconsin, filed suit to stop the ballot⁴ count in Michigan, and launched two more legal challenges questioning the ballot-counting process and voter-ID laws in Pennsylvania. It also filed a motion to intervene in an existing dispute over Pennsylvania ballots at the U.S. Supreme Court.

太阳升起来的时候，特朗普的竞选团队已经有所行动，其高级顾问以正在进行的计票会导致“非法投票”为由，多次提出诉讼。《时代》杂志于11月4日获取了和支持者的电话录音，录音中竞选助手预测密歇根州、威斯康星州和宾夕法尼亚州将面临法律挑战。当天下午晚些时候，竞选团队要求威斯康星州重新计票，提起诉讼要求停止在密歇根州的计票，同时对计票过程和宾夕法尼亚州的选民身份法发起了另外两项法律挑战。此外还提出了一项动议，要求干预美国最高法院关于宾夕法尼亚州投票的现有争议。

Election-law experts from both sides of the aisle¹³ dismissed the Trump team's suggestion that the ongoing vote count was untoward¹⁴. State election officials routinely take days to finish counting ballots, and with more than 90 million Americans requesting mail-in ballots because of the pandemic, delays were widely expected. "It's contrary to law and the way we run elections to suggest we should stop counting votes because one of the candidates is ahead and doesn't want to fall behind," says Trevor Potter, former general counsel for John McCain's presidential campaigns.

来自两党的选举法专家都反驳了特朗普团队有关“正在进行的计票出现了问题”的说法。州选举官员通常需要花费数天时间来完成计票工作。受新冠影响，有9000多万美国人民要求邮寄选票，人们普遍预计投票将会推迟。约翰·麦凯恩总统竞选的前总法律顾问特雷弗·波特表示：“因为某位候选人不想落后于领先的那位候选人就建议我们停止计票，这违反了法律，也违反了我们竞选的方式。”

But with relatively¹⁵ tight margins in key battleground states, including Pennsylvania, Nevada and Georgia, it was also immediately clear that an onslaught of election-related litigation was all but inevitable¹⁶. It is no longer a question of whether the results of the 2020 presidential race will end up mired¹⁷ in the courts; it is how long and how consequential¹⁸ that court battle will be.

但在宾夕法尼亚州、内华达州和乔治亚州等关键战场州，双方优势相对较小，因此一场与选举相关的诉讼几乎不可避免。2020年总统竞选的结果是否会在法庭上陷入困境已不再是问题，关键在于这场法庭之战将持续多长时间，造成多大影响。

The contours of the coming fights are only beginning to emerge. Experts say that in coming days, new cases could hinge on anything from recounts to obscure state statutes¹⁹ to whether the U.S. Postal²⁰ Service delivered ballots.

即将到来的火拼才刚显现苗头，专家们表示，在未来的几天里，新案件可能取决于从重新计票到模糊的州法规，再到美国邮政服务是否投递选票。

1 margins   

边( margin的名词复数 )； 利润； 页边空白； 差数

参考例句：

• They have always had to make do with relatively small profit margins. 他们不得不经常设法应付较少的利润额。
• To create more space between the navigation items, add left and right margins to the links. 在每个项目间留更多的空隙，加左或者右的margins来定义链接。

2 tallying   

v.计算，清点( tally的现在分词 )；加标签（或标记）于；（使）符合；（使）吻合

参考例句：

• In 2007 the state set a U.S. record, tallying 141 twisters. 该州在2007年以总计出现了141个龙卷风而创下了一个美国记录。 来自互联网
• We charge extra fee at 100% of the rates of tallying fees. 我们按理货收费率的100%收取附加费。 来自互联网

3 ballots   

n.投票表决( ballot的名词复数 )；选举；选票；投票总数v.（使）投票表决( ballot的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They're counting the ballots. 他们正在计算选票。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The news of rigged ballots has rubbed off much of the shine of their election victory. 他们操纵选票的消息使他们在选举中获得的胜利大为减色。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。

5 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。

6 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

7 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

8 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。

9 advisers   

顾问，劝告者( adviser的名词复数 )； （指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授

参考例句：

• a member of the President's favoured circle of advisers 总统宠爱的顾问班子中的一员
• She withdrew to confer with her advisers before announcing a decision. 她先去请教顾问然后再宣布决定。

10 lawsuits   

n.诉讼( lawsuit的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Lawsuits involving property rights and farming and grazing rights increased markedly. 涉及财产权，耕作与放牧权的诉讼案件显著地增加。 来自辞典例句
• I've lost and won more lawsuits than any man in England. 全英国的人算我官司打得最多，赢的也多，输的也多。 来自辞典例句

11 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

12 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

13 aisle   

n.（教堂、教室、戏院等里的）过道，通道

参考例句：

• The aisle was crammed with people.过道上挤满了人。
• The girl ushered me along the aisle to my seat.引座小姐带领我沿着通道到我的座位上去。

14 untoward   

adj.不利的，不幸的，困难重重的

参考例句：

• Untoward circumstances prevent me from being with you on this festive occasion.有些不幸的事件使我不能在这欢庆的时刻和你在一起。
• I'll come if nothing untoward happens.我要是没有特殊情况一定来。

15 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

16 inevitable   

adj.不可避免的，必然发生的

参考例句：

• Mary was wearing her inevitable large hat.玛丽戴着她总是戴的那顶大帽子。
• The defeat had inevitable consequences for British policy.战败对英国政策不可避免地产生了影响。

17 mired   

abbr.microreciprocal degree 迈尔德（色温单位）v.深陷( mire的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The country was mired in recession. 这个国家陷入了经济衰退的困境。
• The most brilliant leadership can be mired in detail. 最有才干的领导也会陷于拘泥琐事的困境中。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

18 consequential   

adj.作为结果的，间接的；重要的

参考例句：

• She was injured and suffered a consequential loss of earnings.她受了伤因而收入受损。
• This new transformation is at least as consequential as that one was.这一新的转变至少和那次一样重要。

19 statutes   

成文法( statute的名词复数 )； 法令； 法规； 章程

参考例句：

• The numerous existing statutes are complicated and poorly coordinated. 目前繁多的法令既十分复杂又缺乏快调。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法
• Each agency is also restricted by the particular statutes governing its activities. 各个机构的行为也受具体法令限制。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

20 postal   

adj.邮政的，邮局的

参考例句：

• A postal network now covers the whole country.邮路遍及全国。
• Remember to use postal code.勿忘使用邮政编码。