美国国家公共电台 NPR Kirsten Gillibrand Says If Trump Wants A War With America's Women, 'He Will Lose'

 

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Kirsten Gillibrand has been in Congress for over a decade - first, representing New York's 20th Congressional District and now in the U.S. Senate - which is usually a pretty good resume to run on in a presidential primary. But this is no normal presidential primary. Gillibrand is 1 of 7 current U.S. senators running for the Democratic nomination¹, and she is 1 of 6 women in the race.

Gillibrand has struggled to break through with a message that sets her apart and has not generated enough support yet to safely secure a spot in the upcoming debates. I talked with her as part of our Opening Arguments series with 2020 candidates and asked her why that has been so hard.

KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND: The truth is it's a marathon and not a sprint². And so I believe is - if I keep traveling around this country listening to voters about their concerns and talk about my story and the fact that I got my start in a 2-1 Republican district and brought the whole state together with the highest vote percentages ever and won back 18 Trump³ counties in the last election, I can show that I have a history in bringing people together, finding common ground and actually passing legislation. And so I am not worried.

MARTIN: You have been talking a lot about the issue of abortion⁴ and your effort to make sure that Roe⁵ v. Wade⁶ is not overturned. But you just mentioned there that you want to be a bridge builder, you want to be someone who finds common ground. Where is the common ground on abortion?

GILLIBRAND: I think the American people already agree that Roe v. Wade is the law of the land and is settled precedent⁷ and that women should have fundamental decision-making authority over their own bodily autonomy. And so I think there already is common ground.

And I think what President Trump and these very extreme Republican legislators around the country - they are taking this country in a direction that it does not want to go. And I believe that if President Trump wants a war with America's women, it's a war he will have and it is one he will lose.

MARTIN: Worth pointing out, though - I mean, when you have talked about this issue in particular as it pertains⁸ to the states recently who have passed laws that either severely⁹ limit or outright¹⁰ criminalize abortion, you have talked about this as being perpetrated by men. But there are women who have been involved, as well. I mean, in Alabama, a key female state legislator actually wrote the bill that criminalizes abortion. Of course, Governor Kay Ivey signed it into law.

GILLIBRAND: Right. And everyone's entitled to their personal views. But I believe we need to elect Congress members and governors and presidents who share the moral clarity and the views of the vast majority of this country. So we just need members of Congress to represent the views of their constituents¹¹ better.

MARTIN: What kind of role is this issue going to play in your campaign going forward, the issue of reproductive rights?

GILLIBRAND: Equality and reproductive freedom has been something that I have focused my time in public service on over the last 12 years. But as president, I've already made a very significant platform surrounding these issues. I will only appoint judges and justices that see Roe v. Wade as settled precedent. I will codify¹² Roe v. Wade legislatively¹³.

I will look to remove the Hyde Amendment¹⁴, which is the law that prohibits federal money paying for abortion services in a full range of health care, particularly for poor, low-income women. I will also make sure and guarantee that no matter what state you live in, you will have a right to access full reproductive services, including abortion services, regardless of where you live.

MARTIN: There is a wing of your party that is more progressive, more vocally¹⁵ progressive than we have seen in a long time. Do you believe that the heart of the Democratic Party has shifted to the left?

GILLIBRAND: I don't. I think that there's a perception. But I think the truth is - certainly the party that I've been part of has been working on a lot of these issues for a very long time. But some things, the way they're talked about, seem new and seem more radical¹⁶. And I don't think that's the case. And I'll give you an example - global climate change. I think global climate change is the greatest threat to humanity that exists. So I think the Green New Deal is just a platform of ideas that have been around for a long time that are already bipartisan.

MARTIN: Although you know - I mean, we just have to say - that the Green New Deal is not a bipartisan effort.

GILLIBRAND: No, it's because of the narrative¹⁸. It's not because of the substance is, I guess, what I'm trying to say. And to be honest, I just see it as an aspirational¹⁹ goal that's not unlike when John F. Kennedy put a - wanted to put a man on the moon. He said, I want to do this in 10 years, not because it's easy but because it's hard. And it's exciting. And that's what leadership is. And it doesn't have to be partisan¹⁷.

MARTIN: Is finding the middle ground a successful message for Democrats²⁰ in 2020? There's a segment of your party that says, listen, Donald Trump won not by catering²¹ to the middle but by going to the right of the Republican Party on many issues and that Democrats should do the same thing. Or do you believe that Democrats, in order to find common ground - as you have talked about in this conversation - do you think they should find some message to attract disenchanted Trump voters?

GILLIBRAND: I think your frame is oversimplified and wrong. It's not about the middle, and it never has been. It's about a bold idea that you believe in because it solves the problem. And it doesn't matter if it's a Republican idea or a Democratic idea. It just matters that it's a good idea. And President Trump figured that out.

He ran on three messages - the system's rigged - that's Liz Warren's message - no bad trade deals - that's Bernie Sanders message - and build a wall - that's his own racist²², horrible message that's created fear and division and a darkness across this country that we are going to have to fix. So I don't think it's about the middle at all.

It's about coming up with a bold idea to solve a problem because the truth is people do feel deeply left behind. And so the truth is we need a disruptive set of ideas that can solve these big problems and then have the moral fortitude²³ and leadership and the bravery to actually take on the special interests that want to make all of those changes impossible.

MARTIN: But, Senator, you say Democrats have to come up with a disruptive idea, what is your most disruptive idea?

