美国国家公共电台 NPR--Republican Liz Cheney's leading role in Jan. 6 hearings threatens her own future

Republican Liz Cheney's leading role in Jan. 6 hearings threatens her own future

Transcript¹

Liz Cheney is the top Republican on the House panel investigating the violent attack on the Capitol, and her role in the historic hearings that begin Thursday night will impact her own political future, one that may no longer be in Congress.

While some in her party initially² lambasted then-President Trump³'s role in the Jan. 6 siege, they quickly reversed course. Cheney's decision to continue public and sustained criticism of Trump made her an outcast in the party she reveres⁴.

When protestors breached⁵ the Capitol on Jan. 6, Cheney was the third highest ranking House Republican.

Maryland Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin, a former constitutional law professor who was preparing his remarks to certify⁶ the 2020 election results, saw texts about the threat and walked over to Cheney on the House floor.

"She was actually the first person that I went to when someone texted me a photo of the insurrectionists who had entered the building brandishing⁷ a Confederate battle flag, and I crossed the aisle⁸ and I said, 'Liz, look, it looks like we're under new management here,'" Raskin told NPR.

Hours later, members from both parties were held in a secure location, trying to figure out what to do and whether it was safe to reconvene. Raskin said Cheney joined the chair of the House Democratic Caucus⁹ in that moment.

"She got up with Hakeem Jeffries in the safe room, where we were all huddled¹⁰, to say that she was determined¹¹ that we count the votes," Raskin said.

Her career before Congress included promoting democracy abroad

Before serving in the House, she already had a notable political name and career in her own right. She worked on her father Dick Cheney's campaign when he was George W. Bush's running mate in 2000.

She was later a top aide at the State Department during the Bush administration, focusing on promoting democracy in the Middle East.

Former Virginia Rep. Barbara Comstock met Cheney when they both worked on 2000 campaign and served in the House when Cheney chaired the GOP conference. She said Cheney's work at the State Department informs her approach to the Jan. 6 committee's work.

"I think she comes to it from the standpoint of, you know, that we are an authority in the world on democracy and the importance of us taking this very seriously," Comstock said.

Comstock, a vocal¹² critic of Trump's, said Cheney's experience in a political family that often dealt with high profile controversies¹³ prepped for this moment.

"She certainly saw her father and her mother ... come under attack plenty of times for doing what I'm sure she thought was the right thing, and so I think that makes it kind of easy," Comstock told NPR.

"It's not fun to do this, but I think she understands that when you have political capital, as Maggie Thatcher¹⁴ used to say, you know sometimes you have to spend it," Comstock added.

Cheney built relationships with ideological¹⁵ opposites in the House

Cheney's voting record in the House is solidly conservative. She backed Trump's agenda 93% of the time.

California Democratic Rep. Zoe Lofgren, a fellow lawyer and member of the Jan. 6 committee, didn't know Cheney before they worked on the investigation¹⁶ together.

"She's very, very conservative, and I'm not. So there's a lot of issues we don't agree on," Lofgren told NPR. "Having said that, I've been very impressed by her commitment to the truth, her intellectual honesty, her skill as a lawyer."

Cheney opposed the first impeachment¹⁷ of President Trump in 2019 but shocked her conference when she joined 9 other House Republicans to back his second impeachment after Jan. 6.

Her move to continue to speak out about Trump drove her colleagues loyal to the former president to strip her of her leadership position. The night before they ousted¹⁸ her, Cheney took to the House floor to argue her position was in line with her party's principles.

"I am a conservative Republican, and the most conservative of conservative principle is reverence¹⁹ to the rule of law," she said.

Cheney's decision has isolated²⁰ her. Raskin said he was with her on the floor when Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R- Ga., approached her and yelled that she was a "traitor²¹." Raskin wouldn't share Cheney's response, but said it "wasn't flattering" about Greene.

Lofgren agrees that the backlash hasn't phased Cheney.

"She doesn't complain. You know, I think she's nobody's fool. She knows what she's getting into, and she did what she thought was right. And I give her credit for that," Lofgren said.

Raskin bonded²² with Cheney over their legal backgrounds. He wrote a book criticizing the legal reasoning used by the Supreme²³ Court to decide the 2000 election and said Cheney ribbed him about his thesis.

"She teased me about that. The very first time we met, saying, 'So you don't think that my father should have been vice²⁴ president?' And I said, 'Well, it's nothing personal, but I think that that decision was utterly²⁵ fraudulent,'" Raskin recalled.

He says their ability to laugh about their different political backgrounds made them fast friends: "I remember the very first time she took me to her office and I walked in, and there was this huge Soviet-sized portrait of Dick Cheney up on the wall. And I said, 'Liz, I've got one of those in my office too!' You know, and she started cracking up."

Trump has made Cheney a top midterm target

The former president traveled to Wyoming last month and held a rally with Cheney's GOP primary opponent Harriet Hageman.

"There is no RINO [Republican In Name Only] in America who has thrown in her lot with the radical²⁶ left more than Liz Cheney," he told supporters.

In her video announcement running for another term, Cheney didn't mention Trump by name but made her stand against him part of her campaign message.

"When I know something is wrong, I will say so," Cheney said. "I won't waver or back down. I won't surrender to pressure or intimidation²⁷."

Trump got a higher percentage of the vote in Wyoming than in any other state in 2020, and most expect that the backlash at home for Cheney will mean she can't overcome a primary challenge from Hageman in August.

