Republicans confront (or sidestep) abuse accusations against midterm candidates

Republicans confront (or sidestep) abuse accusations¹ against midterm candidates

Transcript²

A recent ad from Gary Black, a Republican Senate candidate in Georgia, opens with a message on the screen: "Imagine what Democrats⁴ would do to Herschel Walker if he becomes the Republican nominee⁵."

Meanwhile, a voter settles into their sofa and turns on the TV, which plays a hypothetical Democratic attack ad: "Did you know Herschel's ex-wife accused him of, quote, 'physically⁶ abusive and extremely threatening behavior?' " a voice asks. "That she desperately⁷ sought a protective order after Walker threatened to kill her?"

Black's ad is attacking Walker for his alleged⁸ violence. But the ultimate framing here is about whether he can win and how Democrats will attack him in a general election bid against Sen. Raphael Warnock. Indeed, the ad ends with a lengthy⁹ cut of NBC's Chuck Todd saying that Warnock, a Democrat³, would be better off running against Walker.

It's emblematic¹⁰ of political calculations in multiple congressional races nationwide in which Republican candidates are accused of past violence and abuse.

The party, voters and candidates themselves are reacting to allegations in different ways

Walker has the endorsements¹² of both former President Donald Trump¹³ and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.

Axios' Jonathan Swan asked McConnell this month about how he did the calculus¹⁴ to endorse¹¹ Walker despite the abuse accusations.

McConnell responded, "The way I always do: a variety of different considerations. Every candidate has flaws and assets. This candidate has a lot of assets and is very competitive and has a great chance of winning."

Here, too, it came down to electability.

In a December interview, also with Axios, Walker did not deny his ex-wife's allegations. He also has written and spoken openly about his struggle with dissociative identity disorder¹⁵, saying it has caused him to have periods of time he does not remember.

All of that may soften¹⁶ the allegations against Walker for voters, according to Georgia Republican strategist Jay Williams.

"People are accusing him of stuff he disclosed in his own book," he said. "So, I think everybody knows he's had some struggles with mental health and mental wellness, and I do believe that people are going to probably give him a pass. I don't think that this is activity he's regularly involved with now."

Walker does, however, deny two other women's allegations of threats and harassment¹⁷, for which he was never arrested or charged. Black's ad highlights these allegations as well.

Williams, the Republican strategist, also noted¹⁸ that Warnock's ex-wife accused him of running over her foot with his car. The Democratic senator denies this, and first responders found no evident injury.

Walker has some advantages, says Williams. One is his status as a University of Georgia football hero and NFL star.

Simple partisanship¹⁹ is an advantage for candidates facing ugly allegations

"Literally²⁰, you could put two potted plants against each other," Williams said. "One of them could be a potted plant against Warnock, or Warnock could be a potted plant against Herschel. Democrats are going to vote for whoever is in that spot, and Republicans are going to vote for whoever is in their spot."

Not all candidates stick around after being accused of ugly behavior. Sean Parnell was endorsed²¹ by Trump in Pennsylvania's U.S. Senate race, but Parnell dropped out after he lost a custody²² battle in which his ex-wife accused him of abusing her and their children. Parnell denied the accusations.

Meanwhile, Senate candidate Eric Greitens of Missouri is pushing forward in his race for the seat currently held by retiring GOP Sen. Roy Blunt. Greitens' ex-wife recently alleged that he abused both her and their children.

That's on top of past allegations that he blackmailed²⁴ a woman with whom he had an affair. Those allegations ended his governorship.

Axios' Swan also asked McConnell about Greitens.

"This is a man accused of tying a woman up, blindfolding²⁵ her, taking nude²⁶ photographs of her for the purposes of blackmail²³, then coercing²⁷ her into sexual acts," Swan said. "Do you think he's electable?"

"I think the voters in the Missouri primary would take all of that into account," McConnell responded.

The party is clearly split on how to respond. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., has called on Greitens to drop out: "If you hit a woman or a child, you belong in handcuffs, not the United States Senate."

A candidate may defiantly²⁸ run against abuse allegations

Greitens, for his part, has tied the accusations into his self-portrayal as an anti-establishment Republican.

He took on a sort of Trumpian defiance²⁹ in a March video, claiming that the accusations are part of a conspiracy³⁰ by McConnell and Karl Rove, a former adviser³¹ to President George W. Bush:

"We are no longer going to allow you not just to attack me and attack my kids, but to destroy this country, and that's what you're doing. You're making life hard for millions of families around this country by cooperating with the left, by stabbing President Trump in the back, by stabbing the people of America in the back, and we're not going to stand for it anymore."

