Attention turns to midterms after Supreme Court draft decision is leaked

Attention turns to midterms after Supreme¹ Court draft decision is leaked

Transcript²

Because abortion³ rights would be decided⁴ in states if the Supreme Court were to overturn Roe⁵ v. Wade⁶, the leaked draft has brought new midterm campaign enthusiasm to Georgia and other swing states.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

A U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade could quickly curtail⁷ access to abortion in a lot of states. That prospect⁸ is already shaping the way candidates, strategists, advocates and voters are thinking about the 2022 midterms, especially in swing states like Georgia. WABE's Sam Gringlas joins us from Atlanta for more on this. Good morning, Sam.

SAM GRINGLAS, BYLINE⁹: Hi, Leila.

FADEL: So, Sam, if this draft decision holds up, states would decide whether to allow abortion. Where does that leave Georgia and other states?

GRINGLAS: Well, Georgia's legislature is solidly Republican, and in 2019 they passed a bill banning abortion after roughly six weeks. That law would likely take effect really quickly if Roe is struck down. You know, for the last dozen years, Republicans have been just pouring resources into winning these state House races and then drawing district maps to lock in that political power. Democrats¹¹ now admit that, for a long time, they just didn't invest enough in state legislatures. I talked about that with Jessica Post. She runs the Democratic Legislative¹² Campaign Committee.

JESSICA POST: We need to do everything we can to win state legislatures. So I know folks right now may be giving to abortion funds. I would also say please support your Democratic state legislative candidates because they will be the ones deciding the fate of abortion in your state.

GRINGLAS: So say Democrat¹⁰ Stacey Abrams wins her campaign for governor. Without the legislature, there's not a whole lot that she can do to undo¹³ laws that are already on the books.

FADEL: Are you already seeing this draft opinion shaping election strategy in Georgia?

GRINGLAS: Yeah. I mean, Democrats think this ruling could energize¹⁴ voters. There's a Democrat here running for attorney general. Her name is Jen Jordan. And right after this draft leaked, she sent off a tweet calling Georgia the next battleground for reproductive freedom, and she's pledging to fight restrictive abortion laws in the state courts.

JEN JORDAN: This was not going to be front and center, obviously. You know, we were talking about pocketbook issues and consumer protection and voting and all that kind of stuff. But sometimes you don't pick the fight; the fight picks you.

GRINGLAS: One more voice I want to bring in - this is Jeanna Kelley. She just signed up to volunteer with Jordan's campaign, spurred by this news, and she's already done a shift texting women voters.

JEANNA KELLEY: I can't do anything else about this but vote and encourage other people to vote. But it really did feel good to be able to connect with women and say, hey, you know, we would love to have you join us in supporting this candidate.

GRINGLAS: So at the end of the day, we really don't know how much overturning Roe would actually move the needle on Election Day. You know, persistent¹⁵ inflation, some other issue could end up outweighing¹⁶ everything else.

FADEL: And what about Republicans? How are they responding?

GRINGLAS: Well, let me just play you some tape from this week's Republican debate for lieutenant¹⁷ governor. All the candidates were lined up on stage, and they were asked if they're satisfied with the restrictive abortion rules Georgia already passed or whether they would want to do more, and here's what they all said.

(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "ATLANTA PRESS CLUB")

JEANNE SEAVER: I would love to ban abortion.

BRAD MEANS: Just ban it?

SEAVER: Yes, sir.

MEANS: And, Mr. Miller¹⁸, your thoughts?

BUTCH MILLER: Ban it.

MEANS: For you, Mr. Jones?

BURT JONES: Ban it.

GRINGLAS: Republican David Perdue, who's challenging Georgia's sitting Republican governor, Brian Kemp, says he would also now pursue an all-out ban on abortion. Kemp has not weighed in on that, but he might feel compelled to call for a ban, too. That could bite him in November, though, when he needs this broader swath of Georgia voters to keep him in office.

FADEL: Hmm. Sam Gringlas, political reporter at WABE in Atlanta. Thank you so much.

GRINGLAS: Thanks, Leila.

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 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 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。

4 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。

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 curtail   

vt.截短，缩短；削减

参考例句：

• The government hopes to curtail public spending.政府希望缩减公共事业开支。
• The minister had to curtail his visit.部长不得不缩短访问日期。

8 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

9 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。

10 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

11 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》

12 legislative   

n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的

参考例句：

• Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
• Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。

13 undo   

vt.解开，松开；取消，撤销

参考例句：

• His pride will undo him some day.他的傲慢总有一天会毁了他。
• I managed secretly to undo a corner of the parcel.我悄悄地设法解开了包裹的一角。

14 energize   

vt.给予(某人或某物)精力、能量

参考例句：

• It is used to energize the city.它的作用是为城市供给能量。
• This is a great way to energize yourself and give yourself more power!这种方法非常棒，可以激活你的能量，让你有更多的活力！

15 persistent   

adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的

参考例句：

• Albert had a persistent headache that lasted for three days.艾伯特连续头痛了三天。
• She felt embarrassed by his persistent attentions.他不时地向她大献殷勤，使她很难为情。

16 outweighing   

v.在重量上超过( outweigh的现在分词 )；在重要性或价值方面超过

参考例句：

• Consider(sth good or positive)as balancing or outweighing(sth bad or negative) 视（某好的事物）可抵消或抵偿（某坏的事物） 来自互联网
• The accused and accusers all succeed in outweighing the Bible. 原告和被告都成功地通过了第一项测试。 来自互联网

17 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

18 miller   

n.磨坊主

参考例句：

• Every miller draws water to his own mill.磨坊主都往自己磨里注水。
• The skilful miller killed millions of lions with his ski.技术娴熟的磨坊主用雪橇杀死了上百万头狮子。