Comstock, however, believes she can win reelection and continue to make a mark in the Republican Party.

"I think there's all kinds of opportunities for her. So I know her future is bright in any direction she wants to go," Comstock said. "But I'm particularly pleased that she has been willing to take the slings²⁸ and arrows to do what's right and to set the record straight."

Cheney's party could retake control of the House in the midterms. If she does manage to win another term, she is likely to still be a lonely voice in a party led by loyalists to the former president.

1 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。

2 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

3 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。

4 reveres   

v.崇敬，尊崇，敬畏( revere的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Confucian philosophy reveres the teacher above all. 儒家哲学最讲究尊重师长。 来自互联网
• Group's idea: Have in mind gratefully, the heart checks and reveres, sincerity serve, fulfil one's duty. 团队理念：胸怀感激、心存敬畏、诚信服务、尽职尽责。 来自互联网

5 breached   

攻破( breach的现在分词 )； 破坏，违反

参考例句：

• These commitments have already been breached. 这些承诺已遭背弃。
• Our tanks have breached the enemy defences. 我方坦克车突破了敌人的防线。

6 certify   

vt.证明，证实；发证书(或执照)给

参考例句：

• I can certify to his good character.我可以证明他品德好。
• This swimming certificate is to certify that I can swim one hundred meters.这张游泳证是用以证明我可以游100米远。

7 brandishing   

v.挥舞( brandish的现在分词 )；炫耀

参考例句：

• The horseman came up to Robin Hood, brandishing his sword. 那个骑士挥舞着剑，来到罗宾汉面前。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He appeared in the lounge brandishing a knife. 他挥舞着一把小刀，出现在休息室里。 来自辞典例句

8 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。

9 caucus   

n.秘密会议；干部会议；v.（参加）干部开会议

参考例句：

• This multi-staged caucus takes several months.这个多级会议常常历时好几个月。
• It kept the Democratic caucus from fragmenting.它也使得民主党的核心小组避免了土崩瓦解的危险。

10 huddled   

挤在一起（huddle的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• We huddled together for warmth. 我们挤在一块取暖。
• We huddled together to keep warm. 我们挤在一起来保暖。

11 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

12 vocal   

adj.直言不讳的；嗓音的；n.[pl.]声乐节目

参考例句：

• The tongue is a vocal organ.舌头是一个发音器官。
• Public opinion at last became vocal.终于舆论哗然。

13 controversies   

争论

参考例句：

• We offer no comment on these controversies here. 对于这些争议，我们在这里不作任何评论。 来自英汉非文学 - 历史
• The controversies surrounding population growth are unlikely to subside soon. 围绕着人口增长问题的争论看来不会很快平息。 来自辞典例句

14 thatcher   

n.茅屋匠

参考例句：

• Tom Sawyer was in the skiff that bore Judge Thatcher. 汤姆 - 索亚和撒切尔法官同乘一条小艇。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险
• Mrs. Thatcher was almost crazed; and Aunt Polly, also. 撒切尔夫人几乎神经失常，还有波莉姨妈也是。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险

15 ideological   

a.意识形态的

参考例句：

• He always tries to link his study with his ideological problems. 他总是把学习和自己的思想问题联系起来。
• He helped me enormously with advice on how to do ideological work. 他告诉我怎样做思想工作，对我有很大帮助。

16 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。

17 impeachment   

n.弹劾；控告；怀疑

参考例句：

• Impeachment is considered a drastic measure in the United States.在美国，弹劾被视为一种非常激烈的措施。
• The verdict resulting from his impeachment destroyed his political career.他遭弹劾后得到的判决毁了他的政治生涯。

18 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

19 reverence   

n.敬畏，尊敬，尊严；Reverence:对某些基督教神职人员的尊称；v.尊敬，敬畏，崇敬

参考例句：

• He was a bishop who was held in reverence by all.他是一位被大家都尊敬的主教。
• We reverence tradition but will not be fettered by it.我们尊重传统，但不被传统所束缚。

20 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

21 traitor   

n.叛徒，卖国贼

参考例句：

• The traitor was finally found out and put in prison.那个卖国贼终于被人发现并被监禁了起来。
• He was sold out by a traitor and arrested.他被叛徒出卖而被捕了。

22 bonded   

n.有担保的，保税的，粘合的

参考例句：

• The whisky was taken to bonded warehouses at Port Dundee.威士忌酒已送到邓迪港的保稅仓库。
• This adhesive must be applied to both surfaces which are to be bonded together.要粘接的两个面都必须涂上这种黏合剂。

23 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。

24 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

25 utterly   

adv.完全地，绝对地

参考例句：

• Utterly devoted to the people,he gave his life in saving his patients.他忠于人民，把毕生精力用于挽救患者的生命。
• I was utterly ravished by the way she smiled.她的微笑使我完全陶醉了。

26 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

27 intimidation   

n.恐吓，威胁

参考例句：

• The Opposition alleged voter intimidation by the army.反对党声称投票者受到军方的恐吓。
• The gang silenced witnesses by intimidation.恶帮用恐吓的手段使得证人不敢说话。

28 slings   

抛( sling的第三人称单数 )； 吊挂； 遣送； 押往

参考例句：

• "Don't you fear the threat of slings, Perched on top of Branches so high?" 矫矫珍木巅，得无金丸惧？ 来自英汉 - 翻译样例 - 文学
• Used for a variety of things including slings and emergency tie-offs. 用于绳套，设置保护点，或者紧急情况下打结。