PBS高端访谈:在矿产州,民主党寻求减排计划的可能性

 　　GWEN IFILL: The president's proposal to cut carbon emissions¹ may not take full effect for several years, but the politics kicked in immediately.

　　In states where nearly all of the electricity is generated by coal, like West Virginia and Kentucky, Democrats⁴ were quick to denounce the plan, which they fear would cost jobs.

　　Alison Lundergan Grimes, who is challenging Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, immediately distanced herself from the plan and from the White House, saying she would — quote — "fiercely oppose the president's attack on Kentucky's coal industry."But a recent Washington Post/ABC News poll found 70 percent of Americans actually support curbing⁷ greenhouse gas emissions.

　　Joining us for a look at how the decision is resonating politically are Susan Page of USA Today and Reid Wilson of The Washington Post.

　　Sue, let's draw this coal map for us. Does it completely mirror the battleground map we have been watching?

　　SUSAN PAGE, USA Today: It mirrors a lot of the key states where there are competitive Senate races, control of the Senate at stake in November, states like West Virginia, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Colorado.

　　These are states where most of the electricity is generated by coal-fired plants. This may not be a big controversy⁸ in the some states in this country, but it's a big controversy in the states on which control of the Senate now hinges.

　　GWEN IFILL: So, is this a regional issue or a national issue, Reid?

　　REID WILSON, The Washington Post: Well, it's a regional issue. A lot of states on the coast, specifically in the Northeast, have actually curbed⁹ carbon emissions quite a lot.

　　The plan by the EPA requires states to curb⁶ emissions to a rate 30 percent less than what they were emitting in 2005. A number of states have actually already met that particular goal. The problem is, it's not in that Rust¹⁰ Belt section, Midwest America, where coal is still a huge portion of the state's energy concerns.

　　GWEN IFILL: Is the concern, Susan, about jobs, mines that would close, or is it about the idea of federal intervention¹¹?

　　SUSAN PAGE: It's about both.

　　And the federal intervention argument I think works particularly well for opponents of this plan, because the president didn't do this through legislation that passed Congress, because he wasn't able to get that legislation through Congress. He's doing this through executive action, regulations at a federal agency, so that fuels the idea, as with the health care plan, that it's a federal mandate¹² on the states.

　　But the argument about jobs is also, I think, an incredibly powerful one in states like Kentucky, which is probably the highest — you know, the Senate race we're looking at closely because the future of the leading Republican senator is at stake there. That — and the jobs argument is also a powerful one.

　　GWEN IFILL: There are some leading Democrats who also are facing a pretty tough race in some coal states. And I'm thinking about Mary Landrieu, for instance, in Louisiana.

　　REID WILSON: Mary Landrieu has made her influence on the Senate Energy and Commerce Committee, where she is the chairwoman, a central part of her campaign. She is very pro-drilling. She's pro-fracking, in favor of coal mining. Basically any energy proposal that you can come up with, she will back it.

　　Just last week, she took the secretary of energy around Southern Louisiana. She's trying to tell voters that she is going to be a pro-energy Democrat³. Now more and more voters, though, are voting based on the letter at the end of her name, whether it's a D or an R, than her actual policy proposals in the first place. So that is going to be a difficult challenge for her as she faces one of the toughest reelections of any candidate running for reelection.

　　GWEN IFILL: Take us to West Virginia and Alaska, two other states where this is playing out.

　　SUSAN PAGE: West Virginia is a state where the incumbent¹³ Democrat is retiring, Senator Rockefeller.

　　We have two women candidates, two strong women candidates. They're both very much opposed, they say, to this plan. But one of them is a Democrat. One of them is…GWEN IFILL: Natalie Tennant, yes.

　　SUSAN PAGE: … in the same party as — Natalie Tennant, the secretary of state.

　　And so, despite her efforts to distance herself from President Obama, this does — it's hard for her to totally argue that she's not a Democrat, even though she differs with the president on this issue.

　　GWEN IFILL: And Mark Begich in Alaska faces the same problem. And he's an incumbent.

　　So, why then does the White House rub salt into the wound on this issue? Why make it so hard for Democrats especially?

　　REID WILSON: I think it's in large part because President Obama hears the clock ticking.

　　He doesn't have that long left in office. He's only got two-and-a-half years until his successor takes over. If he doesn't put in this rule now, if he doesn't start the implementation¹⁴ process, the rule won't be finalized¹⁵ by the time he leaves office.

　　If a Republican president is the next one in, they can scrap¹⁶ this rule before it has taken effect. Remember, President Obama's 2008 acceptance speech at the Democratic Convention, he said, this would be the time when the planet starts to heal. This is the most aggressive step that any president has taken on climate change so far, but it's a step that clearly puts his party and very vulnerable members seeking reelection at odds¹⁷ with some voters who are going to determine the outcome of the U.S. Senate.

　　GWEN IFILL: And yet the words climate change didn't show up much in this announcement. It was all about health and children's asthma¹⁸ concerns and it was — and jobs.

　　SUSAN PAGE: Because those are the — those are the words that poll better. Those are the words that appeal to a broader range of voters.

　　When you talk about climate change, it's an issue that appeals very much to some voters, but really turns some voters off. And that's why you heard him talk about other aspects of this program, not calling it climate change. But I certainly agree with Reid.

　　The president is thinking about his legacy¹⁹. Could his legacy be dealing²⁰ with an issue that he talked about so much in the 2008 campaign, like climate change, or could it be holding the Democratic Senate? You give him that choice, I think he would take climate change every day.

