VOA慢速英語:Abortion Debate Takes Center Stage in US Election Campaign

This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

這里是美國之音慢速英語新聞報道。

The Republican Party's national convention opens Monday in Tampa, Florida. Republican delegates will officially nominate former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney as the party's candidate for president. Democratic Party delegates will gather in Charlotte, North Carolina the following week to nominate President Barack Obama for a second term.

美國共和黨代表大會將于下周在佛羅里達(dá)州的坦帕市開幕。共和黨代表將正式提名前馬薩諸塞州州長米特·羅姆尼(Mitt Romney)為該黨的總統(tǒng)候選人。民主黨代表下周將齊聚北卡羅萊納州的夏洛特市，提名巴拉克·奧巴馬競選連任。

This week, a Republican lawmaker's comments pushed the debate about abortion to the center of the election campaign. Missouri Congressman Todd Akin is a candidate for the United States Senate. A reporter asked him to explain his opposition to the operation, even in cases of rape. Mr. Akin said it was his understanding from doctors that rape victims rarely get pregnant. He said that, in the case of what he called "legitimate rape," the female body has ways to stop a pregnancy. And he said the rapist should be punished, not the child resulting from the attack.

本周，一名共和黨議員的言論將墮胎爭論推到了競選活動的中心。密蘇里州眾議員托德·埃金(Todd Akin)是美國參議院候選人。有記者請他解釋他對墮胎，甚至是強(qiáng)奸案中墮胎的反對立場。埃金表示，他從醫(yī)生那了解到，強(qiáng)奸案受害人很少懷孕。他稱，在他所謂的“正常強(qiáng)奸”的情況下，女性身體有辦法阻止懷孕。同時他還稱應(yīng)該受懲罰的是強(qiáng)奸犯，而不是強(qiáng)奸導(dǎo)致的嬰兒。

His comments were widely criticized by both Democrats and Republicans. Many described them as "insensitive." President Obama and Mr. Romney were quick to condemn the statements.

他的言論遭到了民主黨和共和黨雙方的廣泛批評。許多人稱他“麻木不仁”。奧巴馬總統(tǒng)和羅姆尼都迅速對此表示譴責(zé)。

OBAMA: "The views expressed were offensive. Rape is rape."

奧巴馬：“他所表達(dá)的觀點(diǎn)是無禮的，強(qiáng)奸就是強(qiáng)奸。”

ROMNEY: "His comments about rape were deeply offensive. And I can't defend what he said. I can't defend him."

羅姆尼：“他對強(qiáng)奸的言論是非常無禮的。我無法贊同他的言論，無法為他辯護(hù)。”

Congressman Akin has apologized. He even approved a political advertisement asking for forgiveness.

眾議員埃金已經(jīng)就此道歉。他甚至批準(zhǔn)了一個政治廣告請求原諒。

AKIN: "Rape is an evil act. I used the wrong words in the wrong way, and for that I apologize."

埃金：“強(qiáng)奸是惡行。我說錯話了，并為此道歉。”

But some people say the apology is unlikely to stop calls from Republican leaders for him to leave the Senate race. Political observer Rhodes Cook says the issue shows the problem Republican candidates have with women voters.

但是也有人說，道歉不可能讓共和黨領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人停止呼吁他退出參議員競選。政治觀察員羅德斯·庫克(Rhodes Cook)表示，這個爭端顯示出了共和黨候選人與女性選民之間的問題。

COOK: "They saw this being a terrible comment, one that made them by extension appear to be insensitive to women and their plight, particularly as victims of a horrendous crime like rape."

庫克：“他們視其為一種可怕的言論。推而廣之這種言論會使得人們認(rèn)為他們似乎對女性及其困境，特別是對強(qiáng)奸這類可怕罪行的受害人麻木不仁。”

Rhodes Cook and other observers say the comments could provide more fuel for Democratic claims that Republicans are leading a "war on women." Republicans have faced criticism from women's groups for opposing abortion and rules that health care insurance pay for birth control.

庫克和其他觀察員表示，這一言論可能為民主黨聲稱共和黨正領(lǐng)導(dǎo)一場針對女性的戰(zhàn)爭提供更多火力。共和黨因為反對墮胎和醫(yī)療保險為節(jié)育提供報銷的規(guī)定而遭到了女性團(tuán)體的批評。

On Tuesday, Republican delegates agreed to support a call for a constitutional ban on abortion as part of their party's platform. The statement makes no exceptions for rape or the sexual attack of a child or young person by a family member. The Democratic Party platform supports a woman's right to choose.

周二，共和黨代表同意支持修憲禁止墮胎作為其黨綱的一部分。這份聲明未將強(qiáng)奸，或青年與兒童受家庭成員性侵害(而墮胎)視為例外。民主黨黨綱支持女性對墮胎的選擇權(quán)。

Larry Sabato is head of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia. He says social issues like abortion usually have a big influence on voter support.

拉里·薩巴托(Larry Sabato)是弗吉尼亞大學(xué)政治中心的負(fù)責(zé)人。他表示，墮胎一類的社會問題通常對選民支持具有重大影響力。

SABATO: "People have very strong feelings on both sides, and it's a single issue for a lot of people. Once they know your position on it, pro or con, pro-choice or pro-life, they decide how they're going to vote, They actually ignore economic issues and issues of foreign policy and a whole wide range of other subjects."

薩巴托：“人們對墮胎正反兩面的意見情緒都很激動，對很多人來說這是一個單一的問題。一旦他們知道你對此的立場，贊成或反對，提倡墮胎或反墮胎，他們就會決定如何投票。他們實際上忽視了經(jīng)濟(jì)問題、外交政策問題，以及其它全部問題。”

Both he and Rhodes Cook say it is unclear whether the comments will have an effect on the elections in November. But they say the comments are likely to live on in Democratic political ads. And they say that if Mr. Akin continues to ignore calls to end his candidacy, the effects could be major.

薩巴托和庫克都表示，目前還不清楚這一言論是否會影響11月的大選。但他們說，這一言論可能會在民主黨的政治廣告中存活下去。他們還說，如果埃金先生繼續(xù)無視終止他候選人資格的呼吁，其影響可能是重大的。