Recent polling suggests that the accusations have eliminated Greitens' lead but that he nevertheless remains³² competitive in Missouri's Republican primary.

One other candidate accused of abuse is former Trump aide Max Miller³³, running in Ohio for an open U.S. House seat. Miller is accused of abusing ex-girlfriend Stephanie Grisham — another former Trump aide — including pushing her against a wall and slapping her. He denies this and has filed suit against Grisham for defamation³⁴.

Either way, Miller still has a good chance of winning, says David B. Cohen, a professor at the Bliss³⁵ Institute of Applied³⁶ Politics at the University of Akron.

"As the district is currently drawn³⁷, it's a plus-14 Republican district," he said. "So I think that the accusations against Miller from Stephanie Grisham, I just — I don't think any of it's going to make an impact on whether he wins the race."

Given that voters, party leaders and candidates themselves have responded differently to different allegations of abuse, there's no unified³⁸ theory of how those accusations affect a Republican campaign — except, perhaps, this summation³⁹ from Cohen: "What was once unacceptable and a career killer⁴⁰ in politics is not necessarily a career killer anymore."

To Cohen, that's far more true for Republicans than for Democrats. As he put it, "If there was no difference [between] the Democratic and Republican party, Al Franken would still be a senator."

And to Cohen, it all ties back to Trump, a man accused of many instances of sexual misconduct and abuse, all of which he denies.

"I kind of think of it as the pre-Access Hollywood world and the post-Access Hollywood world," he said. "Anybody with a pulse that was following politics in 2016 thought that the Access Hollywood tape would sink Donald Trump's candidacy. Trump proved that you could win even with legitimate⁴¹ serious questions about a candidate's moral character and with legitimate accusations of sexual assault."

For Trump, winning is everything, and arguments like the one in the Gary Black ad, linking abuse allegations to electability, are a sign that he's not alone.

1 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。

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 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 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

6 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

7 desperately   

adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地

参考例句：

• He was desperately seeking a way to see her again.他正拼命想办法再见她一面。
• He longed desperately to be back at home.他非常渴望回家。

8 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

9 lengthy   

adj.漫长的，冗长的

参考例句：

• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。
• The professor wrote a lengthy book on Napoleon.教授写了一部有关拿破仑的巨著。

10 emblematic   

adj.象征的，可当标志的；象征性

参考例句：

• The violence is emblematic of what is happening in our inner cities. 这种暴力行为正标示了我们市中心贫民区的状况。
• Whiteness is emblematic of purity. 白色是纯洁的象征。 来自辞典例句

11 endorse   

vt.(支票、汇票等)背书，背署；批注；同意

参考例句：

• No one is foolish enough to endorse it.没有哪个人会傻得赞成它。
• I fully endorse your opinions on this subject.我完全拥护你对此课题的主张。

12 endorsements   

n.背书( endorsement的名词复数 )；（驾驶执照上的）违章记录；（公开的）赞同；（通常为名人在广告中对某一产品的）宣传

参考例句：

• He must make much money on those tennis shoe endorsements he does. 他替那些网球鞋珍重广告，就赚了不少钱。 来自互联网
• But celebrity endorsements remain an important promotional tool for marketers. 尽管如此，邀明星助阵仍是营销人员重要的推广手段之一。 来自互联网

13 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。

14 calculus   

n.微积分；结石

参考例句：

• This is a problem where calculus won't help at all.对于这一题，微积分一点也用不上。
• After studying differential calculus you will be able to solve these mathematical problems.学了微积分之后，你们就能够解这些数学题了。

15 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

16 soften   

v.(使)变柔软；(使)变柔和

参考例句：

• Plastics will soften when exposed to heat.塑料适当加热就可以软化。
• This special cream will help to soften up our skin.这种特殊的护肤霜有助于使皮肤变得柔软。

17 harassment   

n.骚扰，扰乱，烦恼，烦乱

参考例句：

• She often got telephone harassment at night these days.这些天她经常在夜晚受到电话骚扰。
• The company prohibits any form of harassment.公司禁止任何形式的骚扰行为。