　　GWEN IFILL: But if you Jeanne Shaheen in New Hampshire, or Kay Hagan in North Carolina, or Mark Udall in Colorado, wouldn't you like his legacy to be a Democratic Senate?

　　SUSAN PAGE: Well, look at those races you named.

　　Now, there's an interesting test, because they are not taking the same tack⁵ as we're seeing in Kentucky and West Virginia. Mark Udall in Colorado, who is in a very competitive race, is saying we need to do things like this, we need to address climate change. So is Jeanne Shaheen.

　　Kay Hagan in North Carolina in a very close race is saying, we need some balance. So, we will have a test in November about whether this issue is devastating²¹ for Democrats or whether it's one that can — where the needle can be threaded.

　　GWEN IFILL: Is it also one of those issues where there's a lot of money coming from outside these states into — for instance, we saw there is some very pro-environmental money coming into these states on these issues, as well as anti.

　　REID WILSON: Donors²² who care a lot about climate change are becoming an increasingly large part of the Democratic primary, the Democratic sort of money pool, if you will, led by a billionaire in California named Tom Steyer, who has pledged $100 million of his own money for some key races, including the races that you just mentioned in New Hampshire, in North Carolina, and in Colorado.

　　And the difference between what we have seen in the past and what we're going to see now is in the past, people who cared a lot about climate change talked about global warming and the rising of the seas and polar bears falling in the water in the Arctic and all this. And now what they are going to talk about is drought in Iowa and floods in North Carolina and the sort of immediate², everyday impact.

　　Public health is going to be a huge part of it, whether or not your children have asthma. They are going to try to connect climate change to our everyday lives, to everybody's pocketbook issues, if you will, and try to make it resonate on a much more personal level than they have in the past.

　　GWEN IFILL: And when we stop and think about it, it's not really all that unusual for Democrats to be running against Democratic or Republicans running against Republican presidents in midterm elections.

　　SUSAN PAGE: It's true.

　　But we also know that the popularity of the president is a big factor in a midterm election, especially a six-year midterm. President Obama is stuck in the low 40s, and that's very bad news for these Democrats in competitive races.

　　GWEN IFILL: Susan Page, Reid Wilson, thank you both very much.

　　REID WILSON: Thank you.

　　SUSAN PAGE: Thank you.

1 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

2 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

3 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。

4 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》

5 tack   

n.大头钉；假缝，粗缝

参考例句：

• He is hammering a tack into the wall to hang a picture.他正往墙上钉一枚平头钉用来挂画。
• We are going to tack the map on the wall.我们打算把这张地图钉在墙上。

6 curb   

n.场外证券市场，场外交易；vt.制止，抑制

参考例句：

• I could not curb my anger.我按捺不住我的愤怒。
• You must curb your daughter when you are in church.你在教堂时必须管住你的女儿。

7 curbing   

n.边石，边石的材料v.限制，克制，抑制( curb的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Progress has been made in curbing inflation. 在控制通货膨胀方面已取得了进展。
• A range of policies have been introduced aimed at curbing inflation. 为了抑制通货膨胀实施了一系列的政策。

8 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

9 curbed   

v.限制，克制，抑制( curb的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Advertising aimed at children should be curbed. 针对儿童的广告应受到限制。 来自辞典例句
• Inflation needs to be curbed in Russia. 俄罗斯需要抑制通货膨胀。 来自辞典例句

10 rust   

n.锈；v.生锈；(脑子)衰退

参考例句：

• She scraped the rust off the kitchen knife.她擦掉了菜刀上的锈。
• The rain will rust the iron roof.雨水会使铁皮屋顶生锈。

11 intervention   

n.介入，干涉，干预

参考例句：

• The government's intervention in this dispute will not help.政府对这场争论的干预不会起作用。
• Many people felt he would be hostile to the idea of foreign intervention.许多人觉得他会反对外来干预。

12 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

13 incumbent   

adj.成为责任的，有义务的；现任的，在职的

参考例句：

• He defeated the incumbent governor by a large plurality.他以压倒多数票击败了现任州长。
• It is incumbent upon you to warn them.你有责任警告他们。

14 implementation   

n.实施，贯彻

参考例句：

• Implementation of the program is now well underway.这一项目的实施现在行情看好。

15 finalized   

vt.完成（finalize的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• The draft of this article has been finalized [done]. 这篇文章已经定稿。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The draft was revised several times before it was finalized. 稿子几经删改才定下来。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

16 scrap   

n.碎片；废料；v.废弃，报废

参考例句：

• A man comes round regularly collecting scrap.有个男人定时来收废品。
• Sell that car for scrap.把那辆汽车当残品卖了吧。

17 odds   

n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别

参考例句：

• The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
• Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗？

18 asthma   

n.气喘病，哮喘病

参考例句：

• I think he's having an asthma attack.我想他现在是哮喘病发作了。
• Its presence in allergic asthma is well known.它在过敏性气喘中的存在是大家很熟悉的。

19 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

20 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

21 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

22 donors   

n.捐赠者( donor的名词复数 )；献血者；捐血者；器官捐献者

参考例句：

• Please email us to be removed from our active list of blood donors. 假如你想把自己的名字从献血联系人名单中删去，请给我们发电子邮件。
• About half this amount comes from individual donors and bequests. 这笔钱大约有一半来自个人捐赠及遗赠。 来自《简明英汉词典》