2007年VOA标准英语-US Supreme Court Upholds Ban on Abortion Proced

By Meredith Buel
Washington
18 April 2007

A closely divided U.S. Supreme¹ Court has upheld a ban on a controversial abortion² procedure. VOA correspondent Meredith Buel has details from Washington.

Pro3-abortion demonstrators in front of the US Supreme Court in Washington DC, 18 Apr 2007 " hspace="2" src="/upimg/allimg/070531/1444580.jpg" width="210" vspace="2" border="0" />

Pro-abortion demonstrators in front of the US Supreme Court in Washington DC, 18 Apr 2007

In a ruling on one of the nation's most divisive and politically charged issues, the high court narrowly rejected challenges to the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act that President Bush signed into law in 2003 after its approval by the U.S. Congress, which at the time was led by the president's Republican Party.

The decision, by a five-to-four vote, marks the first time the nation's highest court has upheld a federal law banning a specific abortion procedure since its landmark⁴ Roe⁵ v. Wade⁶ ruling in 1973 that women have a basic constitutional right to an abortion.

White House spokeswoman Dana Perino read a statement from President Bush welcoming the decision.

"The Supreme Court's decision is an affirmation of the progress we have made over the past six years in protecting human dignity and upholding the sanctity of life," she said. "We will continue to work for the day when every child is welcomed in life and protected in law."

The law upheld by the court makes it a crime for a doctor to perform the procedure, which involves removing a fetus⁷ from a woman's uterus, then crushing or cutting its skull⁸ to complete the abortion. Doctors who advocate the procedure say it is sometimes the safest method to use to protect the health of the patient.

Abortion opponent Ann Scheidler of the Pro Life Action League hailed the decision.

"Public opinion has begun to turn and sees that abortion has not turned out to be the panacea⁹, and the quick easy solution," she said. "Women have suffered a great deal because of abortion."

Kate Michelman, the former president of the National Abortion Rights Action League, or NARAL, says the Supreme Court's decision represents a major defeat.

"It is a dramatic setback¹⁰ for protecting the health of women," she said. "It is a dramatic setback for the privacy of the doctor-patient relationship."

Michelman says she is concerned the ruling may prompt new efforts at the state level to place more restrictions¹¹ on abortion.

"They will incrementally¹², increasingly restrict a women's right to decide so that the ability of women to decide becomes meaningless as a practical matter," she said.

Ann Scheidler of the Pro Life Action League says the court's decision will give a major boost to opponents of abortion.

"I think it will be an encouragement to the pro-life community that has worked so hard for a really long time against so many defeats over the past three decades," she said.

The court's decisions are being watched closely since President Bush appointed the two newest justices.

Both of the new members, Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito, sided with the majority to uphold the ban on the abortion procedure.

1 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。

2 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。

3 pro   

n.赞成，赞成的意见，赞成者

参考例句：

• The two debating teams argued the question pro and con.辩论的两组从赞成与反对两方面辩这一问题。
• Are you pro or con nuclear disarmament?你是赞成还是反对核裁军？

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 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？

6 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。

7 fetus   

n.胎，胎儿

参考例句：

• In the fetus,blood cells are formed in different sites at different ages.胎儿的血细胞在不同时期生成在不同的部位。
• No one knows why a fetus is not automatically rejected by the mother's immune system. 没有人知道为什么母亲的免疫系统不会自动排斥胎儿。

8 skull   

n.头骨；颅骨

参考例句：

• The skull bones fuse between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five.头骨在15至25岁之间长合。
• He fell out of the window and cracked his skull.他从窗子摔了出去，跌裂了颅骨。

9 panacea   

n.万灵药；治百病的灵药

参考例句：

• Western aid may help but will not be a panacea. 西方援助可能会有所帮助，但并非灵丹妙药。
• There's no single panacea for the country's economic ills. 国家经济弊病百出,并无万灵药可以医治。

10 setback   

n.退步，挫折，挫败

参考例句：

• Since that time there has never been any setback in his career.从那时起他在事业上一直没有遇到周折。
• She views every minor setback as a disaster.她把每个较小的挫折都看成重大灾难。

11 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

12 incrementally   

adv.逐渐地

参考例句：

• Incrementally update the shared dimensions used in this cube. 增量更新此多维数据集中使用的共享维度。 来自互联网
• Grand goals are inspiring, but be sure to approach them incrementally. 辉煌的目标令人鼓舞，但一定要逐步实现。 来自互联网