GILLIBRAND: You need health care as a right and not a privilege. That means you have to take on the insurance companies.

MARTIN: But that's what all of your colleagues are arguing, as well.

GILLIBRAND: Correct. Yeah, but this is why these are the right messages. People want health care as a right. They want better public schools. They want to know that their kids can go to college debt-free. So my idea to do that is national public service.

I believe that if you tell every young person in this country that if you do a year of public service, you could have two years of community college or state school free. We know that we have needs and lots of service industries that we're desperate for young workers. And so if you open up public service to all those industry groups and you incentivize young people to commit a year or two to that, it's going to not only create pipelines²⁴ into new jobs and careers that will create economic growth, but it changes the heart of the country and the heart of these kids in a generation.

MARTIN: That was Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. I talked with her as part of our Opening Arguments series with 2020 Democratic hopefuls. We will bring you more of these conversations tomorrow and next week.

(SOUNDBITE OF NEIL COWLEY TRIO'S "KNEEL DOWN")

1 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

2 sprint   

n.短距离赛跑；vi. 奋力而跑，冲刺；vt.全速跑过

参考例句：

• He put on a sprint to catch the bus.他全速奔跑以赶上公共汽车。
• The runner seemed to be rallied for a final sprint.这名赛跑者似乎在振作精神作最后的冲刺。

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 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。

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 precedent   

n.先例，前例；惯例；adj.在前的，在先的

参考例句：

• Is there a precedent for what you want me to do?你要我做的事有前例可援吗？
• This is a wonderful achievement without precedent in Chinese history.这是中国历史上亘古未有的奇绩。

8 pertains   

关于( pertain的第三人称单数 )； 有关； 存在； 适用

参考例句：

• When one manages upward, none of these clear and unambiguous symbols pertains. 当一个人由下而上地管理时，这些明确无误的信号就全都不复存在了。
• Her conduct hardly pertains to a lady. 她的行为与女士身份不太相符。

9 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

10 outright   

adv.坦率地；彻底地；立即；adj.无疑的；彻底的

参考例句：

• If you have a complaint you should tell me outright.如果你有不满意的事，你应该直率地对我说。
• You should persuade her to marry you outright.你应该彻底劝服她嫁给你。

11 constituents   

n.选民( constituent的名词复数 )；成分；构成部分；要素

参考例句：

• She has the full support of her constituents. 她得到本区选民的全力支持。
• Hydrogen and oxygen are the constituents of water. 氢和氧是水的主要成分。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 codify   

v.将法律、法规等编成法典

参考例句：

• The noble,Dracon,was asked to codify the laws.贵族德拉古被选为立法者。
• The new government promised to codify the laws.新政府应允要编纂法典。

13 legislatively   

adv.立法地

参考例句：

• Indeed, experience with the legislatively imposed hybrid procedures has not been encouraging. 的确，立法规定的混合型程序的经历并不令人感到鼓舞。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法
• The criminal pattern kidnapping and killing the kidnapped person is contained and aggravated crime legislatively. 从犯罪形态来看，“杀害被绑架人”的立法属于包容加重犯。 来自互联网

14 amendment   

n.改正，修正，改善，修正案

参考例句：

• The amendment was rejected by 207 voters to 143.这项修正案以207票对143票被否决。
• The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the bill.反对党已经就该议案提交了一项修正条款。

15 vocally   

adv. 用声音, 用口头, 藉著声音

参考例句：

• She is not SCREAMER or MOANER - She is VOCALLY APPRECIATIVE. 她并不乱叫或发牢骚，只是用声音表示喜怒。
• The left has been vocally against. 左派力量一直竭力声讨。

16 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。

17 partisan   

adj.党派性的；游击队的；n.游击队员；党徒

参考例句：

• In their anger they forget all the partisan quarrels.愤怒之中，他们忘掉一切党派之争。
• The numerous newly created partisan detachments began working slowly towards that region.许多新建的游击队都开始慢慢地向那里移动。

18 narrative   

n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的

参考例句：

• He was a writer of great narrative power.他是一位颇有记述能力的作家。
• Neither author was very strong on narrative.两个作者都不是很善于讲故事。

19 aspirational   

志同的，有抱负的

参考例句：

• Most of the images that bombard us all are aspirational. 轰击的图像，我们都期望最大。
• Analysts said self-help and aspirational reading could explain India's high figures. 分析师们指出，自助读书、热爱读书是印度人均读书时间超过别的国家的主要原因。

20 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》

21 catering   

n. 给养

参考例句：

• Most of our work now involves catering for weddings. 我们现在的工作多半是承办婚宴。
• Who did the catering for your son's wedding? 你儿子的婚宴是由谁承办的？

22 racist   

n.种族主义者，种族主义分子

参考例句：

• a series of racist attacks 一连串的种族袭击行为
• His speech presented racist ideas under the guise of nationalism. 他的讲话以民族主义为幌子宣扬种族主义思想。

23 fortitude   

n.坚忍不拔；刚毅

参考例句：

• His dauntless fortitude makes him absolutely fearless.他不屈不挠的坚韧让他绝无恐惧。
• He bore the pain with great fortitude.他以极大的毅力忍受了痛苦。

24 pipelines   

管道( pipeline的名词复数 )； 输油管道； 在考虑（或规划、准备） 中； 在酿中

参考例句：

• The oil is carried to the oil refinery by pipelines. 石油通过输油管输送到炼油厂。
• The oil carried in pipelines. 石油用管道输送。