18 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

19 Partisanship   

n. 党派性, 党派偏见

参考例句：

• Her violent partisanship was fighting Soames's battle. 她的激烈偏袒等于替索米斯卖气力。
• There was a link of understanding between them, more important than affection or partisanship. ' 比起人间的感情，比起相同的政见，这一点都来得格外重要。 来自英汉文学

20 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

21 endorsed   

vt.& vi.endorse的过去式或过去分词形式v.赞同( endorse的过去式和过去分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品

参考例句：

• The committee endorsed an initiative by the chairman to enter discussion about a possible merger. 委员会通过了主席提出的新方案，开始就可能进行的并购进行讨论。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The government has broadly endorsed a research paper proposing new educational targets for 14-year-olds. 政府基本上支持建议对14 岁少年实行新教育目标的研究报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》

22 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

23 blackmail   

n.讹诈，敲诈，勒索，胁迫，恫吓

参考例句：

• She demanded ＄1000 blackmail from him.她向他敲诈了1000美元。
• The journalist used blackmail to make the lawyer give him the documents.记者讹诈那名律师交给他文件。

24 blackmailed   

胁迫，尤指以透露他人不体面行为相威胁以勒索钱财( blackmail的过去式 )

参考例句：

• He was blackmailed by an enemy agent (into passing on state secrets). 敌特威胁他（要他交出国家机密）。
• The strikers refused to be blackmailed into returning to work. 罢工者拒绝了要挟复工的条件。

25 blindfolding   

v.（尤指用布）挡住（某人）的视线( blindfold的现在分词 )；蒙住（某人）的眼睛；使不理解；蒙骗

参考例句：

26 nude   

adj.裸体的；n.裸体者，裸体艺术品

参考例句：

• It's a painting of the Duchess of Alba in the nude.这是一幅阿尔巴公爵夫人的裸体肖像画。
• She doesn't like nude swimming.她不喜欢裸泳。

27 coercing   

v.迫使做( coerce的现在分词 )；强迫；（以武力、惩罚、威胁等手段）控制；支配

参考例句：

• All of the children had atopic dermatis coercing at least 20% of their body surface area. 所有的患儿体表有超过20%的遗传性过敏症皮炎感染。 来自互联网
• I assured him that we had no intention of coercing Israel in response a Soviet threat. 我向他保证，我们无意强迫以色列对苏联的威胁做出反映。 来自互联网

28 defiantly   

adv.挑战地，大胆对抗地

参考例句：

• Braving snow and frost, the plum trees blossomed defiantly. 红梅傲雪凌霜开。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• She tilted her chin at him defiantly. 她向他翘起下巴表示挑衅。 来自《简明英汉词典》

29 defiance   

n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗

参考例句：

• He climbed the ladder in defiance of the warning.他无视警告爬上了那架梯子。
• He slammed the door in a spirit of defiance.他以挑衅性的态度把门砰地一下关上。

30 conspiracy   

n.阴谋，密谋，共谋

参考例句：

• The men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder.这些人被裁决犯有阴谋杀人罪。
• He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him.他声称这一切都是一场针对他的阴谋。

31 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

32 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

33 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。

34 defamation   

n.诽谤；中伤

参考例句：

• Character defamation can be either oral or written.人格诽谤既可以是口头的也可以是书面的。
• The company sued for defamation.这个公司因受到诽谤而提起诉讼。

35 bliss   

n.狂喜，福佑，天赐的福

参考例句：

• It's sheer bliss to be able to spend the day in bed.整天都可以躺在床上真是幸福。
• He's in bliss that he's won the Nobel Prize.他非常高兴，因为获得了诺贝尔奖金。

36 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

37 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

38 unified   

(unify 的过去式和过去分词)； 统一的； 统一标准的； 一元化的

参考例句：

• The teacher unified the answer of her pupil with hers. 老师核对了学生的答案。
• The First Emperor of Qin unified China in 221 B.C. 秦始皇于公元前221年统一中国。

39 summation   

n.总和；最后辩论

参考例句：

• The exhibition was a summation of his life's work.这次展览汇集了他一生中典型的作品。
• The defense attorney phrased his summation at last.最后，辩护律师作了辩论总结。

40 killer   

n.杀人者，杀人犯，杀手，屠杀者

参考例句：

• Heart attacks have become Britain's No.1 killer disease.心脏病已成为英国的头号致命疾病。
• The bulk of the evidence points to him as her killer.大量证据证明是他杀死她的。

41 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。